Drug deaths now outnumber traffic fatalities in U.S., data show
Fueling the surge are prescription pain and anxiety drugs that are potent, highly addictive and especially dangerous when combined with one another or with other drugs or alcohol.  A toxic combination

Lori Smith of Aliso Viejo with photographs of her son Nolan, who died of a drug overdose in January 2009, six months shy of his 16th birthday. A toxicology test turned up Zoloft, which had been prescribed for anxiety, and a host of other drugs that had not been prescribed, including two additional anti-anxiety drugs, as well as morphine and marijuana. (Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times / September 18, 2011)

By Lisa Girion, Scott Glover and Doug Smith, Los Angeles Times

September 17, 2011, 2:55 p.m.
Propelled by an increase in prescription narcotic overdoses, drug deaths now outnumber traffic fatalities in the United States, a Times analysis of government data has found.

Drugs exceeded motor vehicle accidents as a cause of death in 2009, killing at least 37,485 people nationwide, according to preliminary data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While most major causes of preventable death are declining, drugs are an exception. The death toll has doubled in the last decade, now claiming a life every 14 minutes. By contrast, traffic accidents have been dropping for decades because of huge investments in auto safety.

Public health experts have used the comparison to draw attention to the nation's growing prescription drug problem, which they characterize as an epidemic. This is the first time that drugs have accounted for more fatalities than traffic accidents since the government started tracking drug-induced deaths in 1979.

Fueling the surge in deaths are prescription pain and anxiety drugs that are potent, highly addictive and especially dangerous when combined with one another or with other drugs or alcohol. Among the most commonly abused are OxyContin, Vicodin, Xanax and Soma. One relative newcomer to the scene is Fentanyl, a painkiller that comes in the form of patches and lollipops and is 100 times more powerful than morphine.

Such drugs now cause more deaths than heroin and cocaine combined.

"The problem is right here under our noses in our medicine cabinets," said Laz Salinas, a sheriff's commander in Santa Barbara, which has seen a dramatic rise in prescription drug deaths in recent years.

Overdose victims range in age and circumstance from teenagers who pop pills to get a heroin-like high to middle-aged working men and women who take medications prescribed for strained backs and bum knees and become addicted.

A review of hundreds of autopsy reports in Southern California reveals one tragic demise after another: A 19-year-old Army recruit, who had just passed his military physical, took a handful of Xanax and painkillers while partying with friends. A groom, anxious over his upcoming wedding, overdosed on a cocktail of prescription drugs. A teenage honors student overdosed on painkillers her father left in his medicine cabinet from a surgery years earlier. A toddler was orphaned after both parents overdosed on prescription drugs months apart. A grandmother suffering from chronic back pain apparently forgot she'd already taken her daily regimen of pills and ended up double dosing.

Many died after failed attempts at rehab — or after using one too many times while contemplating quitting. That's apparently what happened to a San Diego woman found dead with a Fentanyl patch on her body, one of five she'd applied in the 24 hours before her death. Next to her on the couch was a notebook with information about rehab.

The seeds of the problem were planted more than a decade ago by well-meaning efforts by doctors to mitigate suffering, as well as aggressive sales campaigns by pharmaceutical manufacturers. In hindsight, the liberalized prescription of pain drugs "may in fact be the cause of the epidemic we're now facing," said Linda Rosenstock, dean of the UCLA School of Public Health.

In some ways, prescription drugs are more dangerous than illicit ones because users don't have their guard up, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Sgt. Steve Opferman, head of a county task force on prescription drug-related crimes. "People feel they are safer with prescription drugs because you get them from a pharmacy and they are prescribed by a doctor," Opferman said. "Younger people believe they are safer because they see their parents taking them. It doesn't have the same stigma as using street narcotics."

Lori Smith said she believes that's what her son might have been thinking the night he died six months shy of his 16th birthday. Nolan Smith, of Aliso Viejo, loved to surf, sail and fish with his brother and father. He suffered from migraines and anxiety but showed no signs of drug abuse, his mother said.

