Category: Addiction
More than 15% of US adults report binge drinking, defined as 5 or more drinks on a single occasion for men or 4 or more drinks on a single occasion for women. Most who binge drink are not alcohol-dependent or alcoholics and often don’t realize the dangers of this sort of drinking.
Bad reactions to medications are on the rise:
Between 1997 and 2008, hospital admissions doubled among Americans aged 45 and older for medication and drug-related conditions.
These hospital admissions include the effects of prescription and over-the-counter medicines as well as illegal drugs.
Common problems: confusion, delirium and agitation; narcotic overdose; and symptoms of drug withdrawal from legal and illegal drug use.
The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has posted an updated version of its guide for finding drug and alcohol treatment programs near you. The guide provides a directory that you can search by city, state or zip code to find local programs and facilities that are licensed and certified in each state. [...]
Electronic cigarettes, or “e-cigarettes”, which are often sold as a safe alternative to regular cigarettes, give off toxic chemicals and carcinogens, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said today. The battery-operated devices are available at shopping malls and online and are marketed to young people. They contain nicotine, flavoring, and other chemicals. A laboratory analysis [...]
More than half of drug-related deaths in King County last year involved the use of prescription opiate drugs that are most often prescribed for pain control, according to a new report. Often the drugs are obtained without a prescription. The annual report was put together by the Community Epidemiology Work Group. a collaboration of public [...]
Washington state spends more than 15 percent of its budget coping with problems due to tobacco, alcohol and drug abuse, according to a new study. The study, conducted by National Center on Addiction and Drug Abuse, a private group at Columbia University in New York City, found that in 2005, the latest year for which [...]
Google wants to know why users search for health-related information Google wants to know what you have in mind when you’re searching for health information. Do you want to know about a headache because you have one or are you just interested? To find out, Google has is inviting users to participate in a new [...]
Drug and alcohol abuse on the rise in Washington state “Abuse of drugs and alcohol is on the rise in Washington state, including one of the highest rates of nonmedical use of prescription pain relievers in the nation, according to the state Department of Social and Health Services,” the Associated Press reports in the Seattle [...]
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Lost in translation: Lack of trained interpreters can lead to medical errors
Interpreter services at hospitals and other medical settings are often inadequate, forcing family members, including children, to step in, or the task falls to medical staff members who may not speak the language well.
Some insurers deny ER coverage to people who have been drinking
Laws in more than half the states permit insurers to deny payment for medical services related to alcohol or drug use. Faced with the prospect of not getting paid for care, some ER personnel sidestep the problem by simply not testing patients’ blood or urine for alcohol.
Travel insurance can protect your wallet — and your health on vacation
Think your regular health insurance policy will cover you if you get into medical trouble overseas?
Don’t bet on it.
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