When teens drink, alcohol affects their brains in the short-term – but repeated drinking can also impact it down the road, especially as their brains grow and develop. Short-Term Consequences of Intoxication (being “drunk”): An intoxicated youth has a harder time making good decisions. A youth is less aware that his/her behavior may be inappropriate or risky. A youth may …
Marijuana’s Long-Term Effects on the Brain
Substantial evidence from animal research and a growing number of studies in humans indicate that marijuana exposure during development can cause long-term or possibly permanent adverse changes in the brain. Rats exposed to THC (main psychoactive chemical in marijuana) before birth, soon after birth, or during adolescence show notable problems with specific learning and memory tasks later in life. Cognitive …
Rx Drug Misuse…Not What the Doctor Ordered!
Prescription drug misuse is when someone takes a medication that was prescribed for someone else or takes their own prescription in a way not intended by a doctor or for a different reason—like to get high. It has become a big health issue because of the dangers, particularly the danger of misusing prescription pain medications. For teens, it is a …
Underage Drinking…
IT’S NON-NEGOTIABLE NO USE – NO WAY! Many parents wrestle with the issue of underage drinking. Ideally, no parent wants their teen to drink or use drugs, but some parents are tempted to accept teen drinking as a harmless rite of passage. It’s unhealthy and unsafe behavior. So how can you protect your child from harm? Here are some tips: There …
The Dangers of Drugged Driving
Use of illegal drugs or misuse of prescription drugs can make driving unsafe – just like driving after drinking alcohol. Drugged driving puts the driver, passengers, and others who share the road at risk. The effects of specific drugs differ depending on how they act in the brain. For example, marijuana can slow reaction time, impair judgment of time and …
What Is the Difference Between Misuse and Abuse?
What Is the Difference Between Misuse and Abuse? The number of emergency department visits due to misuse or abuse of prescription drugs has risen 98.4% since 2004. The terms misuse and abuse are often used interchangeably, but there is a distinct difference. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explains that the difference between abuse and misuse has to do with …
Majority of High School Seniors Don’t View Marijuana as Harmful
Almost 70 percent of high school seniors don’t view regular marijuana use as harmful, according to the 2016 Monitoring the Future Survey, an annual survey of eighth, 10th, and 12th-graders by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the University of Michigan. General Arthur T. Dean, the Chairman and CEO of Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) stated, “Whether …
What is Fentanyl?
Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid analgesic that is similar to morphine but is 50 to 100 times more potent. It is a schedule II prescription drug, and it is typically used to treat patients with severe pain or to manage pain after surgery. It is also sometimes used to treat patients with chronic pain who are physically tolerant to other opioids. In its …