Heroin's Child: A shocking image of a lost innocence
A COMATOSE heroin addict sprawls in a school doorway with a needle by his side - as his toddler daughter cuddles him in a pitiful bid to stay warm. Just 10ft away, the man's six month-old baby daughter cries hysterically with no cover on her pram. The shocking pictures illustrate the grim reality behind damning statistics that show 120,000 children are living with addict parents.
Children's charities last night described the images as "appalling and frightening" And Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill said: "This shows the extent of the problem that drugs cause in our communities. When a wee toddler is discovered in circumstances like that, it is just so shocking.
"It really does highlight the tragedy and misery that drugs like heroin can bring." The father was found by a businessman alerted by the baby's crying. He said the toddler - dressed in pink tracksuit bottoms, pink and white trainers and a white T-shirt - was sound asleep but the baby looked distressed. The father's shirt sleeves were rolled up to reveal heavilytattooed arms. Around him lay the paraphernalia of drugs - discarded needles and a soup spoon for cooking heroin.
On the left of the picture, on the school step, a syringe and empty wrapper are clearly visible.
We are not naming the man because to do so would identify the vulnerable toddler and baby girl still in his care. But he remains the girls' legal guardian and lives with them and his wife in a house in Clackmannanshire. He is on a fast-track rehabilitation programme for heroin abusers and receives prescription methadone. The 39-year-old has a long history of drug abuse and was jailed for five years in 1994 for a serious sex assault. He claims the "drug works" were not his but admitted he had been drinking heavily with friends who were injecting heroin. On the day, he had appeared in court on another matter. He said: "I was told my dad was going to hospital and I wanted to take the children because my father loves them.
"I went to the Spar and got a half bottle and I also had a half bottle of vodka in the house which I had had a few out of. Me and the older child sat on the grass then I think I crashed out. I'm sorry for what has happened."
The businessman who took the photos on his mobile phone said: "He was gone. He had been that way so long that the girl was also asleep cuddled into him and the baby in the pram was crying her lungs out. He was dead to the world in broad daylight with two vulnerable children in his care. There is a busy road just a few steps away. It beggars belief that this idiot could still be responsible for these girls. The school where he was found is a notorious shooting-up location for addicts. There are new needles appearing there all the time."
Children's charity leaders described the case as "extreme" but said similar scenes were frequent behind closed doors across Scotland. Tom Roberts, head of public affairs at Children 1st, said: "It does paint a graphic picture of Scotland in 2007. "It is an appalling and frightening image. Services for addicts need to identify where children may live with someone misusing substances and ensure plans are put in place to protect them. We know with the right support, parents can overcome their addiction and maintain relationships with their children. However, we also know that support services are over-stretched and not always available when needed."
Last week chief medical officer Harry Burns revealed at least 120,000 children in Scotland live in homes blighted by drug and alcohol abuse. He warned: "Services are unable to prevent severe harm to many children. The Aberlour charity believes the real number of exposed children could be as high as 160,000. That is more than one in 10 children in Scotland, or three pupils in every class of 30. Aberlour said: "Parental substance use can affect children in many ways. The stigma can lead to isolation and susceptibility to bullying. Children may fear the family being split up by social services and may try to protect it by becoming withdrawn socially and conceal the harm they are experiencing."
Roberts said: "Many children in these situations assume a role as carer to their parents and siblings. Of the 2288 children on the child protection register in Scotland in March 2006, 45 per cent of these were categorised as having been neglected. We remain concerned that alcohol or drug misuse has pervaded Scottish culture and that this acts as a barrier to real change. Helping parents to stop misusing drugs or alcohol is the best solution for children, the best solution for communities and the best solution for individuals themselves."
It is not only the children left in the street as their parents lie comatose who are at risk. Children left in bedrooms as their parents lie unconscious through drink downstairs are in as much danger. But sometimes it can be hard to find help. A report by Children 1st stated: "People often have to wait weeks or even months to get the help that they need. This is especially regrettable given that pregnancy or parenthood can often be the trigger to encourage someone to end their drug or alcohol misuse." In the Central Scotland case, both girls are still at home with their father. This may appear to be a mistake by social services but they could also be at risk if put into public care. The report states: "The reality of our public care system is that it fails many of our young people, with outcomes such as low educational attainment, increased risk of drug use, mental illness, homelessness and offending, and a lack of identity and self-esteem. Before we can be confident of giving Scotland's most vulnerable children a safer, happier and more secure childhood, much more needs to be done to address the failings of our public care system."
Shown the pictures, Tory justice spokesman Bill Aitken said: "What an indictment of the society in which we live. These photographs are truly heart-rending." Labour justice spokeswoman Pauline McNeill said: "Sadly, there are cases like this and it will be shocking for people to read. We need more childcentred policies in government, we cannot tolerate this type of behaviour."
Clackmannanshire Council, who deal with the family, said: "Emergency duty social workers were involved in this case as soon as it came to light Social workers from Clackmannanshire Council's Child Care Service continue to be involved to ensure the future safety of the children."
This highlights the misery that heroin can bring It paints a graphic picture..an appalling and frightening image'
Source: Sunday Mail Nov. 25 2007
'Health disaster' fear as pupils turn to cocaine
Drug dealers are targeting schools and a "worrying number" of youngsters are trying cocaine, an expert warned yesterday. As a result, the country is heading for a health care disaster, Prof John Henry, the UK's leading expert on illicit drug use, told The Daily Telegraph. He predicted a dramatic rise in heart attacks, strokes and neurological problems among young people. He spoke as a new report said that almost one in five secondary school pupils in England, some as young as 11, took illegal drugs last year.
The number of children aged 11-15 dabbling in drugs was contributing to an increase in the number of adults addicted to Class A drugs such as cocaine, with massive knock-on costs for the NHS. Hospital admissions linked to illegal drugs have tripled in five years.
The report was published by The Information Centre for Health and Social Care, a Government-funded body. The number of pupils who told researchers that they had used drugs in the previous month had fallen slightly over a five-year period. But the report said that the numbers who took cocaine or ecstasy in the past year have not dropped and represent four per cent -- or around 140,000 children.
