“Pharm” Parties Are Russian Roulette for Teens
Malibu, CA (PRWEB) July 08, 2013 -- The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports, “In 2012, the Monitoring the Future study reported that 14.8% of high school seniors used a prescription drug not prescribed for them or for nonmedical reasons in the past year. Findings also showed that after marijuana, prescription and over-the-counter medications account for most of the top drugs abused by 12th graders in the past year, with Adderall and Vicodin being the most commonly abused prescription drugs.” Many of these teens use drugs at “pharm” parties – parties at which a mixture of drugs are used often leading to prescription drug addiction, accidental overdose and death.
“What teens and their parents very often don’t understand,” says Dr. Damon Raskin, addiction specialist at the elite Cliffside Malibu drug treatment center, “is that the combined effects of these drugs are very often deadly. It doesn’t take a large quantity of some common drug combinations for a person to overdose and die. Abusing prescription medications is dangerous and can lead to addiction. Throwing a whole bunch of pills in a bowl and taking a handful is no different than playing Russian Roulette.”
“Those teens who do not die,” continued Richard Taite, founder of Cliffside Malibu and coauthor of the #1 Amazon.com bestselling book Ending Addiction for Good, “are at great risk for becoming addicts. We get these kids at the treatment center all the time as young adults in their twenties, who have absolutely devastated their lives with substance abuse. Many will become addicted to prescription painkillers and when they are unable to afford them or get them through legal channels, they will switch to heroin because it is cheaper. The toll on young lives is ruinous.”
Care with prescription medications is warranted as accidental deaths from prescription drug overdoses now outpace deaths from cocaine and heroin combined. What to do? Experts suggest that parents clear their medicine cabinets of all unused medications, so they are not a temptation for children, teens, or their friends. Give them to your doctor for disposal.
About Cliffside Malibu:
Cliffside Malibu is a top-notch rehab with a multitude of treatment options focusing on helping people overcome their addictions to re-engage with their families and lives. For information about Cliffside Malibu’s effective treatments and intervention services, please visit http://www.cliffsidemalibu.com or call 1-800-501-1988, 24 hours a day.
Allison McCabe, Cliffside Malibu, http://www.cliffsidemalibu.com, 310-560-2548, [email protected]
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