What Is Xanax, and Why Is It Addictive?
Xanax use is as widespread as the anxiety disorders doctors prescribe it to treat – but even for people who are careful to take it exactly as directed, it carries a high addiction risk and severe health consequences. Prescriptions for Xanax have risen steadily over the past several years, with a corresponding increase in accidental […]
Big Pharma’s Role in the Opioid Crisis
When leading drug manufacturer Purdue Pharma first released OxyContin, they marketed it as a safe drug with a low risk of addiction, intentionally misleading prescribing physicians and their patients about the true nature of opioids. Now, the nation is struggling to come to terms with the reality that an average of 130 Americans die of […]
Opioids and Alcohol: A Potentially Fatal Combination
Opioid addiction is an epidemic in the U.S., and the number of fatalities associated with these drugs has increased proportionally. Unfortunately, many prescription drug users aren’t aware of the dangers of mixing their opioids with alcohol, which is why the death toll continues to rise. The Facts About Opioids and Alcohol Alcohol significantly increases the […]
From Opioid Use to Heroin Addiction
The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports opioid use is a significant risk factor in whether someone goes on to develop a heroin addiction. The problem is so prevalent that 80 percent of heroin users started with a prescription painkiller. In 2017, nearly 494,000 people in the United States reported using heroin within the past […]
Battling the Prescription Opioid Addiction Epidemic
The increased prescription of opioid medications to manage both short-term and chronic pain led to widespread misuse of these drugs before a pattern of addiction became clear. In late 2017, Acting Health and Human Services Secretary Eric Hargan declared the opioid crisis to be a public health emergency. However, according to the Centers for Disease […]