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+25 +5
How dealing with past trauma may be the key to breaking addiction
Opening up to past trauma is difficult but self-awareness is key to addressing issues that leave us vulnerable, says Gabor Maté
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+31 +9
The making of an opioid epidemic
The long read: When high doses of painkillers led to widespread addiction, it was called one of the biggest mistakes in modern medicine. But this was no accident
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+9 +1
Study: Cannabis addiction linked to altered connectivity within the brain's striatum
New neuroimaging research published in Human Brain Mapping suggests that cannabis use disorder is associated with specific changes in the functional ...
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+26 +7
Is a recent fall in overdose deaths temporary or a sign of a corner turned?
Public health experts say they see reason to be optimistic but warned against drawing firm conclusions based on a half-year’s worth of data.
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+15 +5
Addictive behavior could trace back to an ancient retrovirus in our DNA
Millions of Americans struggle with substance abuse and tens of thousands die each year, according to the American Society of Addiction Medicine. Though treating addiction has become a vast (and at times abusive) industry, the underlying causes of drug or alcohol dependency—and how to successfully treat these debilitating conditions—are still poorly understood by science. Now, researchers think they’ve found the germ of an answer in our genetic past.
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+3 +1
Fortnite video game cited in 200 divorces this year, report says
An online divorce website says the popular video game Fortnite has been cited in over 200 divorces this year. According to the website, the divorce petitions received specifically mention an addiction to Fortnite and other video games as one of the reasons for divorce. The website says the digital revolution has introduced a new way for relationships to break down.
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+20 +6
Experimental painkiller molecule as powerful as morphine, but not addictive
As an opioid epidemic spreads across the western world, researchers believe they’re close to developing a non-addictive painkiller. Figures from the US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) estimate that about 115 people in the country are overdosing on opioids every single day. Aside from the financial costs such an addiction brings to a national healthcare system, it can be hugely traumatic for the person addicted to these drugs, and for their families.
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+2 +1
We’re failing in the opioid crisis. A new study shows a more serious approach would save lives.
The study suggests a comprehensive approach is needed — one that goes way further than what America has done so far.
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+2 +1
Is the U.S. Knee-Deep in ‘Epidemics,’ or Is That Just Wishful Thinking?
It’s tempting to see each of the country’s creeping public disasters as an epidemic. But an epidemic would probably be a lot easier to solve.
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+14 +2
Overdose Deaths Reached Record Level of 72,000 in 2017, New Estimates Show
Fentanyl is a big culprit, but there are also encouraging signs from states that have prioritized public health campaigns and addiction treatment.
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+20 +4
Why Is There a ‘Gaming Disorder’ But No ‘Smartphone Disorder?’
The international health community has decided that if you play video games like Fortnite or World of Warcraft a lot, you might suffer from a mental-health issue: Gaming Disorder. It’s a behavioral condition that the World Health Organization has added to the proposed 11th revision of its International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, or ICD-11, the first update to the classification since 1992.
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+3 +1
Yes, You Can Be Addicted to Weed
People tend to think pot is not addictive, yet many regular users still struggle to quit. We spoke with an expert and pot-smokers across the stoner spectrum to figure it out.
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+14 +1
A brain chemical tied to narcolepsy may play a role in opioid addiction
Using opioids gives some brain cells a call to action. Opioid addicts’ brains, examined after death, contain about 50 percent more nerve cells that release a molecule called hypocretin, compared with people who didn’t use the drugs, a new study finds. Giving the opiate morphine to mice also induced similar changes in their brains. But the increase didn’t come from new nerve cells, or neurons, being born. Instead, once-dormant neurons appear to rev up their hypocretin machinery in response to the addictive drugs, researchers report June 27 in Science Translational Medicine.
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+5 +1
The Dark Side of the Orgasmic Meditation Company
“This is an organization that really preys on people’s weaknesses.” By Ellen Huet.
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+11 +3
Unbelievable recovery by mom who gave up baby
A homeless woman addicted to heroin whose newborn was adopted by a police officer has completely turned her life around. The story behind her transformation.
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+24 +4
My Teenage Video Game Obsession Wasn't 'Gaming Disorder'
I was a gay teen in the 1980s, hiding from a terrifying world in an arcade. The WHO's push to uniquely pathologize gaming won't help people like me.
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+1 +1
Narcotica, A New Podcast About Drugs and The People Who Use Them
Episode 1 of Narcotica is here! In the first segment Zachary Siegel does some mythbusting around overdosing by touching fentanyl; Troy Farah gives a nuanced take on what's driving the overdose crisis;
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+7 +3
Nine-year-old girl placed into rehab for her Fortnite addiction
WTF?! Since the dawn of video games, concerned parents have worried about their kids becoming addicted. Thanks to the advent of the internet and streaming platforms like Twitch, gaming is more popular today than ever before, but does that mean children are more at risk? One UK couple would likely agree, after their nine-year-old daughter was put into rehab to address her addiction to Fortnite.
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+15 +1
'Like a hit of heroin': What is behind the phenomenon of 'poo jogging'
It was the question that struck many Australians as they read about the bizarre case of Queensland's so-called 'poo jogger' this week - why?
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+32 +5
Sewage Is Helping Cities Flush Out the Opioid Crisis
Poop studies are helping communities make intervention decisions
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