Articles Archives - Page 132 of 138

May152015Apr252025

Pakistan’s New Approach to Drug Addiction Rehab

Pakistans-New-Approach-to-Drug-Addiction-Rehab According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Pakistan has more than four million drug addicts and the number of addicts is rising by the day. In Pakistan, drugs are cheap and readily available, mostly because of the booming drug trade and a steady stream of heroin entering the country from neighboring Afghanistan. As a result, Pakistan is the most addicted, per capita, country in the world.

According to Al Jazeera, many Pakistani youth are addicted to hard drugs by the time they are barely in their teens. Youth frequently start with hash and inhalants when they are as young as nine years old, and sometimes even younger. Quitting is extremely difficult, even for people with a strong desire to stop using, because the drugs are so pervasive.

In Pakistan, drug addiction is a complex problem with no easy answers. However, Mujataba Shuja ur Rehman, Lahore’s Provincial Minister for Excise and Taxation, recently announced a comprehensive anti-drug addiction program that includes development of a large number of rehab centers for addicts, especially for women and children. The goal of the rehab centers is to provide services that empower people to change their lives. Rehab includes identification and registration of addicts, education, treatment and an aftercare program that helps addicts remain drug-free.

The ambitious anti-addiction program also includes public information, increased awareness and prevention education, as well as implementation and enforcement of a set of strict anti-narcotics laws.

The human cost of Pakistan’s growing drug addiction problem is extreme and includes social issues such as breakdown of families, poverty and crime, as well as a heightened risk of disease and infection due to shared needles, including HIV and AIDS. Many people are unaware of the risks. Rehabilitation clinics offer hope to the country’s many addicts.

If you, or someone you care about, needs help for a drug or alcohol addiction,
contact us at 1-888-457-3518 US, 0-808-120-3633 UK or 1-800-990-523 AU.
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May072015Apr252025

Australia Suffering from “Ice” Epidemic

Articles

Ice as it is known on the streets, is a grimy drug with a lurid background. One of the most addictive substances known to man, ice crystal meth is one that is easy to make, cheap to produce and quick to become addicted to. This epidemic is spreading quickly across the Australian continent. Health officials are scrambling to come up with a solution as the rate of usage doubled from 22 percent to 50 percent in just three years. This is a fight that has to be backed and combated by society as a whole. The police, doctors and health organizations can only be effective if society decides to take a stand against the use of the drug. Starting at home with parents and talking to children about drug use could do a lot in the effort to bringing use to a screeching halt. When taught young about the dangerous effects of drug use, a nation that is currently being brought to its knees with use and abuse could quickly become a nation that takes a stand against crystal meth use.

The drug often brings users to extreme emotional highs, euphoria, a sense of being stronger than what they really are, and paranoia. Police officers have to often deal with the abusers with violent or even fatal force. Prisons across Australia are seeing a rapid increase of prisoners with incredibly long sentences for their violent and outrageous crimes. How much can the prison system truly handle? At the rate of usage pretty soon the Australian government will have to turn to building more lock up facilities to house meth addicts if there isn’t a curb on the addiction immediately. With ice becoming a drug of choice for many, its need and demand is growing larger than that of cocaine and heroine, something the country’s illicit drug circles have not seen in the past. Treatment and education are the two main ways to help put an end to the extreme usage of this dangerous drug.

Apr302015Jan272016

Handling of Russian Heroin Epidemic Raises Concern

Articles, International

The Russian heroin epidemic, widely reported on in the media, and the resulting proliferation of HIV through shared needles, have been called a threat to national security by Russian officials. Yet the Russian government has been severely criticized for its handling of the problem. Though statistics vary, it’s clear that between 1.5 and 2 million Russians are heroin addicts, with a percentage of population that’s about eight times higher than in EU countries. The Federal Antinarcotics Service, a Russian agency, reports that Russia now uses more heroin than any other country in the world, and the incidence of HIV is growing rather than abating as it is in most other countries. It’s not that the government is ignoring the problem, but critics say its drug policies may be exacerbating the national dilemma.