Around 17 per cent of pupils took some kind of illegal drug, rising to 29 per cent among 15-year-olds. Nearly one in five at secondary school were offered Class A drugs such as ecstasy, LSD, heroin, cocaine, crack, magic mushrooms, and amphetamines.
The report, which also looked at adult drug-taking in England and Wales, found that the number of cannabis users was down, from 10 per cent to eight per cent, but cocaine was the second most common drug.
Those taking Class A drugs rose in the past eight years from 2.7 per cent to 3.4 per cent, about 1.4 million adults, mainly due to an increase in cocaine use. Prof Susan Paterson, a toxicologist at Imperial College, London, who works with coroners on heroin deaths in the capital, said: "Ten years ago we hardly saw cocaine. Now it is commonplace."
Prof Henry said: "If dealers can find a new audience they will go for it. It is very brutal, very aggressive. "If you have a large number of people trying cocaine, you will have more people addicted." Cocaine usage had peaked in the US but was still on the rise here "which means the worst is yet to come, we're going to see more severe addiction, more strokes and heart attacks in young people, and more of the other complications linked to its usage".
There were 171 deaths from cocaine in 2005, up from 19 in 1996, but the professor said the figure was a gross underestimate because many cocaine users died of heart attacks and strokes. Prof Henry said: "We did research into people with chest pain and we found that about 30 per cent of people coming into hospital under 40 had taken cocaine." Cocaine use has been boosted because it has become more socially acceptable and the supply is more plentiful. A gram wrap costs as little as £45 and experts fear its use will soar until it reaches a peak, as it did in the 1990s in the US, where there are now 25 million users and two million addicts. According to the report, three per cent of pupils who said they had taken drugs in the past month were just 11 or 12 years old.
In 2006, 17 per cent of boys had taken drugs in the past year and 10 per cent in the past month. The figures for girls were 16 per cent and eight per cent respectively. Meanwhile, the numbers of adults in hospital where drug use is a factor has risen nearly threefold in 10 years to 38,364, while drug treatment centres are overwhelmed, with 181,390 drug users visiting them last year - up 13 per cent in 12 months. Some 8,200 pupils in 290 schools completed questionnaires last autumn for the survey.
Source: Daily Telegraph April 2007
The number of children aged 11-15 dabbling in drugs was contributing to an increase in the number of adults addicted to Class A drugs such as cocaine, with massive knock-on costs for the NHS. Hospital admissions linked to illegal drugs have tripled in five years.
The report was published by The Information Centre for Health and Social Care, a Government-funded body. The number of pupils who told researchers that they had used drugs in the previous month had fallen slightly over a five-year period. But the report said that the numbers who took cocaine or ecstasy in the past year have not dropped and represent four per cent -- or around 140,000 children.
Around 17 per cent of pupils took some kind of illegal drug, rising to 29 per cent among 15-year-olds. Nearly one in five at secondary school were offered Class A drugs such as ecstasy, LSD, heroin, cocaine, crack, magic mushrooms, and amphetamines.
The report, which also looked at adult drug-taking in England and Wales, found that the number of cannabis users was down, from 10 per cent to eight per cent, but cocaine was the second most common drug.
Those taking Class A drugs rose in the past eight years from 2.7 per cent to 3.4 per cent, about 1.4 million adults, mainly due to an increase in cocaine use. Prof Susan Paterson, a toxicologist at Imperial College, London, who works with coroners on heroin deaths in the capital, said: "Ten years ago we hardly saw cocaine. Now it is commonplace."
Prof Henry said: "If dealers can find a new audience they will go for it. It is very brutal, very aggressive. "If you have a large number of people trying cocaine, you will have more people addicted." Cocaine usage had peaked in the US but was still on the rise here "which means the worst is yet to come, we're going to see more severe addiction, more strokes and heart attacks in young people, and more of the other complications linked to its usage".
There were 171 deaths from cocaine in 2005, up from 19 in 1996, but the professor said the figure was a gross underestimate because many cocaine users died of heart attacks and strokes. Prof Henry said: "We did research into people with chest pain and we found that about 30 per cent of people coming into hospital under 40 had taken cocaine." Cocaine use has been boosted because it has become more socially acceptable and the supply is more plentiful. A gram wrap costs as little as £45 and experts fear its use will soar until it reaches a peak, as it did in the 1990s in the US, where there are now 25 million users and two million addicts. According to the report, three per cent of pupils who said they had taken drugs in the past month were just 11 or 12 years old.
In 2006, 17 per cent of boys had taken drugs in the past year and 10 per cent in the past month. The figures for girls were 16 per cent and eight per cent respectively. Meanwhile, the numbers of adults in hospital where drug use is a factor has risen nearly threefold in 10 years to 38,364, while drug treatment centres are overwhelmed, with 181,390 drug users visiting them last year - up 13 per cent in 12 months. Some 8,200 pupils in 290 schools completed questionnaires last autumn for the survey.
Source: Daily Telegraph April 2007
Youngsters having treatment for drug abuse up by a fifth
The number of children between nine and 15 sent for drug treatment shot up by a fifth last year, according to official figures
The number of children between nine and 15 sent for drug treatment shot up by a fifth last year, according to official figures. More than 9,000 were sent on courses to try to curb the drug abuse that led them into crime and anti-social behaviour.
Most were ordered to take drug treatment by the courts after convictions for crimes seen as linked to their drug habit. The majority sent for treatment were found to be using cannabis. But an increasing proportion are taking other drugs, notably cocaine.
The figures, released by the Department of Health to MPs, show a 20 per cent rise in the number of children entering treatment for drug problems, up from 7,500 in 2005-2006 to 9,031 in 2006-2007.
The number who were said to have their main problem with cannabis was 5,037, 56 per cent of the total. The previous year there were 4,567 who gave cannabis as their predominant drug, 61 per cent of the total.
Campaigners against drugs warned that the assumption among many adults that taking drugs is harmless has contributed to their growing use by children.