The night before he died in January 2009, Nolan called his mother at work, asking for a ride to the girls basketball game at Aliso Niguel High School. Lori told him she couldn't get away.

When Nolan didn't come home that evening, his parents called police and his friends. His body was found the next morning on a stranger's front porch.

A toxicology test turned up Zoloft, which had been prescribed for anxiety, and a host of other drugs that had not been prescribed, including two additional anti-anxiety drugs, as well as morphine and marijuana.

All investigators could give the family were theories.

"They said they will have parties where the kids will throw a bunch of pills in a bowl and the kids take them without knowing what they are," Lori said. "We called all of his friends, but no one would say they were with him. But he must have been with someone. You just don't do that by yourself."

The triumph of public health policies that have improved traffic safety over the years through the use of seat belts, air bags and other measures stands in stark contrast to the nation's record on prescription drugs. Even though more people are driving more miles, traffic fatalities have dropped by more than a third since the early 1970s to 36,284 in 2009. Drug-induced deaths had equaled or surpassed traffic fatalities in California, 22 other states and the District of Columbia even before the 2009 figures revealed the shift at the national level, according to the Times analysis.

The Centers for Disease Control collects data on all causes of death each year and analyzes them to identify health problems. Drug-induced deaths are mostly accidental overdoses but also include suicides and fatal diseases caused by drugs.

The CDC's 2009 statistics are the agency's most current. They are considered preliminary because they reflect 96% of death certificates filed. The remaining are deaths for which the causes were not immediately clear.

Drug fatalities more than doubled among teens and young adults between 2000 and 2008, years for which more detailed data are available. Deaths more than tripled among people aged 50 to 69, the Times analysis found. In terms of sheer numbers, the death toll is highest among people in their 40s.

Overdose deaths involving prescription painkillers, including OxyContin and Vicodin, and anti-anxiety drugs such as Valium and Xanax more than tripled between 2000 and 2008.

The rise in deaths corresponds with doctors prescribing more painkillers and anti-anxiety medications. The number of prescriptions for the strongest pain pills filled at California pharmacies, for instance, increased more than 43% since 2007 — and the doses grew by even more, nearly 50%, according to a review of prescribing data collected by the state.

Those prescriptions provide relief to pain sufferers but also fuel a thriving black market. Prescription drugs are traded on Internet chat rooms that buzz with offers of "vikes," "percs" and "oxys" for $10 to $80 a pill. They are sold on street corners along with heroin, marijuana and crack. An addiction to prescription drugs can be costly; a heavy OxyContin habit can run twice as much as a heroin addiction, authorities say.

On a recent weekday morning, Los Angeles County undercover sheriff's deputies posing as drug buyers easily purchased enough pills to fill a medicine cabinet on a sidewalk a few blocks south of Los Angeles City Hall.

The most commonly abused prescription drug, hydrocodone, also is the most widely prescribed drug in America, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. Better known as Vicodin, the pain reliever is prescribed more often than the top cholesterol drug and the top antibiotic.

"We have an insatiable appetite for this drug — insatiable," Joseph T. Rannazzisi, a top DEA administrator, told a group of pharmacists at a regulatory meeting in Sacramento.

In April, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy announced initiatives aimed at stanching prescription drug abuse. The plans include a series of drug take-back days, modeled after similar programs involving weapons, in which consumers are encouraged to turn leftover prescription drugs in to authorities. Another initiative would develop voluntary courses to train physicians on how to safely prescribe pain drugs, a curriculum that is not widely taught in medical schools.

Initial attempts to reverse the trend in drug deaths — such as state-run prescription drug-monitoring programs aimed at thwarting "doctor-shopping" addicts — don't appear to be having much effect, experts say.

