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More Than One-Fifth of Teens Exposed to Secondhand Smoke in Cars

More than one-fifth of middle and high school students were exposed to secondhand smoke in cars in 2009, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This represents a significant decrease from 2000, when 40 percent of teens were exposed to cigarette smoke in cars, the Associated Press reports.

Exposure to secondhand smoke in cars has been associated with breathing problems and allergy symptoms, according to the report, which is published in the journal Pediatrics. The CDC calls for more restrictions to prevent this exposure.

The findings come from national surveys of students, who were asked how often they rode in cars while someone was smoking in the past week. The most common answer was one or two days, the article notes.

“The car is the only source of exposure for some of these children, so if you can reduce that exposure, it’s definitely advantageous for health,” CDC researcher Brian King said. According to the CDC, opening a car window does not protect children from cigarette smoke inside.

The article notes several states have adopted laws that ban smoking in cars while children are present.

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DEA Charges Health Care Company with Violating License to Sell Controlled Drugs

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has charged a major health care company and two Florida CVS pharmacies with violating their licenses to sell controlled drugs. The DEA said Cardinal Health had an unusually high number of shipments of controlled painkillers to four pharmacies.

The agency suspended Cardinal Health’s controlled substance license at its distribution center in Lakeland, Florida. The center serves 2,500 pharmacies in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, according to USA Today.

After the DEA suspended the company’s license, a federal judge granted a temporary restraining order against the DEA’s suspension order. The judge’s order allows Cardinal Health to resume shipments of controlled medicines from its Lakeland facility, pending a preliminary injunction hearing scheduled for February 13.

The DEA said Cardinal Health knew, or should have known, that the four pharmacies had bought far more drugs than it needed to fill legitimate prescriptions. According to a Cardinal Health press release, over the past four years, it has stopped shipping controlled medicines to more than 350 pharmacies it determined posed an unreasonable risk of diversion and reported them to DEA. In Florida alone, Cardinal Health has stopped shipping to more than 160 pharmacies, the press release notes.

The article states this is the third time in five years that the DEA has suspended Cardinal’s controlled substances license.

The DEA also raided two CVS pharmacies in Florida, and suspended their licenses to dispense controlled substances, the article notes. A CVS spokesperson said the company had taken steps, with the DEA’s knowledge, to stop filling prescriptions from physicians thought to be prescribing controlled narcotics improperly.

In late 2011, CVS sent letters to some physicians in Florida informing them the pharmacy chain will not fill prescriptions they write for oxycodone and other Schedule II narcotic drugs.

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Pennsylvania Introduces New Program to Drug-Test Some Welfare Recipients

Officials in Pennsylvania are introducing a new drug testing program for certain welfare recipients. Pennsylvania’s program will randomly test those with a felony drug conviction within the past five years, and those on probation for such crimes. A program introduced in Florida last year to test all welfare recipients was blocked by a federal judge.

The Pennsylvania program is being piloted in one county, and could expand statewide this summer if it is shown to be cost effective, Fox News reports.

“One of the biggest suggestions I hear from constituents at the numerous town hall meetings I regularly hold is that we need to drug test welfare beneficiaries,” State Senator David Argall, who supports the measure, said in a statement. “With over $10 billion going to the Department of Public Welfare, this initiative seeks to stop the abuse within our welfare system.”

The National Conference of State Legislatures says at least 36 states put forth proposals last year around drug testing of welfare and foods stamps. In addition to Florida, Arizona and Missouri also passed legislation. The measures in those two states were tailored more narrowly, the article notes.

Opponents of measures to require drug testing for welfare recipients say they are unfair, and are not cost effective.

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Colorado Marijuana Supporters Need 2,500 More Signatures to Get Measure on Ballot

The Colorado Secretary of State said Friday that supporters of a measure to legalize possession of marijuana for recreational use need an additional 2,500 signatures in order to get the initiative on the ballot.

Seattlepi.com reports that Secretary of State Scott Gessler said tens of thousands of signatures already turned in were invalid. Supporters have about two weeks to collect the new signatures.