Mary Brett, of Europe Against Drugs, said: "This is what happens when the common attitude to drugs is that taking them is normal. "We are finding children acting as runners for dealers and committing crime themselves to pay for drugs. Children are also unlikely to take notice of all the information about cannabis as a cause of psychosis that older teenagers are aware of.”
A Department of Health spokesman said: "These figures reflect the massive improvements that have been made over the past few years in engaging more people in effective drug treatment. "We have seen a reduction in cannabis use across all age groups.
But the MagistrateAssociation reported recently that the Government’s decision to downgrade the criminal status of cannabis in 2004 has produced a boom in youth crime, notably among 12 and 13-year-olds.
The number of children between nine and 15 sent for drug treatment shot up by a fifth last year, according to official figures. More than 9,000 were sent on courses to try to curb the drug abuse that led them into crime and anti-social behaviour.
Most were ordered to take drug treatment by the courts after convictions for crimes seen as linked to their drug habit. The majority sent for treatment were found to be using cannabis. But an increasing proportion are taking other drugs, notably cocaine.
The figures, released by the Department of Health to MPs, show a 20 per cent rise in the number of children entering treatment for drug problems, up from 7,500 in 2005-2006 to 9,031 in 2006-2007.
The number who were said to have their main problem with cannabis was 5,037, 56 per cent of the total. The previous year there were 4,567 who gave cannabis as their predominant drug, 61 per cent of the total.
Campaigners against drugs warned that the assumption among many adults that taking drugs is harmless has contributed to their growing use by children.
Mary Brett, of Europe Against Drugs, said: "This is what happens when the common attitude to drugs is that taking them is normal. "We are finding children acting as runners for dealers and committing crime themselves to pay for drugs. Children are also unlikely to take notice of all the information about cannabis as a cause of psychosis that older teenagers are aware of.”
A Department of Health spokesman said: "These figures reflect the massive improvements that have been made over the past few years in engaging more people in effective drug treatment. "We have seen a reduction in cannabis use across all age groups.
But the MagistrateAssociation reported recently that the Government’s decision to downgrade the criminal status of cannabis in 2004 has produced a boom in youth crime, notably among 12 and 13-year-olds.
Hyperactivity in young linked to smoking during pregnancy
Children whose mothers smoked during their pregnancy are up to nine times more likely to develop attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, scientists say. US researchers found smoking acts as a trigger for the disorder when children are already genetically predisposed to ADHD.
The dangers of smoking during pregnancy are well documented. But the links between smoking and ADHD have not been proven until now. Symptoms of the disorder usually start early in a child's life. In the US the most recent study indicated that around 3.3% of children under 10 have ADHD and levels are believed to be similar here. The researchers found no relationships between alcohol during pregnancy and ADHD. The scientists contacted just over 5,000 families with twin children aged seven to 18 in Missouri. The parents were asked to complete questionnaires on their children's behaviour and their habits during pregnancy. More than 24% reported smoking during pregnancy, of whom more than 75% smoked during the entire pregnancy.
A significantly increased risk of ADHD was found in those who smoked. "The average number of ADHD symptoms was significantly higher in the offspring who were exposed to prenatal smoking," the study said. Rosalind Neuman, one of the authors, said: "When genetic factors are combined with prenatal cigarette smoke exposure, the ADHD risk rises very significantly."
John Krystal, editor of Biological Psychiatry in which the research will be published in June, added: "These data highlight a new risk of maternal smoking, increasing the risk for ADHD in their children. ADHD, in turn, increases the risk for substance abuse. Thus, it appears in utero exposure to nicotine may help to perpetuate a cycle across generations that links addiction and behavioural problems."
A separate study, published last night, reveals that smoking cannabis while pregnant affects the brain development of unborn babies. Scientists believe taking the drug could restrict naturally occurring compounds in the embryonic brain which join up nerves and promote foetal growth.
The research centres on compounds in the body called endocannabinoids. These act in the same way as cannabis by attaching to receptors found on the surface of nerve cells in the brain. If cannabis is smoked at the same time as these molecules are released, there can be a battle for the receptors. This can disrupt the network of nerves and their formation.
Researchers in Scotland, the US and Hungary have been involved in the year-long study, led by the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. Anne Rajnicek, lecturer at Aberdeen University's institute of medical sciences, said: "Although we did not test marijuana-derived compounds directly, our data suggest marijuana use during pregnancy could affect development of the foetal brain."
Source: The Guardian Friday May 25, 2007
Raise age limit for buying alcohol to 21 and cut death toll
ALCOHOL sales should be restricted to over-21s, according to a new report that reveals that the drug is killing tens of thousands of teenagers and young adults in the developed world.
One in four deaths of people aged 15 to 29 in the developed world is down to drink - a total of 82,000 fatalities a year.
Males accounted for 70,000 of those deaths, meaning alcohol is responsible for a third of deaths among young men in the developing world, the Adolescent Health Study, published by the Lancet, revealed.
The figure is made up of mainly accidents when the victims are inebriated, such as swimmers drowning and drink-driving deaths.
At the launch of the study in London yesterday, doctors called for the legal age for buying alcohol to be raised to 21.
Dr Russell Viner, a paediatrician at University College London, said Britain had only just woken up to the alcohol problem, which was most prevalent in northern Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
He said: "We are recognising that binge drinking in young people is a serious problem. We thought it was a lot of fun, but we now realise that, particularly amongst young people, not drinking much all week and splurging at the weekend is harmful."
He said the solution was to raise the legal limit for buying alcohol to that in the United States, where the number of young people drinking has been falling for 20 years.
He went on: "I would like to see a European model where most young people drink with their family at a younger age, learning to drink in a social context. But it would be difficult to bolt this on to established Anglo-Saxon practice, so the best is probably what Americans do. We need a rethink of ages we license young people to buy various products."
The report, a collection of several studies from around the world, claims brain development continues through adolescence and can be placed at risk by the use of alcohol.
It claims that zero-tolerance approaches to alcohol are ineffective, and that harm-reduction strategies, such as random breath-testing and early intervention from GPs advising youngsters on the risks of alcohol consumption, can be more effective.