"What's really scary is we don't know a lot about how to reduce prescription deaths," said Amy S.B. Bohnert, a researcher at the University of Michigan Medical School who is studying ways to lower the risk of prescription drugs.

"It's a wonderful medical advancement that we can treat pain," Bohnert said. "But we haven't figured out the safety belt yet."

lisa.girion@latimes.com

scott.glover@latimes.com

doug.smith@latimes.com

Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times

Jul 21, 2011
Coalition resources: Media Literacy
Drug type: Tobacco

The Associated Press reported this week that a new study determined three top-grossing film companies have drastically reduced smoking in their movies aimed at children and teens, thanks, in part, to their policies to reduce on-screen tobacco use.

The study, funded by Legacy, an anti-tobacco non-profit group, was conducted by and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and was published in its “Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.” The study found that during the past five years, scenes involving tobacco dropped from an average of 23 to one per film for those companies and most of their youth movies had no smoking at all. Youth-rated films were the focus of the study.

Researchers looked at the three companies with policies to reduce smoking: Time Warner (Warner Bros.); Comcast (Universal and Focus Features); and the Walt Disney Company (Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone, Pixar and Buena Vista.) Tobacco scenes declined by about 96 percent in those companies' films over the last five years, and most of the youth-rated films had no smoking at all.

For film companies without policies, the number of tobacco incidents dropped by 42 percent. More than 40 percent of their youth-rated films still have tobacco. Those companies include: News Corp. (20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight); Sony (Sony Pictures and Columbia Pictures); and Viacom (Paramount Pictures, MTV Films and Marvel). Some independent film companies were also analyzed.

At least part of the decline happened before policies were in place, and outside pressure and cultural changes may have played a role, researchers noted.

"We know that it's not a hardship for the companies. These movies can continue to be successful and sell tickets," said one of the study authors, Ursula E. Bauer, PhD, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, CDC.

Multiple studies indicate a causal relationship between exposure to depictions of smoking in movies and youth smoking initiation. The 2010 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services strategic plan to reduce tobacco use includes reducing youth exposure to onscreen smoking.
 

As you know, prescription drug abuse and drugged driving are on the rise
in this country. Cleaning out your medicine cabinet used to mean
flushing it all down the toilet or throwing it in the garbage. The DEA recognized
this problem and assisted our country by sponsoring a local drug drop off annually
thereby collecting "tons" of pills each year. This year the National Drug
Take Back day is scheduled for Saturday, April 30, 2011.
The Newtown Prevention Council thought "why wait for an annual drop off?"
Let's make Newtown healthier day to day by having a permanent lock box
that can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

This initiative will keep all of our residents safe especially our children, grandchildren
and our elderly. Let's keep our medicine cabinet clean and our lives healthy!

Please join us!

When: Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Time: 2:00 pm
Host: Police Chief Michael Kehoe/Co-Chair Newtown Prevention Council
Where: Police Headquarters, 3 Main Street, Newtown
RSVP: Kim Killoy, Grant Coordinator (newtownpreventioncouncil@gmail.com)

Research Report Series
Marijuana Abuse
From the Director

What is Marijuana?
Marijuana—often called pot, grass, reefer, weed, herb, Mary Jane, or MJ—is a greenish-gray mixture of the dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds, and flowers of Cannabis sativa—the hemp plant.
Read More...
By the time they graduate from high school, about 42 percent of teens will have tried marijuana. Although current use among U.S. teens has dropped dramatically in the past decade (to a prevalence of about 14 percent in 2009), this decline has stalled during the past several years. These data are from the Monitoring the Future study, which has been tracking drug use among teens since 1975. Still, the World Health Organization ranks the United States first among 17 European and North American countries for prevalence of marijuana use. And more users start every day. In 2008, an estimated 2.2 million Americans used marijuana for the first time; greater than half were under age 18.

The use of marijuana can produce adverse physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral effects. It can impair short-term memory and judgment and distort perception. Because marijuana affects brain systems that are still maturing through young adulthood, its use by teens may have a negative effect on their development. And contrary to popular belief, it can be addictive.

