New Steps Pediatricians Can Take to Reduce Teen Substance Use |
| May 18th, 2012 |
Join Together (5/18/12): Teens who complete a five-minute computer screening program that includes six questions about alcohol and drug use, and who talk with their pediatrician briefly about the results, reduce their risk of drinking up to one year later, according to a new study. Researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital studied more than 2,000 teens from New England and the Czech Republic. The teens completed the screening program, which asks six questions about alcohol and drug use, and then presents a score and risk level. The teens read through 10 pages with facts and stories that illustrate the serious health effects of substance use. To read more, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
New Report Shows More Than One in Five Pregnant White Women Smoke Cigarettes |
| May 17th, 2012 |
SAMHSA (5/10/12): A new report shows that 21.8 percent of pregnant White women aged 15 to 44 currently (within the past 30 days) smoked cigarettes. The study conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) also showed that cigarette smoking levels among pregnant White women were significantly higher than the levels among pregnant Black women (14.2 percent) and pregnant Hispanic women (6.5 percent) in the same 15 to 44 age range. To read more, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
“Delivering SBIRT” Free Training |
| May 17th, 2012 |
A “How-To” Training on Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment June 22, 2012 · 8:00 am–4:00 pm The McKimmon Conference & Training Center PROGRAM DESCRIPTION WHO SHOULD ATTEND For more information, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
Fewer Teens and Young Adults Smoking |
| May 17th, 2012 |
Join Together (5/17/12): Fewer teenagers and young adults in the United States are smoking, a new government report finds. The drop can be attributed to several causes, including an increase in cigarette taxes, Bloomberg reports. Daily smoking among teens and young adults fell to 15.8 percent in 2010, down from 20.4 percent in 2004, according to the report, which is based on data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Among teens ages 12 to 17, daily smoking dropped from 3.3 percent to 2 percent. To read more, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
Hooked: Why Bad Habits are Hard to Break – 60 Minutes Interview with NIDA’s Dr. Nora Volkow |
| May 15th, 2012 |
AT Forum (5/11/12): In the battle against addiction, “just say no” is magical thinking, says Dr. Nora Volkow. She’s the head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and after spending decades studying the brains of addicts, Dr. Volkow has determined that drug addiction is a chronic disease that physically changes the brain. Dr. Volkow has found that even images of an addictive substance, such as alcohol or drugs, can produce a dopamine response in an addict’s brain, and some foods can trigger a similar reaction. Morley Safer reports on Dr. Volkow’s revolutionary research into addiction, as well as on her revolutionary family history. To read more, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
Become Board Certified in Addiction Medicine |
| May 15th, 2012 |
ASAM (5/15/12): Join the over 2,500 physicians certified in addiction medicine by ABAM by signing up to take the ABAM certification exam in December. The application deadline is June 15. To find out more information, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
Neuroscience of Need: Understanding the Addicted Mind |
| May 15th, 2012 |
Stanford Medicine (Spring 2012): In the past 10 or 15 years, there’s been a shift in thinking about addiction, to a new appreciation that it is, at its root, a maladaptive form of learning. And like learning to ride a bike, addiction is not quickly unlearned. If you think quitting is a simple matter of willpower, you’re in good company. More than a third of the general public agrees, according to a 2008 survey by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. But it’s tougher than that. To read more, click here. |
| Posted in News & Updates |
Funded wholly or in part by the federal Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant Fund (CFDA #93.959) as a project of the NC Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities & Substance Abuse Services.