The group “Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol” turned in about 160,000 signatures in favor of their proposal last month; only 84,000 are required. The article notes election officials said 80,000 of those signatures were invalid.

Medical marijuana is legal in Colorado. The number of dispensaries has grown, and 80,558 state residents had medical marijuana cards as of November 2011, according to the state Department of Public Health. There is much debate within Colorado about medical marijuana—85 communities in the state have banned or stopped openings of dispensaries.

The Colorado measure would allow adults over 21 to be able to possess small amounts of marijuana without a doctor’s recommendation. Even if the measure is approved, marijuana would remain illegal under federal law, the article notes.

Proponents of marijuana legalization have also submitted signatures for a ballot proposal in Washington state.

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In Case You Missed It: Excerpt from “Meet The Parents Hour” with Celebrity Chef Andrew Zimmern

Andrew Zimmern, Chef & "Bizarre Foods" Host

The Partnership at Drugfree.org featured award-winning TV personality, chef and father Andrew Zimmern during an exciting, live chat and Q&A with our Facebook community this week.

Having just celebrated 20 years in recovery, Andrew opened the online discussion by sharing how he became “a drug addict and an alcoholic” and explained how he lost everything due to his addiction.

Andrew went on to share his personal story of triumph and path to recovery and offer encouragement to others who are now struggling with a loved one’s addiction.

Here’s an excerpt from “Meet The Parents Hour” featuring Andrew Zimmern:

Question from ALL RISE: “Hi Andrew. Thanks so much for participating in this. As a public figure, what was your process for deciding to talk openly about your addiction and recovery? Was it a decision you grappled with, or was it something you always knew you wanted to do?”

Answer from Andrew Zimmern: “When I sobered up I was told I needed an alternative to the world of drinking/drugging. I needed it to fill the time void, and the relationship void, so drugs/alcohol were a higher power for me, a false one, but they were. I thought I could depend on them to solve my problems, and help me grow. I had faith in them in a twisted way. When I got clean, my mentors, sponsors and  friends all told me that getting into a 12-step program would help me. They were right. Today I still practice those principles and try to give back wherever I can.”

Question from Sarah Rayer: “It is very courageous to share your story of long term-recovery. What has been the most rewarding thing about talking about your recovery with others?” 

Answer from Andrew Zimmern: “My story is my most powerful personal recovery weapon. It reminds and informs me of where I have been and where I can go…and it helps show others that recovery is possible for anyone, no matter how far they have fallen.”

Question from Next Gen Counseling: “How much of a role has your relationship with your Higher Power played in your recovery? What does that look like for you?” 

Answer from Andrew Zimmern: “My relationship to a power greater than myself is the foundation of my recovery and without it I would be dead. I was always the most important person on earth and that feeling almost killed me. Today I am not and I am happy and successful in life. The math is easy. Alcoholism is not a choice. Addiction is not a choice. The disease starts long before the picking up. Just the same, in my recovery I learned that putting the drugs and booze away was just the beginning. Being a good dad, a good friend and a good husband is infinitely harder.”

“Like” the Partnership at Drugfree.org on Facebook and see the full chat transcript of Andrew Zimmern’s chat. 

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A New Paradigm for Substance Abuse Treatment

Substance abuse treatment is committed to abstinence from nonmedical drug use. Yet, continued nonmedical drug and alcohol use and relapse are so common that they are often defined as part of the disease itself.

A “new paradigm” for care management has been pioneered over the past four decades by the state Physician Health Programs (PHPs).1 PHPs provide diagnostic evaluation, treatment referral, close monitoring and support services to health care professionals who have conditions, including in particular substance use disorders, which can impair their ability to practice medicine with reasonable skill and safety. In dealing with substance use disorders, PHPs use a zero tolerance standard for any alcohol or other drug use, enforced by intensive random testing and close linkage to the 12-step programs of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous to produce remarkable long-term outcomes. These outcomes set a far higher standard for success in treatment and they cast doubt on the definition of addiction as being characterized by relapse. They demonstrate that the environment in which the decision to use or not to use alcohol and drugs is a powerful determinant of outcomes.