We hope that this Research Report will help make readers aware of our current knowledge of marijuana abuse and its harmful effects.

Nora D. Volkow, M.D.
Director
National Institute on Drug Abuse

Revised September 2010

This report is also for download,
Marijuana Abuse, [PDF format, 4.1 MB]

Know! Parent Tips are designed to educate and empower parents of middle school students so that they will have sufficient, accurate, and relevant information to have conversations with their child about the risks associated with substance abuse. Visit HelpThemKnow.com to sign up to receive the twice-monthly Parent Tips.

Know! To Build Your Child's Self-Esteem The power of self-esteem cannot be underestimated. The way a person thinks and feels about himself directly impacts confidence, motivation, attitude, behavioral choices and emotional well-being. When it comes to choices surrounding alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, an adolescent armed with healthy self-esteem is much more likely to be able to resist the negative influences and make good decisions. On the opposite side, youth with low self-esteem are at increased risk of knowingly making poor choices, simply to gain the approval of others. Self-esteem begins to form early in life; established first through signals received from parents, then through interactions with peers, teachers, coaches and others. While parents have limited control over the outside interactions, they can control the way they parent, which can either build-up or tear-down the foundation of their child's self-esteem. Formula for Low Self-Esteem = Parents who expect perfection, constantly ridicule, harshly criticize, intentionally embarrass, tease or ignore their child. Formula for High Self-Esteem = Parents who choose their words carefully, listen to and value their child's opinion, are realistic but optimistic about life in general, show affection and appreciation for their child, give positive feedback, praise and encouragement, are respectful of and value themselves and others, foster independence and provide a safe and loving home environment for their child. Visit HelpThemKnow.com for tips to share with your child regarding outside interactions.

Many Youth Get Alcohol from Parent or Home A new study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) indicates that 5.9 percent of adolescents aged 12 to 14 drank alcohol in the past month, and that the vast majority of them (93.4 percent) received their alcohol for free the last time they drank. About 317,000 (44.8 percent) 12 to 14 year olds who drank in the past month received their alcohol for free from their family or at home. This includes 15.7 percent (or an estimated 111,000) who were provided alcohol for free by their parents or guardians. SAMHSA Data Spotlight: Young Alcohol Users Often Get Alcohol from Family or Home is based on the combined data from SAMHSA’s 2006 to 2009 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), and involves responses from more than 44,000 respondents ages 12 to 14. NSDUH is a primary source of information on national use of tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs (including non-medical use of prescription drugs) and mental health in the United States. The survey is part of the agency’s strategic initiative on behavioral health data, quality and outcomes. A copy of the report is accessible at: http://oas.samhsa.gov/spotlight/Spotlight022YouthAlcohol.pdf. There have been several news stories about whether or not parents should provide alcohol to their children, including an interview, Should Parents Let Their Teens Drink at Home, by Today Show's Matt Lauer, and Dad, I prefer the Shiraz by the Wall Street Journal. The legality of parents providing alcohol vary by state, and in 19 states it is unlawful for parents to provide alcohol to minors. In addition to the potential legal consequences associated with providing alcohol to minors, brain research suggests that learning and memory functions are affected much more by minors than by adults. Additionally, research indicates that teen drinkers perform poorly more often in school, and have an increased risk for social problems. Additional information about the effects of alcohol on the teen brain are available in the Drug-Free Action Alliance position paper, Keep the Minimum Drinking Age at 21.