The study says that, partly as a result of alcohol misuse, there is a danger of a substantial drop in life expectancy, with chronic diseases, such as diabetes and early signs of cardiovascular disease, appearing in teenagers and young adults.
Professor Glenn Bowes, the head of the paediatric department at the University of Melbourne in Australia, said alcohol misuse was likely to cause further problems later in life.
Citing the statistic that 98 per cent of adult drinkers began drinking in their adolescence, he said: "Adults who have alcohol-related health issues often exhibit behaviour patterns that began in their teenage years.
"Preventive work needs to be done at the stage where the behaviour starts," he added.
"The education in school is important, but we really have to look at what the health system is doing. Doctors need to be shown how to talk to adolescents, so that when they come in to a GP's surgery with a cold, for example, the doctor can use it as an opportunity to ask them about their lifestyle and advise them on the health risks
Source Scotsman.com 27 March 2007
Letter from GP to an MP in Australia
Mr. Alan Cadman,
Federal Member for Mitchell,
Your Ref.: 4th October 2007
Dear Mr. Cadman,
re: NDARC Output
Thank you for your considered and thought provoking letter of 4/10/07 which arrived today. In the middle of what is obviously a frantically busy time for you, I very much appreciate your taking the time and trouble to reply in person and in detail. Thank you so much.
The output from NDARC @ UNSW can be easily measured and quantified. They are an academic research institute of PSYCHOLOGISTS whose business is simply publication. Their output may thus be easily determined by going to the NDARC home page and clicking on the link to publications. On the left are the are the various headings of the categories of papers they produce, namely reports (N=287), monographs (N=61), articles (877), books (355), resources (27), the centreline magazine (17), theses (21) and annual reports (6), a total of 1651 pieces (tabulated below).
However of far more importance is to ask “What do they all mean?” Remember that these are psychologists. They are not basic scientists or biologists, so they cannot explore much at all, will never discover a new cell pathway, or a new molecule which we can treat with a drug to make addiction better in some way. Not only will they never achieve this, as their qualifications are not in the basic sciences they do not even understand the journals which are working in these areas. And in the areas where they should have alerted the nation to the link say between cannabis and mental ill health they have deliberately misled the country since their inception. This is explained by the fact that the institute is the brain child of Dr. Alex Wodak, who as we know only too well has left nobody in any doubt as to where his sympathies lie in the drug debate.
Two recent case studies from NDARC are worth noting. The foundation director is Prof. Wayne Hall. When he realized that the epidemiological and basic neurosciences studies were strongly implicating cannabis in mental health – he had to leave not only his position at NDARC and UNSW, but even left the state, and has come to Queensland! Having been the front man for the legalization push for “weed” in NSW he has now published several papers in reputable journals on its dangers! To me this shouts as loudly as possible that the truth on addiction will not be tolerated in Sydney. As our nation’s leading city this is a clarion trumpet wake up call to all parents concerned about the obvious unravelling of youth culture. The second classic example is A/Prof Louise Degenhardt who I am now advised is a principal researcher on three NHMRC grants, and whose PhD thesis is listed near the top of the NDARC Theses page as being on cannabis and mental health. She has authored a number of papers on this subject. She has steadfastly covered up the true associations throughout her career – but has been honoured by at least three grants!
Mr Cadman, may I reiterate my urgent plea, in as strong terms as I may, that this nation can no longer afford to continue without basic sciences research in the addictions field. As I have mentioned to the FHS committee chaired so enviably by Mrs. Bishop, the dishevelled appearance of most addicts is legendary, and bespeaks an acceleration of the ageing process from which we might learn a great deal, which is directly applicable not only to other mental illnesses but also to the host of degenerative disorders to which an ageing society will increasingly become subject.
I should therefore be ever so grateful if you might please organize an URGENT appointment with the Honourable the Prime Minister so I can put my research proposal for a suite of studies along these lines to him, as per the document supplied to your committee and attested with distinction by several world leaders in these fields internationally.
Yours sincerely
Dr. A. Stuart Reece,
Visiting Scientist,
Senior Lecturer, Medical School, University of Queensland
Queensland Institute of Medical Research,
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Federal Member for Mitchell,
Your Ref.: 4th October 2007
Dear Mr. Cadman,
re: NDARC Output
Thank you for your considered and thought provoking letter of 4/10/07 which arrived today. In the middle of what is obviously a frantically busy time for you, I very much appreciate your taking the time and trouble to reply in person and in detail. Thank you so much.
The output from NDARC @ UNSW can be easily measured and quantified. They are an academic research institute of PSYCHOLOGISTS whose business is simply publication. Their output may thus be easily determined by going to the NDARC home page and clicking on the link to publications. On the left are the are the various headings of the categories of papers they produce, namely reports (N=287), monographs (N=61), articles (877), books (355), resources (27), the centreline magazine (17), theses (21) and annual reports (6), a total of 1651 pieces (tabulated below).
However of far more importance is to ask “What do they all mean?” Remember that these are psychologists. They are not basic scientists or biologists, so they cannot explore much at all, will never discover a new cell pathway, or a new molecule which we can treat with a drug to make addiction better in some way. Not only will they never achieve this, as their qualifications are not in the basic sciences they do not even understand the journals which are working in these areas. And in the areas where they should have alerted the nation to the link say between cannabis and mental ill health they have deliberately misled the country since their inception. This is explained by the fact that the institute is the brain child of Dr. Alex Wodak, who as we know only too well has left nobody in any doubt as to where his sympathies lie in the drug debate.
Two recent case studies from NDARC are worth noting. The foundation director is Prof. Wayne Hall. When he realized that the epidemiological and basic neurosciences studies were strongly implicating cannabis in mental health – he had to leave not only his position at NDARC and UNSW, but even left the state, and has come to Queensland! Having been the front man for the legalization push for “weed” in NSW he has now published several papers in reputable journals on its dangers! To me this shouts as loudly as possible that the truth on addiction will not be tolerated in Sydney. As our nation’s leading city this is a clarion trumpet wake up call to all parents concerned about the obvious unravelling of youth culture. The second classic example is A/Prof Louise Degenhardt who I am now advised is a principal researcher on three NHMRC grants, and whose PhD thesis is listed near the top of the NDARC Theses page as being on cannabis and mental health. She has authored a number of papers on this subject. She has steadfastly covered up the true associations throughout her career – but has been honoured by at least three grants!
