Posts Tagged ‘opioid crisis’
Ten signs you may be addicted to opioids
In 2012, medical professionals dispensed more than 255 million prescriptions for opioids. That came to 81.3 prescriptions for 100 people — a mind-boggling amount that had steadily increased over a six-year period, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Although those numbers have declined since then, the prescribing rates remain high — 58.7 per…
Read MoreAnti-diarrheal drug loperamide, a.k.a. Imodium, provides a novel — and deadly — way to get high
For the intestinally afflicted, loperamide — Imodium, as it’s more commonly known — is a godsend. While diarrhea is certainly fodder for jokes, sight gags and childhood singalongs, it’ also serious: It accounts for 4 percent of all deaths, and 5 percent of health loss to disability, worldwide. After being approved by the U.S. Food…
Read MoreFENTANYL: The history and contemporary challenges of the deadliest drug in America
In the latest edition of its National Vital Statistics Report, released this month, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention identified the specific drugs most frequently associated with overdose deaths in the United States from 2011-2016. Oxycodone ranked first in 2011, and heroin took the top spot for the next four years. However, in 2016,…
Read More