PHPs use frequent random drug tests with panels covering 20+ substances often including advanced alcohol tests which can detect recent use up to six days after alcohol consumption. Each day, physicians call a telephone number to learn if they are required to be drug tested that day. There are immediate and serious consequences for a positive test or for any other noncompliance with the program, including skipping tests. Noncompliant physicians are typically removed from medical practice and are admitted to more intensive treatment under even more intense monitoring.

The first national study of the physicians in 16 state PHPs showed that over the course of five years of monitoring, 64 percent completed their monitoring contracts, 16 percent signed new contracts or extended their contracts and 28 percent did not complete their contract.2 Among the physicians who completed or extended their contracts, 81 percent had no relapse during the five years of monitoring. Among the physicians who had at least one positive drug test, 74 percent never had a second positive. The overall positive rate was about one half of one percent, meaning on average, one in 200 tests were positive for any alcohol or drug use.

The lessons learned from the PHP experience are widely applicable in many other settings including drug-free workplace programs. Physicians in PHPs have a lot on the line, including their careers. It is in the interest of these physicians to become drug- and alcohol-free and resume their medical practices. The same can be said for employees who participate in workplace recovery programs.

While some may dismiss the PHP results because physicians are a uniquely advantaged patient population, a similar approach has produced outstanding results in a dramatically different population of addicted people — convicted felons on probation. A randomized control study of the pioneering HOPE Program showed that compared to a control group of standard probationers, HOPE participants were 55 percent less likely to be arrested for new crimes, 72 percent less likely to use drugs, 61 percent less likely to miss appointments with probation officers and 53 percent less likely to have their probation revoked.3 HOPE probationers were sentenced to 48 percent fewer days of incarceration.

The new paradigm of long-term monitoring with swift, certain and serious consequences for any detection of drug or alcohol has the potential to substantially improve long-term outcomes for substance abuse treatment.

Robert L. DuPont, MD
President, Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc.
www.ibhinc.org

1DuPont, R. L. & Humphreys, K. (2011). A new paradigm for long-term recovery. Substance Abuse, 32(1), 1-6.

2McLellan, A. T., Skipper, G. E., Campbell, M. G. & DuPont, R. L. (2008). Five year outcomes in a cohort study of physicians treated for substance use disorders in the United States. British Medical Journal, 337:a2038.

3Hawken, A. & Kleiman, M. (2009). Managing Drug Involved Probationers With Swift and Certain Sanctions: Evaluating Hawaii’s HOPE. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

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Study of Siblings’ Brains Provides Clues to Addiction

A new study of siblings’ brain structure and function may provide clues to addiction. Time reports that the study suggests at least some brain changes seen in addiction are a cause of excessive drug use, not the result.

The study looked at the brain structure and cognitive function of 47 people with addiction, 49 of their siblings who were not addicted, and 50 healthy people who were drug-free and not related to the others in the study. The people who were addicted had been using stimulants such as cocaine or amphetamines for an average of 16 years. A little more than half also were addicted to heroin or prescription painkillers, and one-fourth also had alcoholism. Their siblings had minimal exposure to illicit drugs.

All study participants were tested on their ability to control their impulses, which is a predictor of addiction. They were given a stop-signal task, in which they are told to respond quickly and repeatedly in a specific way, such as pushing a button, and then must suddenly stop the behavior.

The researchers report in Science that both people who were addicted and their siblings demonstrated significantly reduced performance on the task compared with the drug-free, unrelated group. The results suggest that poor impulse control is not a result of drug use, but is something people are born with.

The brain scans found the siblings had similar abnormalities in an area of the brain involved with self-control, and in regions that are involved in inhibiting impulses, the article notes.

In a commentary accompanying the study, Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, noted the brain abnormalities seen in the siblings are similar to those seen in the brains of teenagers, who are well known for their impulsive behavior.

