01 Sep
A new study finds gray matter differences in the teenage brain that may lead to early nicotine use and long-term addiction.
27 Apr
Patients with substance use disorders benefit from adding exercise therapy to their treatment plan, researchers find.
College students who use drugs like Adderall to help them focus on their studies may be setting themselves up for trouble.
Researchers asked 700 undergraduates across the United States about drugs commonly used by students — including ADHD medications like Adderall, ca...
Deaths where alcohol played a key role climbed sharply in recent years, hitting women even harder than men, new government data shows.
Between 2016 and 2021 (the latest numbers available), "the average number of U.S. deaths from excessive alcohol use increased by more th...
More than two in every five Americans know someone who's died from a drug overdose, a new study shows.
The study highlights the heavy toll that the U.S. opioid epidemic has taken on the nation, researchers say.
“The experiences and needs of millions of survivors ...
A ban on menthol cigarettes would likely lead to a meaningful reduction in smoking rates, a new review argues.
Almost a quarter of menthol smokers quit smoking altogether after menthol cigarettes were banned in their country or community, researchers report Feb. 21 in th...
Americans addicted to opioids who need the anti-addiction med buprenorphine are far more likely to find it if they live in a predominantly white neighborhood, new research finds.
“Access is substantially better in areas that are very white," said study lead author
Increased access to prescription opioids has driven up U.S. suicide rates by making it easier to women to end their lives, a new study claims.
The study also blames a shrinking federal safety net during tough economic times for rising suicide rates.
“We contend t...
FRIDAY, Feb. 16, 2024 (HealthDay news) -- A drug first developed to treat cocaine addiction might also help slow the spread of advanced colon cancer, a new study suggests.
The drug vanoxerine appears to suppress cancer stem cell activity by essentially rewiring gene netw...
Coupons for e-cigarettes appear to be a powerful way to get people hooked on vaping, a new study shows.
People who receive coupons for e-cigarettes are 50% more likely to begin vaping, and less likely to quit once they've started, according to findings published recently...
Fetal exposure to opioids may change a baby's immune system, triggering a rise in risks for eczema and asthma through early childhood, new research shows.
Children born to women who used opioids during pregnancy had much higher rates of eczema, as well as conditions such...
There's no link at all between weed use and a person's use of illicit opioids, one way or the other, a new review concludes.
Cannabis isn't a gateway drug that can spark a person's desire to try narcotics, results show.
On the other hand, weed also isn't effective ...
Heart disease deaths linked with alcohol or drug use have been steadily increasing in the United States, a new study has found.
Deaths from heart disease in which substance use was cited as contributor rose an average of 4% per year between 1999 and 2019, researchers rep...
A hot shower, a glass of wine, a good book and sex are a few of Americans' favorite ways to unwind at bedtime, a new survey shows.
"What defines a comfortable night's sleep varies from person to person, but developing a consistent sleep routine that removes distraction i...
Social media is abuzz with the possibility that newfangled weight loss drugs can also reduce cravings for alcohol, a new study says.
Across a number of Reddit threads, users of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic reported that they felt less need to drink beer, wine and liquo...
A 'secret shopper' study finds that for many American families, accessing inpatient treatment for a teen battling addiction can be next to impossible.
“If you are a family in crisis and you have a kid for whom outpatient treatment is not an option, you hope to be able ...
Online gaming and vaping to the point of addiction have become widespread enough that most high school counselors regularly confront these behaviors in today's teens, a new survey shows.
Four out of five counselors say they've worked with at least one student during the ...
A newly approved test can determine whether a person has a genetically driven risk of becoming addicted to opioids.
The AvertD test, the first of its kind, uses a DNA sample swabbed from a patient's cheek to determine if they have a combination of genetic variants associ...
In response to the ongoing crisis of opioid misuse, U.S. doctors had already cut the amount of opioids they gave patients after surgery by 2022 to just a third of the amount given in 2016, new research shows.
Much of the decline happened before the pandemic, however, and...
Oral nicotine pouches might be marketed as an alternative to cigarettes, but they do little to curb smokers' nicotine cravings, a new study finds.
The pouches -- which contain nicotine powder and other flavorings, but no tobacco leaf -- take too long to provide the nicot...
TUESDAY, NOV. 14, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Over 1 in 6 Americans, adults and teens alike, suffered a substance use disorder in 2022, new government data released Monday shows.
Warnings about the dangers of vaping may be reaching American teens: A new U.S. government report shows e-cigarette use is down among high school students.
In fact, use of any tobacco product over the past 30 days declined among this age group during the 2022-2023 school...
Matthew Perry, one of the stars of the beloved television sitcom “Friends,” died on Saturday.
Perry, 54, was best known for his portrayal of Chandler Bing in the long-running show, but he also starred in many other roles.
Capt. Scot Williams, of the Los Angeles...
New research suggests a link between middle school students being disciplined for marijuana use and legalization of recreational weed, particularly when schools are close to dispensaries that sell the drug.
Researchers studied this in Oregon, where recreational marijuana...
While U.S. policymakers have restricted flavored vapes to make e-cigarettes less appealing to young people, that plan may be backfiring.
A new study found that for every 0.7 milliliters of “e-liq...
Telehealth may be a powerful way to get people with opioid use disorder to take -- and stay on -- medication to treat their addiction.
Researchers report that those who started buprenorphine treatment via telehealth had an increased likelihood of staying in treatment lon...
Cigarette makers are using synthetic menthol substitutes in what appears to be an effort to skirt a looming federal menthol ban, researchers say.
