McLeans has an interesting interview with George Vaillant about, "the surprising things you find out about people if you follow them for long enough." What's so different and interesting about this study is that it followed the subjects for decades from a pretty young age. Their subjects were college sophomores when the study began and … Continue reading Following alcoholics for decades
Tag: Health
50% of the equation
Forbes (?!?!) covers Pat Deegan's efforts to empower mental health patients by guiding them into playing a larger role in their care decisions and participating in their health care records. ...I realized that we are at an important point in the history of medicine. Paper medical records are being replaced by digitized information organized into Electronic Health Records (EHRs). … Continue reading 50% of the equation
The social cost of smoking
Apparently, Singapore was an early adopter of designated smoking areas and non-smoking areas. However, this wasn't driven by health concerns. Rather, it was driven by aesthetic concerns--primarily smell. In a fascinating paper published recently in Urban Studies, Qian Hui Tan observes that smokers are "purveyors of sensory pollution" – creating a scent that, like all odors, … Continue reading The social cost of smoking
Beware of misleading headlines
A new article discussing the expanding use of medications in addiction treatment has the following sub heading: Experts are pushing for a truly medical approach to treating addiction as a disease rather than relying solely on longtime unproven therapies like 12-step programs. Unproven? Twelve Step Facilitation (TSF) is the treatment of choice for addicted physicians and they … Continue reading Beware of misleading headlines
A brain disease AND (fill in the blank)
Not addiction related, but a very interesting look at new directions for treating and understanding schizophrenia. The article opens by reflecting on where we stand with our attempts to understand the causes: ...the outcome of two decades of serious psychiatric science is that schizophrenia now appears to be a complex outcome … Continue reading A brain disease AND (fill in the blank)
Gateway Theory Revisited
Keith Humphreys on findings that link marijuana, tobacco and alcohol use with opiate use: The researchers used data from 2006 to 2008 from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an annual study representative of the U.S. population, to study 18- to 25-year-olds’ drug use behavior. They found that 12 percent … Continue reading Gateway Theory Revisited
Non-medical treatments are essential
Love First linked to this article on the role of non-medical interventions in treating addiction. I'm more and more convinced that the key to managing costs and improving outcomes for all chronic diseases are behavioral or lifestyle strategies. We've got a lot to learn about helping people make important changes in their lives that … Continue reading Non-medical treatments are essential
More on methadone
Points is publishing a series on methadone and offers a case for methadone without resorting to describing it as "the most effective treatment for opiate addiction." It's a pretty fair piece. I had only one quibble with the facts of the story. This is unusual and very welcome. However, the author and I disagree starkly … Continue reading More on methadone
Two stories on methadone
First, DEATHS among drug users have hit a record high in Scotland, increasing by a fifth in 2011, the latest government figures reveal. Last year 584 people died from drug use, which means that drugs now account for one in every 100 deaths in Scotland. The heroin substitute, methadone, was at the heart of the … Continue reading Two stories on methadone
Following the evidence
Ouch: Abstract: This paper raises the question about whether the data on the medications we call antidepressants justify the label of antidepressant. The authors argue that a true antidepressant should be clearly superior to placebo, should offer a risk/benefit balance that exceeds that of alternative treatments, should not increase suicidality, should not increase anxiety and … Continue reading Following the evidence
Recovery Review 