teen news from MAY-JUNE 2008
SocietyPrescription and Over-the-Counter Drug Abuse Skyrockets
Recent trends have caused the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to release a warning about increased teen abuse of over-the-counter and prescription drugs, including OxyContin, a strong painkiller.
The FDA warns that OxyContin, which contains opoid, or oxycodone, is incredibly addictive and easy to overdose on.
First introduced to the U.S. market in 1939, oxycodone is the main active ingredient in many painkillers, including aspirin. The drug is commercially made from thebaine, an opiate alkaloid, a minor component of opium. It is prescribed for patients with chronic pain, cancer patients, or those recovering from major surgery. Side effects include nausea, drowsiness, constipation, dizziness, mood disorders and dry mouth.
Among painkillers, OxyContin is quickly becoming the most popular medication prescribed. It was released in 1995 and is twice as powerful as morphine. Because of the addictive oxycodone component of OxyContin, there is a high abuse rate, and the FDA warns of the “serious consequences” of taking OxyContin.
The high rate of abuse of these drugs is mostly attributed to their easy access. Teens can easily purchase medications online, or they can acquire the drugs from friends. Abusing prescription drugs seems to be the “path of least resistance, both physically and mentally,” wrote Sharon Sloane in an editorial in the Christian Science Monitor.
“Teenagers tell us in survey after survey, about 70 percent of them get these prescription drugs from the medicine cabinets at home,” said Scott Burns on the Voice of America. “Every day, 2,500 teenagers try a painkiller for the first time.”
Here are some facts about prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse:
- 1 in 5 teens has abused a prescription pain medication
- 1 in 6 teens report abusing prescription stimulants and tranquilizers
- 1 in 10 has abused cough medication
- Medications are available online, without a doctor’s prescription
- Combining common painkillers with alcohol, in any amount, can lead to death—and can be just as deadly as cocaine or heroin.
While abuse of illegal drugs is decreasing, abuse of prescribed drugs has increased drastically. Painkillers are becoming the drug of choice for teens to get high.
“We are winning the battle against certain illegal drugs,” wrote Sharon Sloane. “But if teens are just switching to alternative sources, what have we really gained?”
In response to the rise in abuse of prescription drugs, efforts are being made to educate parents and teenagers on the dangers and serious consequences of taking prescription and over-the-counter drugs for “pleasure.”