Human Rights Watch recently released a report on the Russian drug epidemic stating that Russian policies for treating drug users “deliberately ignore the best available medical evidence and recommendations.” For instance, there are no nationally sponsored needle-exchange programs to address the spread of HIV. Methadone is banned in Russia so there is no methadone substitution program to help wean users off of heroin. Independent agencies geared to help addicts are typically shut down by the government. Addicts seeking help are put on a state “narcological register,” available to the public and used by police who often find cause for arrest. Some say that medical care for drug users is inferior and that addiction is not viewed as a disease by most Russians, as it is in many Western countries, but instead is considered a moral travesty. Critics say these policies and attitudes discourage addicts from seeking help.

The world watches as Russia addresses its catastrophic drug epidemic. The saddest fact of all: Most of Russia’s heroin addicts are aged 18 to 39 – a generation lost to heroin.

Apr242015Apr252025

Substance Abuse in Botswana, Africa

Articles

In the Southern African nation of Botswana, illicit drug use is on the rise. A country with a strong political and governmental system, Botswana has seen growth and prosperity much higher than most of the continent. Along with economic prosperity comes expendable income to use towards drugs in some social circles. Illicit drug use is not uncommon in rural or urban areas. With such wide spread usage, government and World Health Organization officials have officially deemed the rise in usage in Botswana an epidemic. In the United Nations world drug report of 2012 a few things are made clear. Illicit drug use may spread HIV, crime rates, and societal instability. With as fragile as the African continent’s economy is, Botswana’s economic success is extraordinarily important to the total monetary and economic development of the region. High drug use though leads entire communities towards economic despair, drives health issues through the roof, and leaves families wondering how they will help their addicted family member cope and seek the treatment they need.

The cultural impacts are innumerable. Women are seen dealing illicit drugs in a sky-high rate greater than men, students in their higher education system are experimenting with hard drugs, and the increased HIV rates are weighing heavily on the nation. Epidemics grow and spread quickly. In order to keep Botswana a thriving nation, the WHO and other health organizations have got to step in and help treat the addicted quickly before the epidemic spirals out of control. New blood, the freshly graduated, educated, and healthy masses are needed to keep this nation and it’s economy churning in the right direction. Without proper treatment and acknowledgement of the issue, Botswana may turn towards a health crisis so extreme it could take decades to correct and treat. Prevention and rehabilitation are key to making sure this epidemic is stopped in its tracks.

Apr172015Apr252025

Flakka, Dangerous New Designer Drug, Causes Alarm

Articles

Flakka, a dangerous new designer drug making its way into several U.S. states and abroad is sounding an alarm because of its highly addictive nature and the life-threatening behavior it causes. The drug can be consumed by swallowing, by injection or by means of an e-cigarette. It can result in rapid rise in body temperature, severe anxiety and paranoia, extremely violent behavior and a sensation of extraordinary strength. Flakka is made from a synthetically derived compound made from the khat plant, found in parts of the Middle East and Somalia. Suspected suppliers from China, Pakistan and India often deal in online operations, which opens the door to repackaging. By the time Flakka hits the streets, it may be combine with other addictive substances, such as cocaine or heroin. Reported so far in Florida, Texas and Ohio, incidents involving Flakka have endangered the users themselves, law enforcement officers and innocent bystanders.

Effects of flakka include physical and emotional trauma

Experts have labeled the behavior associated with the use of flakka “excited delirium.” Flakka floods the brain with dopamine, quickly awakening pleasure centers and creating a state of euphoria. The effect is similar to heroin or cocaine. The user becomes psychotic and experiences an adrenaline rush. With the rise in adrenaline comes a false sense of physical invincibility. Flakka use has resulted in incidents of uncontrolled behavior, such as a man who tore off his clothes and tried to break down a police station door. In another case, a man impaled himself on a fence while attempting to jump over it. Flakka can cause changes in heart, brain and kidney function. Risk of a heart attack or stroke is high, and kidney damage can result in the need for permanent dialysis. Side effects are intensified when flakka is used in conjunction with other drugs. The street name for flakka is “gravel” because of its appearance.