New Alcopop Entering the Market: Blast by Colt 45 According to the Wall Street Journal article, Pabst Horse of a Different Color: Colt 45 Enterst Controversial Ring, a new alcopop will be entering the market next month called 'Blast by Colt 45'. Blast, from Pabst Brewing Company will come in flavors such as strawberry lemonade and raspberry watermelon. To further capitalize on Colt 45's primary demographic, urban, African-American males, the company has penned an endorsement agreement with Rapper Snoop Dogg, who will serve as the spokesman for the new product. Snoop Dogg will promote the brand during live music concerts, television and other appearances. Drug-Free Action Alliance has written a position paper on alcopops, of which Blast is an example of, and advocates for properly taxing alcopops as mixed beverages in Ohio. Other states are also advocating to reclassify alcopops to classifications which are taxed at higher rates. Research shows a higher tax would reduce youth access to alcohol through price sensitivity. According to Monitoring the Future data analyzied by Jim Mosher, Pacific Institute on Research and Evaluation has found that the percent of drinkers who have used alcopops in the last 30 days steadily declines as drinkers age, with the highest percentage (77%) starting in 8th grade. The Drug-Free Action Alliance position paper, Properly Classifying and Taxing Alcopops is available at DrugFreeActionAlliance.org.

DEA Holding 2nd Nationwide Prescription Drug Take-Back Day The U.S. Department of Justice - Drug Enforcement Administration has announced the 2nd National Prescription Drug Take Back Day will be Saturday, April 30, 2011. For additional information and a list of collection sites in your State please go to: Justice.gov/dea.

My name is Misty Fetko and I am a registered nurse who works in a very busy Emergency Room in Central Ohio, but, more importantly, I am a mother of two wonderful boys and I want to tell the story of my oldest son, Carl.

Carl was my beautiful little boy; eyes like large, dark chocolates, an infectious smile, and an insatiable curiosity. I spent years protecting him from harm, but two and a half years ago, harm found a way to sneak in and steal the life of this gifted young man.

Carl was my beautiful little boy; eyes like large, dark chocolates, an infectious smile, and an insatiable curiosity. I spent years protecting him from harm, but two and a half years ago, harm found a way to sneak in and steal the life of this gifted young man.

It was the morning of July 16, 2003. Carl had just graduated from high school and was getting ready to leave for Memphis College of Art in two days. The college had courted him, after he won an award for artwork he created his junior year of high school.

The night before, Carl and I had sat in his room and talked with each other about his day at work and the pending trip to Memphis. He smiled and hugged me goodnight. He said, “Goodnight Mom. Love you.”

The next morning, I decided to walk the dog before waking Carl. While walking next to his car, I noticed an empty bottle of cough syrup in Carl’s backseat. Instantly, I knew something was wrong. Knowing that teenagers have a tendency to experiment, I had been vigilant for signs of drug abuse in the past and hadn’t seen many. I rushed to his bedroom door only to find it locked. After finding my way in, I discovered Carl lying peacefully in bed, motionless with his legs crossed. He wasn’t responding to my screams, and he wasn’t breathing.

I quickly transformed from mother to nurse and I began CPR, desperately trying to breathe life back into my son. I could not believe my worst fear had happened. My son was dead, but I still did not know what had caused this nightmare.

We are a very close family. I was a very involved mother. Carl had always assured me that he wasn’t using alcohol or drugs. I knew he was a good kid and I believed him.

During Carl’s junior year of high school, I found the first evidence of marijuana in his room. After all the talks and all the reassurances between us; what had changed? I intervened, and didn’t see anything else suspicious until that summer when I found two empty bottles of cough syrup in our basement after a sleepover with friends. I was determined to keep drugs out of our house, but cough syrup? I went to search for answers on the internet, but found nothing and confronted my son instead. Carl explained that he and his friends had experimented, but that nothing happened from the cough srup abuse. I was reassured, once again, that he wasn’t using “hard” drugs and not to worry. Again, I believed him.

During his senior year, I knew Carl had developed an interest for marijuana, but I thought we had addressed it and I didn’t believe that he was abusing any other drugs. So why on that dreadful July morning did I discover my son had passed away during the night?

The next several months after Carl’s death I frantically searched for answers. What signs did I miss?