Study author Karen Ersche of the University of Cambridge said siblings of drug-addicted people may have inherited a type of protective resilience, such as an easier temperament. “The siblings may have tried drugs, but they never developed the habit,” she said.

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Smoking Linked With Increased Risk of Psoriasis

A new study links smoking with an increased risk of psoriasis. Heavy smokers, and those who smoke for many years, are at greatest risk.

Psoriasis, which causes thick, red scaly patches on the skin, is believed to be caused by an abnormal immune system attack on the body’s cells, according to Reuters. Some previous studies have suggested smoking may increase psoriasis risk because it affects the immune system. However, most of these studies have only looked at one point in time, making it difficult to pinpoint an association between smoking and the skin disease.

The new study included data from three long-running studies that included almost 186,000 adults who were followed from 12 to 20 years. The researchers found 2,410 people developed psoriasis over this period. Current and former smokers were at greatest risk.

People who smoked at the start of the study were almost twice as likely as people who had never smoked to develop psoriasis, and past smokers had a 39 percent higher risk compared with nonsmokers.

“I think if there’s one message, it’s that for now, smoking seems to be a risk factor for new-onset psoriasis,” said researcher Abrar A. Qureshi of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

The study appears in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

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Indiana’s “Blue Law” May Leave Some Unprepared Super Bowl Revelers Alcohol-Free

Indiana’s “blue law,” which bans carryout liquor sales on Sundays, may leave some unprepared Super Bowl visitors alcohol-free, according to the Associated Press. Liquor and convenience stores cannot sell carryout alcohol from 3 a.m. Sunday until 7 a.m. Monday.

According to a spokeswoman for Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, there was never a possibility of suspending the law for Super Bowl Sunday, when the New England Patriots will be playing the New York Giants in Indianapolis.

“I’m not surprised at all,” liquor store manager Paul Thistle told the AP. “If they waive it for this event, then they have to defend themselves for not waiving it at other events. It puts them in a difficult position.” He said he has received advance orders from many visiting fans. He also plans to close two hours later than usual in the days leading up to the game.

Restaurants and taverns in Indiana can get permits to serve alcohol for consumption on the premises from 7 a.m. into the early mornings of the next day, every day including Sundays. In addition, since it is legal for adults 21 and older to walk outside with a beer or cocktail, many restaurants in the state are expanding their outside seating before the game.

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Army Investigates Link Between Two Soldiers’ Deaths and Dietary Supplements

The U.S. Army is investigating a possible link between the death of two soldiers and popular dietary supplements containing dimethylamylamine, or DMAA. The New York Times reports that the supplements were available on U.S. military bases until recently.

Both soldiers died last year after they suffered heart attacks during fitness exercises.

The supplements, which are sold under brands including Jack3d and OxyElite Pro, contain DMAA, which is advertised to increase concentration, energy and metabolism. They are sold at stores including GNC and the Vitamin Shoppe, as well as online, the article notes.

The Army has removed all products with DMAA from military base stores, pending the completion of an Army safety review.
“We are concerned about reports of heat illness, kidney (and) liver damage, and sudden death in service members who reportedly used products containing DMAA,” Dr. Michael Kilpatrick, the Deputy Director of Force Health Protection and Readiness Programs with the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Health Protection and Readiness, said in an Army statement.

The statement notes DMAA is often combined with caffeine, which may accelerate metabolism, heart rate and blood pressure. These in turn may increase the body’s production of heat, especially in hot and humid conditions.

The World Anti-Doping Authority, which regulates drug use by Olympic athletes, has listed DMAA as a banned stimulant, as have several professional sports leagues.

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CADCA National Leadership Forum to Focus on Fighting Substance Abuse

Substance abuse prevention and treatment specialists will meet February 6-9 in Washington, D.C., for Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America’s (CADCA) 22nd annual National Leadership Forum. Participants will learn the latest strategies to fight substance abuse and hear from nationally known experts and policymakers.

The forum, expected to attract more than 2,500 people, is the nation’s largest training for substance abuse prevention and treatment professionals and researchers. It will cover topics ranging from preventing prescription drug abuse and inhalant use, to how to reduce the density of alcohol outlets.