Mr Cadman, may I reiterate my urgent plea, in as strong terms as I may, that this nation can no longer afford to continue without basic sciences research in the addictions field. As I have mentioned to the FHS committee chaired so enviably by Mrs. Bishop, the dishevelled appearance of most addicts is legendary, and bespeaks an acceleration of the ageing process from which we might learn a great deal, which is directly applicable not only to other mental illnesses but also to the host of degenerative disorders to which an ageing society will increasingly become subject.
I should therefore be ever so grateful if you might please organize an URGENT appointment with the Honourable the Prime Minister so I can put my research proposal for a suite of studies along these lines to him, as per the document supplied to your committee and attested with distinction by several world leaders in these fields internationally.
Yours sincerely
Dr. A. Stuart Reece,
Visiting Scientist,
Senior Lecturer, Medical School, University of Queensland
Queensland Institute of Medical Research,
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
NDARC @ UNSW Academic Output as per publications website[1][1].
Journal Articles 877, Books 355, Reports 287, Monographs 61, Resource Sheets 27,
Theses 21, 'Centrelines' Magazine Issues l7. Total 1645
Scandal of Scots dope factories
DETECTIVES are shutting down at least one cannabis factory a week in their battle to contain an illegal industry created by reclassification of the drug, one of Scotland's leading police officers revealed last night.
Graeme Pearson, director general of the Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency (SDEA), said cannabis factory raids north of the Border had gone from none to 66 in the space of 12 months.
In comments that will be seen as critical of senior politicians who allowed cannabis to be "downgraded" from Class B to Class C, Pearson says organised crime saw a business opportunity and quickly moved in.
Pearson said Scotland's new generation of "industrial-sized" cannabis producers could be worth more than £7m - equivalent to eight million "spliffs".
The SDEA chief spoke out after the government announced cannabis could be returned to Class B. That prompted numerous admissions north and south of the Border from politicians who admitted smoking the drug as students.
But Pearson warned that society faced much more severe problems as a result of cannabis use, including the increased strength of the drug. He also revealed that many people were working in the factories in conditions similar to "slavery".
The move to reclassify cannabis was made in 2004 by the-then Home Secretary David Blunkett. It came despite fierce opposition from many experts who claimed it gave out the wrong message.
Pearson said: "It is not surprising that the public misunderstood the reclassification message. They began to think cannabis was OK and young people took that message to mean that it cannot be too bad to use and was no big deal.
"As a result, we have gone from zero cultivation of industrial-sized cannabis factories in Scotland a year ago, to 66 today."
It is estimated that around 60% of cannabis smoked in Britain these days is home-produced, compared with just 11% a decade ago. The UK trade is run by the 'Viet-Ching', an amalgamation of Vietnamese gangsters working alongside Chinese counterparts, the Triads.
Pearson said: "I am obviously concerned about cannabis and its links to organised crime."
He added: "Each factory can house up to 1,000 plants, each capable of producing £100,000-worth of cannabis, making production in Scotland alone worth at least £7m a year."
Across the country, factories have been built in houses, flats, industrial units and farms. And just as worrying as the soaring production rates is the fact that the cannabis is today around seven times stronger than the era when many top politicians were smoking it.
Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said his party had long called for the reclassification of the drug, adding that the evidence "shows all too clearly the real damage this drug can do to people, especially young people".
Margaret Smith, the Scottish Lib Dem justice spokeswoman, said the drug's classification needs to be kept under review. She said: "I find these facts and figures very worrying and cannabis is a drug we need to take seriously. We should not underestimate its potential for harm."
The anti-drugs campaigner Maxie Richards said it was a mistake to have reclassified cannabis. She said: "The government never listened to us when we warned about the damage the reclassification would do. I see beautiful young people whose lives have been destroyed by cannabis. David Blunkett should be called to account for what he did."
A Scottish Executive spokesman said they remained vigilant about the drug's dangers.
Source: www.Scotsman.com Sunday 22nd July 2007
More help asked for cannabis addiction
UTRECHT –The use of cannabis remained stable between 2001 and 2005, but the number of requests for help with addiction to the substance rose 12 percent in 2005 alone. This has emerged from the annual report 2006 published by the National Drug Monitor on Tuesday.
The percentage of cocaine users also remained stable, while the number of users that reported to addiction treatment centres for help fell for the first time in years, by 2 percent. Cocaine use is significantly more prevalent among young people who frequent nightlife spots than in other segments of the population, the Monitor reported.
The number of ecstasy users also remained stable.
The number of consumers who used alcohol remained stable as well, though there are significant differences between age groups when it comes to heavy drinking. Men aged 18 to 24 drink the heaviest and are more likely to engage in binge drinking. The percentage of school students that start using alcohol at a young age increased between 1999 and 2003. Many of these children start drinking between the ages of 11 and
The number of 12-year-old who use alcohol decreased between 2003 and 2005 however. More and more young drinkers are drinking at home before going out (to save money). And binge drinking seems to be the rule rather than the exception in this group. Despite a legal ban on sales to under-16s young people have little trouble getting alcohol.
Of the 1.2 million problem drinkers only a small percentage turns to the addiction treatment services for help. In 2005 31 thousand people were treated for a drinking problem, up 5 percent from 2004.
Source: Expatica News. August 2007
Medicines watchdog cracks down on 'legal high' pills
Pills offering "legal highs" were today declared illegal by the UK medicines regulator because they contain a dangerous anti-worming agent.
Until now, drugs containing Benzylpiperazine (BZP) have been marketed in Britain as legal alternatives to ecstasy, with products including Pep Twisted, Pep Stoned, Legal E, Nemesis, The Good Stuff and Euphoria.
Many are easily available in "headshops" and over the internet, despite being banned in the US and many other countries.
However, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said vendors of the drugs could face prosecution and ruled that their promotion must be stopped immediately.