During my search, I found two more empty bottles of cough syrup. But it wasn’t until after talking with his friends and finding journal entries on his computer, that I discovered that Carl had been experimenting cough syrup abuse intermittently over the past 2 ½ years. He documented his cough syrup abuse in his computer journal. Through the internet and his friends, Carl had researched and educated himself on how to use these products to get high. He wrote about and enjoyed the hallucinations achieved upon intentionally abusing cough and cold products. Carl had described the “pull” that he felt towards the disassociative effects of the abuse of the cough syrup and seemed to crave them.

According to the journal, Carl gradually increased the amount of cough syrup he abused. He wrote that he was increasingly “pulled” to the effects of escape more and more.

As his cough syrup abuse increased, many things in his life were changing: graduation, college, his parents’ divorce, and increasing pressures in his life.

I wouldn’t find out until the morning of Carl’s death what he and many others knew about his cough syrup abuse. The danger that I so desperately tried to keep out of our house had found a way to sneak in secretly. But there were no needles, no powders, no smells, no large amounts of money being spent – none of the “typical” signs associated with drug abuse.

Carl’s autopsy report revealed that he had died from a lethal mix of drugs: Fentanyl, a strong prescription narcotic available in a patch that is removed and eaten to achieve an abusive high. Cannaboids found in marijuana, and DXM, the active ingredient in cough syrup were found in his system.

To this day, I still don’t know where Carl obtained the narcotic Fentanyl. There are no journal entries that talk about his use of painkillers. Was this his first time? Was he looking for a different high? I will never know why Carl made the wrong choice to abuse prescription and over-the-counter drugs. I only know parts of his story by the words he left behind in his journal; his words are now silent.

I have spent many hours trying to find the reason for this unexplainable tragedy. If loving my son were enough, Carl would have lived forever. But I know now that abuse of over-the-counter and prescription drugs is rapidly emerging.
Parents and their children need to be made aware of these lurking dangers – and keep up on the latest teen drug trends.

Be involved in your kids’ lives and talk to them regularly about the dangers of drugs -- even cough syrup. Don’t be afraid of questioning them. Don’t be afraid of being a pest.

It is with a heavy heart and eternal love for my son that I share his story to hopefully prevent other families from having to suffer the same heartache.

By, Stefanie Lagana, Certified Empowerment Life Coach, Specializing in teen and parent empowerment coaching.

“Pharm” parties are becoming increasingly more popular among our teenage children. In today’s teen world Pharmaceutical drugs are as easy to access as a bowl of cheerios. Teens are raiding their parents, their friends and grandparents medicine cabinets for prescription drugs. These parties are called “farming” and they are dangerous to our teens! A “Pharm” party is usually at a home where parents are out. Kids raid prescription drugs from their cabinets, empty their pockets into a large bowl, mix it up, grab a handful, and swallow them usually with some alcohol and VOILA…. a free high. The frightening part is that the combination of these drugs can be and usually is, deadly! This is a serious issue in our communities and we need to stop the madness, and it starts at home.

What’s the cost of NOT to communicating with your child? What’s the risk? I know we as parents want to believe that “our children” wouldn’t do such a thing they’re smarter than that, etc. However the reality is; in order to keep that statement true we need to open our eyes, educate, protect and be aware of where your teen is, who they are with and what they are doing.

A few things you can do: Explain to your teen the dangers and risks of mixing unknown drugs, (especially with alcohol). Know where you teens are going; if there will be a parent at home and speak to that parent! Share this information with everyone you know. Alert them to secure their prescriptions in a safe place. Keep track of your refills, and if your child has been prescribed a drug, you administer it and control it.

Written by Stefanie Palermo Lagana, Certified Empowerment Life Coach, Specializing in Teen and Parent Empowerment Coaching, article to run in Today's Teen Magazine copyright June 2009. Stefanie Lagana is offering a Parent workshop; What is your teen worrying about?! on June 30th see link for more information.