The menthol flavor appeals to younger and newer smokers, according to investigators at Duke Health in Durham, N.C., and Yale ...
Medications that cut cravings have been shown to help with opioid use disorder, yet nearly a third of Medicaid recipients dealing with opioid addiction aren't getting them, a new report shows.
There were significant disparities in who gets these medications by age, race ...
Critics of a law that decriminalized drug possession in Oregon have blamed the policy for rising overdose deaths in the state, but a new study finds no evidence of that.
Researchers discovered that while drug overdose deaths have risen recently in Oregon, it appears the ...
A conversation with a family member or loved one struggling with addiction can be the catalyst for getting help.
But it's important to choose your words carefully when discussing possible addiction to controlled substances with your loved one, said
Substance abuse and pregnancy may be a dangerous combination.
New research finds that pregnant women with a history of substance abuse had a dramatically increased risk of death from heart attack and stroke during childbirth compared to women with no drug history.
...
The "fourth wave" of the U.S. overdose crisis involves the use of illicit fentanyl mixed with stimulants such as cocaine or methamphetamine, and it's killing people in droves.
The proportion of U.S. overdose deaths involving both fentanyl and stimulants jumped by mo...
A growing number of overdose deaths in the United States involve counterfeit pills, health officials reported Thursday.
Overdose deaths involving counterfeit pills were twice as common in the latter half of 2021 as they were in the last six months of 2019, accounting for...
If a loved one were living with addiction, a majority of Americans say they would know how to get help.
About 71% of 2,200 respondents to an American Psychiatric Association poll said they would know how to assist a friend or family members.
Most, about 73%, would...
Narcan, a lifesaving medication that reverses opioid overdose, will be available on U.S. drugstore shelves and online starting next week.
People who want to carry Narcan, the nasal spray version of naloxone, will be able to find it at Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart an...
Cannabis use disorder is a very real problem for a significant percentage of people who use marijuana, new research suggests.
About 21% of those who use weed struggle with dependency, including recurring problems socially and with work, the study published Aug. 29 in the...
Vaping CBD (cannabidiol) is on the rise among middle and high school students, according to a national U.S. survey, and health experts warn there can be serious risks involved.
More than 1 in 5 students who use electronic cigarettes said they had vaped CBD, a compon...
Millions of Americans are addicted to drugs or alcohol, and millions more struggle with an addicted family member or friend, a new poll finds.
Two-thirds of those surveyed said either they or a family member have been addicted to alcohol or drugs, been homeless because ...
For people with severe alcohol use disorder, a new gene therapy trial could lead to an effective treatment that would involve chemically rebalancing the area of the brain associated with addiction.
“With alcohol alone, there's generally more than 100,000 deaths [in th...
The U.S. opioid abuse epidemic wages on, and overdose deaths continue to rise, yet just 1 in 5 people receives potentially lifesaving medication such as methadone, buprenorphine or naltrexone to treat their addiction, a new study finds.
“These medications are effective...
J.D. Butler was planning a future with his girlfriend at his favorite New York City restaurant when that future came to a sudden, crushing halt.
“They were planning on when she was moving in and arranging floor plans on the table, with where the furniture was going to ...
New research shows that an experimental drug fine-tuned to a specific pain pathway can ease post-surgery aches, a finding that may eventually offer an alternative to highly addictive opioids.
The pill, known for now as VX-548, targets a particular sodium channel that is ...
After their U.S. states legalize marijuana, young adults who aren't in college are more likely than college kids to use the drug and progress to cannabis use disorder, a new study finds.
Prior to legalization, 23% of non-college young adults reported using cannabis ...
It's well known that smoking in pregnancy can harm a developing baby's growth.
Now, a new study suggests that using e-cigarettes may be more effective that traditional nicotine replacement therapy, such as patches, in helping pregnant women kick the habit and reduce...
A fentanyl dealer has been found guilty of second-degree murder in what authorities believe is the first-ever murder conviction for dealing the dangerous drug.
The conviction happened in Placer County, Calif., in a case involving the fatal overdose last summer of a 15-ye...
Stimulant medications like Ritalin are commonly prescribed to help treat the symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, but there have been concerns the drugs may lay the groundwork for later substance abuse.
New research may now set those worries at ease.
Dr. Richard Stumacher's coworker at Northwell Health in New York City used to smoke to curb her severe anxiety, and tried multiple times to stop...
Medical marijuana is touted as a pain reliever, but in U.S. states where it's legal, prescriptions for opioid or non-opioid painkillers haven't decreased, a new study finds.
According to researchers, this means that people aren't switching to cannabis for pain relie...
It's an image you see everywhere on social media and television: Groups of 30-something women, glistening glasses of chardonnay or cabernet in their hands as they let loose with their friends.
But a new study digs into the downside of "booze bonding" — these women are...
Despite a federal ban that has removed many flavored vapes from the U.S. market, monthly e-cigarette sales jumped 47% in the first two years of the pandemic, a new government study shows.
"The surge in total e-cigarette sales during 2020-2022 was driven by non-tobacco fl...
Many doctors have stopped giving opioids for pain, even during surgery, because of the opioid addiction crisis in the United States. But a new study questions the wisdom of this approach.
Restricting the drugs during surgery may do more harm than good, researchers report...
Could popular TV medical dramas jump-start a discussion about vaping among teens and almost teens?
A recent experiment using clips from "Grey's Anatomy,” “New Amsterdam” and “Chicago Med” suggests the answer is yes. Watching the clips appeared to help kids open...