4. WHAT IS PRESCRIPTION
DRUG ABUSE?
Prescription drug abuse is
the deliberate misuse of
prescribed medications.
5. WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF
DRUGS COMMONLY ABUSED?
There are three types of
prescription drugs commonly
abused.
Narcotic painkillers
(OxyContin, Vicodin)
Sedatives and tranquilizers
(Xanax,Valium)
Stimulants (Ritalin, Adderall)
6. WHY IS PRESCRIPTION DRUG
ABUSE TRENDING?
Prescription drug abuse is growing because...
There is an overwhelming availability of
prescription drugs, as more and more people are
needing them to treat their ailments.
Since 1990, prescription drug sales have
increased by nearly 400 percent (DiConsiglio).
Many people believe that prescription drugs are
“safe” to abuse because they are not illegal and
are prescribed by doctors.
According to a survey by the Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA), half of all teens do not believe that
abusing prescription drugs is too risky
(DiConsiglio).
7. THINGS PEOPLE HAVE ACTUALLY SAID
ABOUT PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE...
“My brother was not selling, making, distributing
drugs and was not a 'criminal.' He was able to 'doctor
hop' and was able to get painkillers. Pharmacies didn't
ask questions, nor did doctors” (Drug Abuse Stories).
"A doctor handed them out--maybe not to me, but to
somebody," she says. "At some level, that kind of
justified in my head that it was OK to take the
drugs" (DiConsiglio).
8. HOW PREVALENT IS
PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE?
According to MedLine Plus, a website managed by the
U.S. National Library of Medicine, an estimated 20
percent of Americans have misused prescription
drugs.
Only marijuana is more popular when it comes to
teenagers’ preferred drug choice (DiConsiglio).
9. HOW DOES PRESCRIPTION
DRUG ABUSE AFFECT SOCIETY?
Prescription drug abuse is very costly, for both
government and the individual.
According to a report from the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, the abuse
of prescription and over-the-counter drugs
has resulted in 0.5 million emergency room
visits in 2004 and 1 million in 2008. This
translates into a cost of nearly $18 billion
(Sperling).
Prescription drugs sold on the street or
through illegal “pill mills” (often disguised as
“pain clinics”) sell in the same illicit ways
and at the same exorbitant prices (Sperling).
10. HOW DOES PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE
AFFECT A PERSON’S HEALTH?
When prescription drugs are abused, their effects can be just as harmful as those of illegal street drugs.
Many pills have different potencies (DiConsiglio). For example, an 80 mg pill of OxyContin is much
stronger than is a 20 mg pill of OxyContin. Most people disregard this nuance when they are
getting high.
Many teen users participate in “pharming,” or using prescription drugs like they would street drugs
(snorting, injecting, etc.). When mixed with alcohol and other drugs, legal or illegal, their effects can
be fatal (DiConsiglio).
11. PRE-21ST CENTURY
CONNECTIONS?
The unforgettable counterculture
movement!
During the counterculture movement of
the 1960s, many young people began
experimenting with different drugs, such
as LSD (street name “acid”) and
marijuana.
Post-Vietnam
Many soldiers who had come back from
the Vietnam War had become drug
addicts in Vietnam, where drugs were
relatively cheap and easy to obtain.
12. WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF
PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE?
According to the International Narcotics Board of
the World Health Organization and the United
Nations, prescription drug abuse is expected to
exceed illicit drug use (“Prescription drug abuse”).
14. The Answer
(Thesis):
Prescription drug abuse is a
rapidly growing epidemic that
is just as harmful, if not
deadlier, than illicit drug use.
15. SOURCES
Primary
DiConsiglio, John. "Generation Rx: they're prescribed by doctors and they're probably in your own house. But those factors don't make prescription drugs safe. Even legal
drugs can be addictive--and deadly." Scholastic Choices Jan. 2010: 8+. General OneFile. Web. 16 May 2011.
"Drug Abuse Stories - Montana Prescription Drug Abuse - MT Dept of Justice." Home - Montana Dept of Justice. Montana Department of Justice. Web. 12 May 2011.
<http://www.doj.mt.gov/rxabuse/stories.asp>.
Secondary
DiConsiglio, John. "Generation Rx: they're prescribed by doctors and they're probably in your own house. But those factors don't make prescription drugs safe. Even legal
drugs can be addictive--and deadly." Scholastic Choices Jan. 2010: 8+. General OneFile. Web. 16 May 2011 (contains both first-hand testimonials and secondary source
information).
"Prescription drug abuse linked to increased availability of pain meds." Brown University Psychopharmacology Update20.2 (2009): 1+. General OneFile. Web. 16 May 2011.
"Prescription Drug Abuse: MedlinePlus." National Library of Medicine - National Institutes of Health. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Web. 12 May 2011. <http://
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/prescriptiondrugabuse.html>.
Sperling, Laura. "Price of Prescription Abuse | HeraldTribune.com." HeraldTribune.com. Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 24 Sept. 2010. Web. 12 May 2011. <http://
www.heraldtribune.com/article/20100924/COLUMNIST/9241002?p=1>.
Images: images.google.com