Speakers will include experts from the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the  National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The meeting also will include Capitol Hill Day, when several thousand community advocates will hold meetings with their members of Congress, and the National Youth Leadership Initiative, where young people will learn how to become substance abuse prevention advocates.

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Judge Suggests Graphic Cigarette Labels May Violate Free Speech of Tobacco Companies

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon suggested Wednesday that a federal rule that would require cigarette packages to carry graphic warning labels could violate tobacco companies’ free speech rights, Reuters reports.

Last November, Leon granted tobacco companies a temporary injunction that blocked the requirement for the new labels. The Obama Administration has appealed the ruling. According to Reuters, the case ultimately could end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.

In November, Leon said it is likely the companies will win a lawsuit that claims the labels violate First Amendment protections for commercial speech. He said the labels do not have to be put on cigarette packages until the lawsuit is resolved, which could take years.

In September, tobacco manufacturers asked Leon to impose a temporary injunction to block the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) requirement that cigarette packs carry graphic images of the consequences of smoking, including diseased lungs and rotting teeth. The FDA wants the disturbing pictures to cover at least half of the front and back of a cigarette package by October 2012. The FDA also said the images must take up to at least 20 percent of each cigarette ad.

The new cigarette labels are a result of the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which gave the FDA authority to regulate the content, marketing and sale of tobacco products.

Leon said he will issue his final ruling before April 10, the date when the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia Circuit is scheduled to hear the Obama Administration’s appeal of the judge’s injunction.

At the hearing, Leon suggested that Congress had ignored legal precedents protecting commercial speech from government control, the article notes. “There’s nothing on the record to suggest that Congress gave any clear and thoughtful analysis on the First Amendment implications of this,” Leon said.

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Defense Department Expands Drug Testing Program

The Defense Department announced this week it is expanding its drug testing program to include hydrocodone and benzodiazepines. The program already tests for codeine and morphine. The new screenings were announced 90 days before they would take effect, giving service members who are addicted to prescription drugs time to seek medical help.

Hydrocodone and benzodiazepines are being added to the list of testable substances because they are among the most abused prescription drugs on the market, according to Joe Angello, the Defense Department’s Director of Operational Readiness and Safety. “You’re not at your peak mental acuity when you’re using drugs,” he said in a news release. “The military has some of the finest men and women this nation has to offer; we cannot have people in the business of arms with drug impairments.”

Service members who have prescriptions for these drugs will not be subject to disciplinary action if they use them within the dosage and time prescribed, Stars and Stripes reports.

Following a 2010 report on health promotion, risk reduction and suicide prevention in the Army that cites prescription drug abuse as a growing issue, the Army announced it is making changes to reduce the misuse of prescription pain medications. The changes include limiting the duration of a prescription so that it is not considered valid after six months without a doctor’s reevaluation and renewal.

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People with Family History of Colon Cancer May Reduce Cancer Risk if They Drink Less

Reducing alcohol consumption may decrease the incidence of colon cancer in people with a family history of the cancer, a new study suggests.

The study was based on more than 87,000 women and 47,000 men in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. The researchers found a total of 1,801 colon cancer cases among this group over 26 years of follow-up.

The researchers report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that people with a family history of colon cancer, whose average alcohol intake was about two-and-a-half drinks a day, had an increased risk of colon cancer. People at greatest risk also ate the most red meat, smoked the most, and had the lowest folate intake, which suggested they ate fewer cereals and green vegetables, according to Medical News Today.

There was not a significant association between colon cancer and alcohol among people without a family history of the disease.

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Sales of Oxycodone in Florida Dropped 20 Percent in 2011

Sales of oxycodone fell 20 percent last year in Florida, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced. Officials said the drop was mainly due to the closure of some of the state’s biggest “pill mills” and the arrest of some of the clinics’ operators and doctors, the Sun-Sentinel reports. Florida pharmacies and doctors sold about 498 million doses of oxycodone in 2011, compared with a record 622 million doses the previous year.