MHRA research found BZP can came cause the same high as amphetamines, but also induce side-effects including vomiting, abdominal pain, seizures and abnormal heart rhythms. In extreme cases, it can cause death.
The MHRA said the active ingredient in BZP is piperazine, which is used as an anti-worming agent to tackle parasites in cattle.
"Producers and sellers must now stop marketing all products containing benzylpiperazine and piperazine blend in the UK with immediate effect, and must cancel all advertising and promotion including internet promotion and sales," Danny Lee-Frost, an MHRA spokesman, said.
"People should not take these pills, as there are considerable health risks."
He said piperazine-based products were classified as medicinal and must only be sold under licence in a pharmacy. However, BZP pills are unlicensed and there is there no safeguard over the quality or safety of the drug.
The widespread sale of piperzines in the UK was exposed by the Guardian in 2005. One pill, Twisted, was marketed as offering a "loved-up feeling with a trippy edge", while another, Stoned, was described as "mild, mellow and giggly".
Source:Tuesday March 20, 2007 Guardian Unlimited
Six-year surge in drug possession cases as figure tops 34,400
The number of people caught with drugs has soared over the past six years.
Crimes of possession have increased by 58% since 1999-2000, and in 2005-06 a total of 34,440 such crimes were recorded in Scotland, according to figures released yesterday by the Justice Minister, Cathy Jamieson.
The Strathclyde region accounted for more than half of the total, while Dumfries and Galloway only recorded 663 incidents last year.
The figures came in an answer to a parliamentary question by SNP MSP Maureen Watt. She said they reflected a "serious and escalating" problem. "Such a rise has grave implications for the safety of our communities and the health and wellbeing of our nation," she said.
"These figures reflect a severe lack of positive action and policy initiatives on the part of the executive. In each year it has been in power it has allowed the situation to deteriorate and spiral out of control. The executive is fire-fighting all the time.
"What the SNP are saying is that we have got to address the root causes of drug misuse. By targeting deprivation with policies for economic growth, we will hopefully get people out of the cycle of deprivation."
The figures are not broken down by drug type, but they include heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, ecstasy and cannabis. They show that the number of crimes of possession with intent to supply has risen by 15.7% in six years - from 8032 in 1999-2000 to 9293 in 2005-06.
Ms Watt added: "It is good that drug dealers are being caught but for every drug dealer that is caught, at least another one will take over that patch. It isn't dealing with the problem."
A Scottish Executive spokesman said that the rise in recorded crimes reflected work by police forces and the Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency (SDEA).
He said: "This reflects the efforts by police forces and the SDEA, which was established in June 2000 and been strengthened since then, to target those involved in peddling this evil trade.
"Their enforcement efforts have led to increases in the number of these crimes recorded, the number of people being charged and the numbers being brought to justice.
"It also reflects the success of initiatives such as the Drug Dealer's Don't Care campaign to support local communities in the fight against drugs and encourage them to provide anonymous information about dealers operating in their area to get them off our streets."
Source: The Herald Tuesday 27th March 2007
Crimes of possession have increased by 58% since 1999-2000, and in 2005-06 a total of 34,440 such crimes were recorded in Scotland, according to figures released yesterday by the Justice Minister, Cathy Jamieson.
The Strathclyde region accounted for more than half of the total, while Dumfries and Galloway only recorded 663 incidents last year.
The figures came in an answer to a parliamentary question by SNP MSP Maureen Watt. She said they reflected a "serious and escalating" problem. "Such a rise has grave implications for the safety of our communities and the health and wellbeing of our nation," she said.
"These figures reflect a severe lack of positive action and policy initiatives on the part of the executive. In each year it has been in power it has allowed the situation to deteriorate and spiral out of control. The executive is fire-fighting all the time.
"What the SNP are saying is that we have got to address the root causes of drug misuse. By targeting deprivation with policies for economic growth, we will hopefully get people out of the cycle of deprivation."
The figures are not broken down by drug type, but they include heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, ecstasy and cannabis. They show that the number of crimes of possession with intent to supply has risen by 15.7% in six years - from 8032 in 1999-2000 to 9293 in 2005-06.
Ms Watt added: "It is good that drug dealers are being caught but for every drug dealer that is caught, at least another one will take over that patch. It isn't dealing with the problem."
A Scottish Executive spokesman said that the rise in recorded crimes reflected work by police forces and the Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency (SDEA).
He said: "This reflects the efforts by police forces and the SDEA, which was established in June 2000 and been strengthened since then, to target those involved in peddling this evil trade.
"Their enforcement efforts have led to increases in the number of these crimes recorded, the number of people being charged and the numbers being brought to justice.
"It also reflects the success of initiatives such as the Drug Dealer's Don't Care campaign to support local communities in the fight against drugs and encourage them to provide anonymous information about dealers operating in their area to get them off our streets."
Source: The Herald Tuesday 27th March 2007
Gordon Brown cuts £50m from drugs work in funding
The Sunday Telegraph suggests that the Pooled Treatment Budget will be cut over coming years:
The flagship government scheme for treating drug addicts faces swingeing budget cuts of £50 million, it can be revealed today.
Plans to slash total funding by more than 12 per cent, outlined in an email leaked to The Sunday Telegraph, come less than a fortnight after Gordon Brown tried to show off his anti-drug credentials by signalling his desire to reclassify cannabis from Class C to the more serious Class B.
We of course know that the Young People’s Substance Misuse Grant suffered a 10% cut this year, the effects of which are now becoming apparent:
Source: Sunday Telegraph July 2007
The flagship government scheme for treating drug addicts faces swingeing budget cuts of £50 million, it can be revealed today.
Plans to slash total funding by more than 12 per cent, outlined in an email leaked to The Sunday Telegraph, come less than a fortnight after Gordon Brown tried to show off his anti-drug credentials by signalling his desire to reclassify cannabis from Class C to the more serious Class B.
We of course know that the Young People’s Substance Misuse Grant suffered a 10% cut this year, the effects of which are now becoming apparent:
Source: Sunday Telegraph July 2007
Drug legalisation is playing Russian roulette
Willem Buiter's proposal on these pages last week for the European Union (and the world) to legalise all drugs, including heroin and cocaine, is a one-way ticket to destroying millions of children, increasing violent crime and pushing up healthcare costs.
