By Janice Wood
The chronic use of cocaine can lead to structural changes in the brain that make the user more susceptible to addiction. Researchers at the University of Buffalo and Mount Sinai School of Medicine found that chronic cocaine use reduces the expression of a protein known to regulate brain plasticity in mice, which drives structural changes in the brain, including creating greater sensitivity to the rewarding effects of the drug.

“We found that chronic cocaine exposure in mice led to a decrease in this protein’s signaling,” says David Dietz, Ph.D., assistant professor of pharmacology and toxicology in the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.  » More

By Shara Park
Chances are you or someone you know is being affected by prescription drug abuse. Hundreds of Utahns die each year from prescription drug overdose, and some of them are children who are too young to even know what they're getting into.

Prescription pain medications are the most frequently abused substances in the state. And it's the addicting power of opioids, found in prescriptions like OxyContin and Lortab that takes even the youngest users down a dark and sometimes unforgiving path.

Angela Watson cherishes the mementos and memories of her son Connor. He died last year of a prescription drug overdose. He was 13.  » More

Prevention efforts that begin later are 'too little, too late,' researchers say

By Alan Mozes; HealthDay Reporter
Among U.S. adolescents, misuse of prescription painkillers peaks at age 16, earlier than thought, a new large survey analysis reveals.

"What our findings suggest is that if we wait until the last year of high school or college to take some kind of action that could prevent the misuse of opioid painkillers, it'll be a case of too little, too late," cautioned study co-author James Anthony, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics in the department of epidemiology and biostatistics at Michigan State University in East Lansing.

Many experts consider "extramedical" painkiller abuse -- taking pain drugs such as OxyContin (oxycodone) and Vicodin (hydrocodone) to get high rather than to relieve extreme pain -- the country's most serious drug challenge. Some kids had already misused these drugs by age 13 or 14, or eighth grade, the researchers found.  » More

By HeathPop Staff
Abusing painkillers is a big problem in the U.S. - about 12 million people said they used painkillers for non-medical reasons in the past year, according to recent CDC estimates.

A new study found rates of newborns born addicted to opiate drugs tripled over the past decade, driven by legal and illegal use of opioids like hydrocodone and oxycodone, CBS News reported. The number of newborns with withdrawal symptoms increased from a little more than 1 per 1,000 babies in 2000 to more than 3 per 1,000 in 2009, according to the study.  » More