“These traffickers are not coming down to Florida like they did before,” said DEA spokesman David Melenkevitz. “The medical professionals got the message, too: Either straighten out or we’re coming after you.”

In June 2011, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed into law a bill designed to cut down on prescription drug abuse by controlling “pill mills” in the state. The law authorized the creation of a prescription-drug monitoring database to reduce doctor-shopping by people looking to collect multiple painkiller prescriptions. The legislation also imposed new penalties for physicians who overprescribe medication and imposes stricter rules for operating pharmacies.

The state Department of Health said there were 570 pain clinics operating in Florida as of last week, compared with more than 1,300 in 2010.

The DEA notes that Florida’s crackdown has resulted in notable increases in doctors buying oxycodone in Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky. “The combination of law enforcement activity, regulatory actions against doctors’ licenses, and the new laws are forcing addicts who previously traveled from other states to Florida seeking oxycodone to turn elsewhere,” according to a DEA news release.

USA Today reported on Monday that hundreds of people in Florida have tried to open pharmacies after the state banned doctors from dispensing opioids directly from their clinics, forcing patients to go to pharmacies to fill their prescriptions.

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New Small Device Uses Laser to Help Police Quickly Identify Drugs

Police in Massachusetts are using a handheld device with a low-power laser that helps them to quickly identify drugs. The device, which looks like a game console, is called the Thermo Scientific TruNarc.

The device can be used to scan small bags of drugs, and gives police almost instant identification, according to the Associated Press. Police in Quincy, Massachusetts, who have been testing the device for six months, say it saves them time and money. Police departments in Chicago and Los Angeles also have been testing the device.

Police traditionally have needed to use chemical test kits to identify drugs. The substance is placed in a plastic pouch that contains vials of chemicals. The officer breaks the vials in the pouch and shakes it, and checks to see what color the substance turns. Cocaine turns blue, for instance.

Each substance has its own testing kit. That means police officers may have to use several kits before they positively identify the substance they are testing. The officers must handle the drugs, and potentially could be exposed to them. Once an officer identifies a substance, it must then be sent to a state lab to confirm the findings, which could take weeks or even months. This causes delays in prosecuting cases, the article notes.

TruNarc employs the same scientific techniques used in the lab, the company says. The officer holds the sample bag against the device and presses a scan button. The device does a quick analysis and provides a result.

Police say it can be effective as an initial screen, but a second lab test would still be necessary to prosecute the case in court. The article notes the device cannot test for marijuana.

Each TruNarc device will sell for just under $20,000.

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Parents and Peers Can Help Prevent Heavy Drinking in College Freshmen

A program that uses parents and peers to help prevent college freshmen from becoming or staying heavy drinkers has shown promise in a new study by researchers at Penn State.

“Research shows there is a spike in alcohol-related consequences that occur in the first few weeks of the semester, especially with college freshmen,” researcher Michael J. Cleveland said in a news release. “If you can buffer that and get beyond that point and safely navigate through that passage, you reduce the risk of later problems occurring.”

The researchers studied two sets of interventions, one using parents and one using peers. They found that students who did not drink before starting college, and who received the parent-based intervention, were unlikely to become heavy drinkers in the first semester.

Students who drank heavily the summer before starting college were more likely to cut down on drinking if they received intervention either from parents or peers. If they received both interventions, there was no effect, Science Daily reports.

The study included 1,275 college students thought to be at high risk of heavy drinking because they were former high school athletes. They were assigned to one of four groups: intervention from parents, intervention from peers, intervention from both, or no intervention. They were surveyed the summer before they started college and again during their first semester.

The parents in the intervention group received a handbook describing how to discuss drinking with their child, and how to relate to their college student. Peers participating in the study met individually with a trained peer facilitator once within the first two weeks of college. They discussed topics including drinking consequences, caloric consumption of alcohol and how much exercise was needed to burn those calories off.

The results are published online in Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.