Like most legalisation buffs, Professor Buiter suggests a regulated system where access to drugs would be prohibited for minors. Our experience with laws restricting access by children and adolescents to tobacco and alcohol makes it clear that keeping legal drugs away from minors would be an impossible dream. Teen smoking and drinking are at epidemic levels in the US and across much of the European continent. In Great Britain, keeping bars open has led to an explosion of drunkenness among teens so widespread that the government is likely to return to limited hours for pubs.
Today, the US has some 60m regular smokers, up to 20m alcoholics and alcohol abusers and about 6m illegal drug addicts. Experts such as Columbia University's Herbert Kleber believe that, with legalisation, the number of cocaine addicts alone could leapfrog beyond the number of alcoholics. The experience of European nations that have tried various shades of legalisation bears him out.
Switzerland's "Needle Park", touted as a way to restrict a few hundred heroin users to a small area, turned into a grotesque tourist attraction of 20,000 heroin addicts and junkies. It had to be closed before it infected the entire city of Zurich.
In the Netherlands, anyone over the age of 17 can drop into a marijuana "coffee shop" and pick types of marijuana just as they might choose flavours of ice-cream. As crime and the availability of drugs rose, and complaints from angry residents about the decline in their quality of life multiplied, the Dutch parliament trimmed back the number of marijuana shops in Amsterdam and the amount that can be sold to an individual.
Under decriminalisation in Italy, possession of a few doses of drugs such as heroin has generally been exempt from criminal sanction. Today, Italy has about 200,000 addicts, the highest rate of heroin addiction in Europe. Most Aids cases in Italy are attributable to drug use. England's foray into allowing any doctor to prescribe heroin was curbed as heroin use increased. Professor Buiter would have legalisation occur across all of Europe so there are no countries that are enclaves of drug use. In other words, if you like what's happened in Switzerland, the Netherlands and Italy, you'll love legalisation across the European Union.
Easy availability of drugs will increase criminal activity. Most violent crimes, such as murders, assaults and rapes, occur when the perpetrator is high or drunk, and much of property crime involves people seeking money to buy drugs. In the US, half the beds in most hospitals are filled with people sick or injured as a result of drug use, drinking and smoking.
Professor Buiter promotes "our cigarette manufacturers, [as] well-positioned to enter this trade" of selling heroin, cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine and designer drugs such as ecstasy. Talk about letting the fox loose in the chicken coop! For decades the nicotine pushers like RJ Reynolds, Brown and Williamson, and Philip Morris have been hawking their wares to kids. Twenty years ago the cigarette company Reynolds Tobacco (RJR) created a cartoon character called Joe Camel and so heavily promoted him that more children recognised him than Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse.
Only after years of complaints from public health advocates and parents, and the threat of legal action by the Federal Trade Commission, did RJR shut down its Joe Camel campaign. RJR tried to push candy-flavoured cigarettes that mask the harshness of natural tobacco for young first-time users.
Does the world want to create a Philip Morris for weed? An RJR for cocaine? Do we want cigarette companies that by their own admission seek "replacement smokers" for those who die or quit smoking, seeking "replacement drug addicts" for those who shake their habit?
There is no basis to assume that cigarette companies will take a different approach when selling drugs. After all, these are the guys who continue to promote a product that, when used as intended, kills and maims millions of people across the world.
Professor Buiter touts taxes on the sale of illegal drugs as a great source of revenue for public purposes. This blithely ignores the history of tenacious opposition to tax increases that has marked the tobacco and alcohol companies. As a result, taxes collected on the sale of these products cover only a small fraction of the costs in healthcare and criminal justice attributable to smoking and drinking.
Legalisation assures greater availability, and availability is the mother of use. That poses a clear and present danger to our children. Research at the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University has found that an individual who gets to the age of 21 without smoking, using drugs or abusing alcohol is virtually certain never to do so. Every drug-dealer, cigarette manufacturer and spirits company knows this - and acts on it. Viewed from this perspective, substance abuse and addiction are diseases typically acquired during childhood and adolescence.
Today most kids do not use illicit drugs, but all of them, particularly the poorest, are vulnerable to abuse and addiction. Russian roulette is not a game anyone should play. Legalising drugs is not only playing Russian roulette with children, it is slipping a couple of extra bullets into the chamber.
Joseph Califano
Source: www.FT.com Aug.16th 2007
Cannabis joint 'as harmful as smoking five cigarettes'
A single cannabis joint damages the lungs as much as smoking up to five cigarettes at once, researchers say. The drug forces the lungs to work harder by obstructing the air flow and causes chest tightness and wheezing, a study found.
The news comes after research published last week showed that cannabis could more than double the risk of developing psychotic illnesses such as schizophrenia. Experts found that any use of cannabis - even taking the drug just once - was associated with a 41 per cent greater risk.
People who smoke the most cannabis were found to be the most likely to suffer a psychotic breakdown marked by delusions, hallucinations or disordered thoughts.
Campaigners renewed their calls for the Government to reverse its decision to downgrade cannabis to a class C drug.
The experts, including Professor Richard Beasley from the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, published their research today. It will be carried later in the journal Thorax.
A total of 339 volunteers underwent high definition X-rays of their lungs and took part in breathing tests to assess their lung function.
They were also asked about their smoking habits. The results showed that cannabis smokers experienced wheezing, coughing, chest tightness and phlegm.
The experts noted that the drug diminished the numbers of small airways that transported oxygen and waste products to and from blood vessels.
The extent of this damage was directly related to the number of joints smoked, with higher consumption linked to greater incapacity, the researchers said.
The effect on the lungs of each joint was equivalent to smoking between two-and-a-half and five cigarettes in one go, they added.
Source: http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2819584.ece July 31st 2007
'ENDING BINGE DRINKING HOLDS KEY TO SOLVING DRUG PROBLEM'
Delegates at the Acpos annual drugs conference this week will be shown a DVD of boys in Polmont young offenders institute, describing the natural transition for them from binge drinking to taking cannabis and other drugs, including heroin and cocaine.
