Prescription Drug Abuse Proving Difficult to Contain

Prescription drug abuse affected nearly 7 million Americans in 2007, and problems ranging from poorly trained prescribers to easy access to medications among young people are making it difficult to stem the tide, Reuters reported July 30.

Non-medical use of prescription drugs is up 80 percent since 2000, and overdose deaths from prescription medication are now the leading cause of accidental death among adults ages 45 to 54. But among physicians, parents and other segments of society, there often seems to be a laissez-faire attitude about the dangers associated with pain medications and other prescription drugs.

“There's very low social disapproval,” said Stephen Pasierb, president and chief executive of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. “In fact, there are parents who [are] almost relieved that their kid is using Vicodin and not smoking marijuana.”

Authorities are attempting to institute several measures to block access to prescription medications, which many youths report are readily available via the family medicine cabinet. A program run by the University of Maine is allowing elderly consumers to mail unused prescription drugs to the state in postage-paid envelopes so that the unneeded medications don't end up getting misused by someone else.

Meanwhile, the number of Americans receiving substance use treatment related to pain medication jumped by 321 percent from 1995 to 2005. Some authorities believe the most productive outreach efforts should target physicians. Len Paulozzi, an epidemiologist with the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, recently told members of Congress that physicians have not received sufficient training in the pharmacology of potentially dangerous opioid painkillers. 

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Prescription Drug Abuse, Smoking Higher Among Teen Girls

More teenage girls than boys now smoke and abuse prescription drugs, and girls also are starting to use marijuana, alcohol, and cigarettes at a higher rate than boys, according to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).

The Washington Post reported Feb. 9 that the rise in teen female drug use is opposite overall trends, which indicate less use of illicit drugs.  ONDCP drew its conclusions from an analysis of the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

Increased stress, concerns about appearance, and the need to escape the trauma of physical or sexual abuse are among the factors that may be involved in the trend. “Girls want to do what older guys are doing or they want to be cool,” said Meghan Ward, 18, who volunteers with a Connecticut group called Peer Advocates. “Girls do feel a lot of stress — everything from school, to most of us work, we have boyfriends and we want to maintain good friendships. It's hard.”

More girls were first-time marijuana users in 2002, 2003, and 2004, and many more used prescription drugs illicitly than boys of the same age.

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