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Obama Announces Intent to Nominate New Deputy Director for ONDCP

President Obama this past week announced his intent to nominate Michael P. Botticelli as Deputy Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Botticelli is currently the Director of the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services in the Massachusetts Department of Health (MDPH). Since 1994, when he joined MDPH, he served as Chief of Staff of the MDPH Commissioner’s Office from 2000-2003, Assistant Director for Policy and Planning within the HIV/AIDS Bureau from 1996-2000, Contract Manager in the HIV/AIDS Bureau from 1995-1996, and Alcoholism Program Coordinator within the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services from 1994-1995.

Obama also announced his intent to appoint two others to key Administration posts. He said in a statement, “These dedicated and accomplished individuals will be valued additions to my administrations as we tackle the important challenges facing America. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”

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Start Spreading the News!

The Partnership at Drugfree.org is the first nonprofit to partner with Blue Calypso’s new “CALYP ® for a Cause,” a platform that provides charitable organizations with a new way to connect and fundraise using social media.

CALYP® for a Cause functions as a loyalty and rewards app, empowering individuals to become advocates for the charitable initiatives and brand products they care about via texts and social media posts .

The Calyp platform allows endorsers to donate their cash earnings to participating nonprofit organizations. As you share campaigns for organizations you care about, you help promote our mission while earning dollars to donate.

Start sharing and promoting The Partnership at Drugfree.org as your charity of choice to your online friends and social networks today, and you’ll help us reach even more families who need information and support. You can help by following these simple steps:

1.            Download the CALYP® app from the iTunes App Store, Android Market or join online at http://www.CALYP.com

2.            Create a CALYP® Account by using Facebook Connect or with a new username and password

3.            Type in the Promo Code: Drugfree

4.            Go to the “Philanthropic” interest category

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6.            Click the “share” button in the upper right-hand corner

7.            Personalize your message and select how you want to share. You can share through Facebook, Twitter, emails, texts and more

We encourage you to check out the CALYP® app and see just how easy it is. As always, we appreciate your support!

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Teaching Self-Regulation May be the Best Way to Influence Drug-Taking Decisions by Kids

Acknowledging that ongoing brain development during adolescence is linked to self-regulation is an important perspective for youth-serving professionals and parents as they address teenage substance use/dependence – including prescription drug diversion.

Most brain material is in place at the start of adolescence. In most cases, the size of the brain is also established by the teen years. Yet, MRI studies and other techniques tell us that several important developmental processes in the brain continue throughout adolescence. Frequently, the result is a teenager whose body may be nearly fully developed, but not his or her brain. 

As this essential “hard wiring” matures, what we as parents and others experience is a kid who may be moody; many times reckless and impulsive; increasingly secretive; more prone to be influenced by friends; and when it comes to making decisions, more prone to focus on rewards that may result from acting in a certain way – and less interested in thinking through negative consequences.

Parents and treatment providers cannot stop brain maturation, but we can shape it. One path may be to teach important self-regulation skills that are related to decision making. This way we help strengthen what may be a “weakness” for the adolescent brain.
 
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices identifies these skills as impulse control, “second” thought processes; social decision-making, dealing with risk situations and taking healthy risks.
 
Bottom line: just telling the teenager about the rules and expectations is not enough. Helping guide a teenager as to how he or she might handle a challenging situation is better for self-regulation. Some examples:

“Call home and we will come and get you, rather than you getting a ride home with a drunk friend.”

“Let’s review how you’re going to say ‘no’ when you’re faced with pressure from your friends to do something you know is wrong.”
  
“Don’t just act on an impulse. Pause and think of options, then act.”

Parents, doctors, treatment providers and educators are crucial to influencing teenagers’ decisions for or against drinking or drug taking. Teaching developmentally appropriate self-regulation skills may make better sense than asking something of a young person whose brain isn’t (yet) fully capable of delivering the action requested. Certainly, exercising developmentally appropriate influence to account for those times is a role for all of us.  

Ken C. Winters, PhD is Associate Director of the Parents Translational Research Center at the Treatment Research Institute in Philadelphia. He is also Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Director, Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research, at the University of Minnesota. 

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