Real life is real life and TV is fantasy, right? So when Breaking Bad’s main character, a struggling high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer, begins producing and selling methamphetamine to provide some financial security for his family, we don’t take it seriously. Or do we? The critically-acclaimed series went off the air […]
While Hollywood has close ties to the issue of addiction, the art of acting itself isn’t directly connected – until now. The Addiction Performance Project employs the talents of movie and television stars in their innovative continuing medical education (CME) program for doctors and other health providers. The performances are a project of the National […]
They say there’s nothing like the pain of losing a child. The grief can be debilitating, and, when a child dies from addiction or overdose, there can be added guilt. Why didn’t we know? Could we have prevented this? Jonathan Morelli’s mom Rochelle is turning her grief over her son’s death into something positive. Jon […]
Does your ethnicity make you more or less susceptible to substance abuse? A recent study seems to prove your heritage does play a role. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) recently issued a report entitled “Need for and Receipt of Substance Use Treatment Among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.” The findings showed […]
Binge drinking. Alcohol poisoning. Prescription sharing. Painkiller addiction. These are all serious problems for teens and college students. Although it is unlikely that we are going to get kids to stop experimenting or partying altogether, we don’t need to encourage it. Urban Outfitters, known for supplying teens and college students with trendy and low-cost clothing, […]
Joe Putignano is a Cirque du Soleil acrobat that performs death-defying leaps and dangles from a 40-foot-high catwalk. He is an addiction recovery success story, as he has nearly six years of sobriety after a harrowing heroin addiction. Pushing his body to the limits night after night doesn’t come without a price. Putignano’s shoulder has […]
It is not uncommon to find that a drug created for one purpose may be used to treat other issues as well, and interesting new options for addressing addiction have experts taking notice. As we better understand how addiction and brain disease overlap, scientists are discovering new treatment methods in already established medications. Options being […]
We know tobacco is bad for you, but when individuals are tackling addiction to heroin, cocaine, meth or prescription painkillers, are you really going to deny them a few cigarettes? In a recent Scientific American podcast Christopher Intagliata addressed the topic of instituting bans on tobacco at rehab centers. At first glance it seems obvious. […]
Fourth- and fifth-grade students in one US school were caught smoking and inhaling candy. The children’s fake drugs of choice were Fun Dip, a flavored sugar powder, and Smarties, which can be crushed into a similar powdery consistency. The principal responded by sending a letter home to parents, warning that while the candy may not […]
History is filled with wonderfully creative individuals who came to tragic ends. It’s so common to hear of artists struggling with alcohol, drugs or mental illness the link between the two seems almost undeniable. But does creativity really correlate with addiction or mental health issues like depression and bipolar disorder? Is there a scientific connection? […]