That's Fit

Many ADHD medications are stimulant based. Past studies have produced confusing results regarding use of these stimulants and risk of future drug use. Some studies indicated kids who take the stimulant-based meds were more likely to abuse drugs. Others said they were no more likely. Yet others stated they were less likely to abuse drugs. A new study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, attempted to remove the methodological limitations of the previous studies and conduct more thorough research into the concern. No correlation between the use of stimulant-based medications and future drug or alcohol abuse was found. Kids on these medications are no more or less likely to abuse drugs than any other person.

I know the finding is a relief for me, as my own son is prescribed stimulant-based medications to help manage his ADHD symptoms. Long-term effects of these medications is always a concern for parents. It's good to know there's one concern I can cross off the list.

Montana youths are using illicit substances at a rate that is outpacing the national average, according to a new report from that state.

As a result, Montana is using such information to glean more federal grant money from the Addictive and Mental Disorders Division of the Department of Public Health and Human Services to fight the problem.

For older generations, it's hard to understand that 38 percent of Montana high school students admitted binge drinking within the past month, but those are the numbers according to the latest student survey. Anything over 10 percent should be cause for alarm in my book. What about yours?

Britney Spears' less-than-perfect body of late has been getting lots of publicity -- both bad and good -- and here's a suggestion that would definitely fall in the bad category: Life & Style magazine is reporting that her bloated body is due to her excessive drug use, which was also one of the major reasons she lost custody of her sons. According to the article, "She's bloated, and she's stopped working out. She also starves herself for three days while drinking and doing drugs, and then when she comes down she binges on junk food." Drugs apparently are also the reason that her skin is looking lackluster these days, not doubt due to her unhealthy lifestyle.

Now, I don't know hot legit the article or it's sources are but if she is abusing drugs and alcohol, it's not surprising that her looks have started to suffer. Still, It's sad to see such a promising young star so far gone. Do you agree?

I'm sure we will here more about Al Gore's son and his alleged prescription drug charges come next week. Before we get to that, we have to ask ourselves: are prescription drugs being abused more than street drugs these days?

Drug abuse experts are stating that prescription drugs may indeed take over street drugs in popularity soon. Oddly, this comes as no surprise: prescription narcotics and other drugs seem to be at the center of drug arrests from what is reported in the media, and I hear about street drugs (heroine, cocaine and meth) less and less. Sure, that's an objective statement, but it's true.

Are prescription drugs safer than street drugs? That probably varies by use and dose, but that is an ill-conceived perception by young people if that is what is thought. According to experts, prescription drug abuse is particularly common among upper middle class students.

It's quite a surprise to see a study proclaim that 10% of adults in the U.S. abuse drugs. That's nearly 30 million people, folks. What's wrong with that picture?

Researchers who compiled the data stated that abuse was defined as an intense desire to use drugs to the exclusion of other activities -- and addiction as physical dependence on a drug. That sounds very logical to me, and excludes "mild" uses of drugs by some. In fact, those two definitions are definitely indicative regular abuse, not irregular abuse, right?

Why are all these adults abusing drugs? Is life that difficult in the U.S. these days (which require "escapes") or is access that easy -- or both?

Are illicit drugs or alcohol more dangerous to one's health? According to a new study out of London, alcohol and tobacco consumption are actually more harmful than some illegal drugs like marijuana or Ecstasy.

In what is going to end up as controversial research, this new "landmark" study concluded that alcohol and tobacco should be classified as illegal drugs in British law.

The study looked at creating a new framework for the classification of harmful substances based on the actual risks posed to society. I read this as not looking at the specifics of each illicit drugs in terms of negative health consequences, but the effects on society at large within the larger groups of "drugs" like alcohol or tobacco.

The abuse of prescription painkillers by teenagers is on the rise, a federally funded survey concluded recently. At the same time, drops are happening withing many other forms of drug use among teens.

The newly released report stated that 3.5% of teens reported using the narcotic painkiller OxyContin without a doctor's order in 2006.

This was nearly 30% more than acknowledged it in 2002. While the data is based on answers given by actual teenagers, about 10% of high school seniors also reported using Vicodin -- a similar painkiller classified as a narcotic. More than 48,000 teens (eighth-, 10th-, and 12th-graders) from 410 schools nationwide were asked about their drug use for the survey.