When Anna Nicole Smith, a former Playboy Playmate, was found dead on Feb. 8, 2007 in Hollywood, Fla., wild stories of murder and medical negligence flew over the airwaves and ate up barrels of newspaper, magazine and tabloid ink. Ms. Smith, born Vickie Lynn Smith in Texas, was ultimately found by a coroner to have died of a toxic mix of prescription drugs.
Sadly, Ms. Smith’s beloved son, Daniel, died weeks earlier from a toxic combination of prescription drugs: methadone, used to treat heroin addiction, and the anti-depressants Zoloft and Lexapro. The toxic combination of prescription drugs caused the youth to have a fatal heart arrhythmia.
In the 1960s, when superstar Marilyn Monroe died in her California cottage, cries of murder rang out around the globe. Ms. Monroe was found to have died of a toxic overdose of prescription drugs.
Today, according to national studies, large numbers of teens are turning away from street drugs and using prescription (RX) and Over-the Counter (OTC) drugs to get high. Among young people ages 12-17, prescription drugs have become the second most abused illegal drug in America after marijuana.
Prescription and OTC drugs youngsters are illegally abusing include pain relievers Dilaudid, Lorcet, Lortab, OxyContin, Percocet, Percodan, Tylox, and Vicodi; Depressants (benzodiazepines, tranquilizers, barbiturates, sedatives) including Librium and Xanax; Stimulants Adderall, Concerta, and Ritalin.
The two most commonly abused prescription drugs by teens are Vicodin and OxyContin, both pain reliever narcotics and highly addictive. Withdrawal symptoms are said to be so painful that they push users to continue using.
Youngsters are also abusing cough medicines containing the active ingredient dextromethorphan, or DXM, for the explicit purpose of getting high. Their street slang names are currently “Dex” or “skittles.”
What is driving this increase in RX and OTC drug abuse?
YOUNGSTERS ARE CONVINCED THAT RX AND OTC DRUGS ARE A SAFER HIGH THAN STREET DRUGS.
Our kids, who usually know nada about chemical combinations, are only too willing to pop all kinds of RX or Over-The–Counter (OTC) drugs into their unsuspecting mouths.
Their naïve and life threatening assumption is that if drugs can be medicines or bought over the counter, they can’t be harmful. WRONG!
Heck, most of us adults don’t understand drugs any better. Many adults don’t think twice about drinking wine or other liquors and then sloshing down a prescription drug. Some of us land up in emergency rooms – if we are lucky. How can we expect more of a youth?
In a 2005 government study of emergency room drug and alcohol intervention, a startling fact emerged. While the total number of drug-related emergency room visits remained pretty much the same from 2004 to 2005, emergency visits involving the abuse (non-medical use) of prescription or OTC drugs increased from 495,732 to 598,542 in that same period.
“Teens and parents alike (my emphasis) have a false sense of security that these products can be safely abused because they are beneficial medicines found in the home. The sobering truth is that when medicines are abused, they can be every bit as dangerous, as addictive, and just as deadly as “street drugs,” said Steve Pasierb, president of the New York-based Partnership for Drug-Free America.
The Partnership’s recent study found that
1 in 5 teens has tried Vicodin, an addictive narcotic pain reliever
1 in 10 has tried OxyContin, another prescription narcotic
1 in 10 has used the stimulants Ritalin or Adderall for nonmedical purposes
1 in 11 teens admitted to getting high on cough medicine.
Source: Statistics above courtesy of Partners for a Drug Free America, www.drugfree.org
I know that numbers make readers’ eyes cross. They do mine. But when they are translated into children and young adults – yours and mine, I hope they come to life for all parents, teachers, sports’ coaches, preachers, school nurses -- anyone who sees young people each day. And I pray that youngsters abusing RX or OTC drugs get with it and decide to stay alive. Like my grandma always said, “You can lead a horse to water but he gets there faster if he really wants a drink.”
The most encouraging news about prescription abuse and OTC abuse is this: When parents talk to their families about how dangerous these drugs truly are, and how they are not to be used except with a genuine medical need, it works. According to government studies, kids who have parents who tell it like it is are 50 percent less likely to abuse RX or OTC drugs.
More good news is that it’s possible for parents and other adults to help turn the tide of this new drug abuse flood with three simple acts: Educate yourself about the dangers of medicine abuse and teach all youngsters that medicine abuse is NOT safer than illegal street drugs; communicate with youths the risks of intentionally abusing medicine to get high; and safeguard prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines that that are in your home. Throw out old ones (flushing them down the toilet is safest) or lock them up. Only adults should have the key to the “Lock box.”
Sound extreme? Sound like a lot of trouble? So are frightening, expensive emergency room visits – or heart wrenching funerals.
The pothead generation is fast becoming Generation RX. Prescription drug abuse, including OTC abuse, is now second only to marijuana, the most abused drug in America.
And The Worst News. Lots of kids get their prescription or OTC drugs with no pain, no strain, according to the youths themselves. The majority of kids get prescription drugs easily and for free, often from friends or relatives. Other youngsters say they buy them from friends or relatives while another 10 percent say they take them without asking.
And nightmare kinds of worst? Almost 40 percent of 14-20 year olds say it is easy to get prescription drugs online or by phone. More girls than boys claim the telephone route is easy.
Check it out: Google “non prescription vicodin” for an eye-opener. In the one site I checked out that offers vicodin there was lots of info about the quality of the drugs and lots of mention of the “membership fee” to “join” their service, but what I did not find was a request for a legitimate physician’s prescription. Is it any surprise that youthful abuse of these harmful and dangerous drugs has increased?
We can also thank all those lovely butterflies flitting over TV “dreams”, those cuddly couples on TV thanking OTC drugs or RX drugs for their romantic good nights.
We can wonder how many TV commercial “overtired moms and dads” who pop some liquid “nighty-night” drug and then demonstrate how happy they feel as they fall asleep are telling kids how to abuse drugs. How many commercials a day or evening promoting RX and OTC drugs do you think our kids see? NO, they don’t listen to those lengthy, scary and depressing side effects the government makes companies include in these promotions. Do you? Do I? Does anyone?
And here’s a knockout fact about accessibility: More teens have been offered prescription drugs than other illicit drugs, including marijuana.
Repeat: RX and OTC drug abuse is increasing because kids believe they are safer than street drugs. So Monday we'll take a look at all the myths floating around about RX or OTC drugs.
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