For many of them, this was the reason they ended up behind bars.
The progression of young people trying cannabis and then moving on to harder drugs is a well-known argument against legalising cannabis but Graeme Pearson, the head of the Scottish Crime and Drugs Enforcement Agency (SCDEA), says it is time to tackle the problem much earlier, from before the stage of underage binge drinking.
"Reducing binge drinking among 11 to 15-year-olds will decrease the numbers who go on to be involved in drugs," he says, after speaking to scores of offenders about their experiences.
To the people, including the advocate Donald Findlay, who have recently called for cannabis to be decriminalised and regulated in the same way as alcohol, he suggests looking at Scotland's worsening public health record on drinking.
National statistics revealed last week that, despite having only 8.5% of the UK population, Scotland has three-quarters of the worst 20 areas for drink-related fatalities.
Between 2004 and 2005, there were 3500 psychiatric discharges where the main diagnosis was linked to alcohol. In the same period there were 931 drug-related discharges.
"Why would we want drugs to be managed or licensed in the same way as drink and see the problems more than triple?" he asks.
"I see the Scottish habit of abusing alcohol as being inextricably tied into our experience of drug abuse at the user level. Evidence from prisoners reinforces this view. The link to an alcohol strategy will be critical. One without the other will not work."
There is growing concern not only about the increas-ing use and cultivation of cannabis since it was reclassified, but about its strength.
According to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction THC, the active ingredient in herbal cannabis, has doubled in strength between 1995 and 2002.
Mr Pearson says educating young people about the dangers of substances such as cannabis and using treatment to help people come off drugs, is vital.
Sweden takes a hard line on alcohol and drugs misuse. It also has one of the lowest prevalence of cannabis use in Europe.
Its policy of a "drug-free society" has brought the introduction of new laws since the 1980s, calling for the prosecution of all drugs cases, even the very minor. Those caught for possession can be imprisoned for up to six months.
Mr Pearson said: "Sweden has taken a very hard line on drugs. But it is still about a package of education, protection and enforcement.
"Scotland surprisingly accepted the challenge of public smoking and proved it could accept the impossible. If we can change behaviour in respect of smoking after 200 years of a love affair, we should surely be capable of facing the challenge of alcohol and drugs."
__________________________________________________________________________
For many of them, this was the reason they ended up behind bars.
The progression of young people trying cannabis and then moving on to harder drugs is a well-known argument against legalising cannabis but Graeme Pearson, the head of the Scottish Crime and Drugs Enforcement Agency (SCDEA), says it is time to tackle the problem much earlier, from before the stage of underage binge drinking.
"Reducing binge drinking among 11 to 15-year-olds will decrease the numbers who go on to be involved in drugs," he says, after speaking to scores of offenders about their experiences.
To the people, including the advocate Donald Findlay, who have recently called for cannabis to be decriminalised and regulated in the same way as alcohol, he suggests looking at Scotland's worsening public health record on drinking.
National statistics revealed last week that, despite having only 8.5% of the UK population, Scotland has three-quarters of the worst 20 areas for drink-related fatalities.
Between 2004 and 2005, there were 3500 psychiatric discharges where the main diagnosis was linked to alcohol. In the same period there were 931 drug-related discharges.
"Why would we want drugs to be managed or licensed in the same way as drink and see the problems more than triple?" he asks.
"I see the Scottish habit of abusing alcohol as being inextricably tied into our experience of drug abuse at the user level. Evidence from prisoners reinforces this view. The link to an alcohol strategy will be critical. One without the other will not work."
There is growing concern not only about the increas-ing use and cultivation of cannabis since it was reclassified, but about its strength.
According to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction THC, the active ingredient in herbal cannabis, has doubled in strength between 1995 and 2002.
Mr Pearson says educating young people about the dangers of substances such as cannabis and using treatment to help people come off drugs, is vital.
Sweden takes a hard line on alcohol and drugs misuse. It also has one of the lowest prevalence of cannabis use in Europe.
Its policy of a "drug-free society" has brought the introduction of new laws since the 1980s, calling for the prosecution of all drugs cases, even the very minor. Those caught for possession can be imprisoned for up to six months.
Mr Pearson said: "Sweden has taken a very hard line on drugs. But it is still about a package of education, protection and enforcement.
"Scotland surprisingly accepted the challenge of public smoking and proved it could accept the impossible. If we can change behaviour in respect of smoking after 200 years of a love affair, we should surely be capable of facing the challenge of alcohol and drugs."
__________________________________________________________________________
Drug switch linked to meth trade
The Health Secretariat, along with the Federal Commission for the Prevention of Health Risks, is promoting the idea that manufacturers of anti-flu drugs should substitute phenylephrine for pseudoephedrine
The Health Secretariat, along with the Federal Commission for the Prevention of Health Risks, is promoting the idea that manufacturers of anti-flu drugs should substitute phenylephrine for pseudoephedrine .
The government is recommending that phenylephrine - which has similar characteristics to pesuedoephedrine, but of shorter duration - should be utilized in over-the-counter anti-flu medication.
The Health Secretariat (SSA) signaled it is toughening the rules regulating the importation of the chemical pseudoephedrine, used as a precursor ingredient to make the illegal narcotic methamphetamine.
The government has restricted the importation of pseudoephedrine to just four ports of entry: Manzanillo, Ciudad Juárez, Veracruz and the Mexico City airport.
Vehicles transporting loads of pseudoephedrine from customs to medical laboratories should be tracked with special security measures, the government says. It also said facilities receiving shipments of the chemical should also upgrade their security.
The Health Secretariat, along with the Federal Commission for the Prevention of Health Risks, is promoting the idea that manufacturers of anti-flu drugs should substitute phenylephrine for pseudoephedrine .
The government is recommending that phenylephrine - which has similar characteristics to pesuedoephedrine, but of shorter duration - should be utilized in over-the-counter anti-flu medication.
The Health Secretariat (SSA) signaled it is toughening the rules regulating the importation of the chemical pseudoephedrine, used as a precursor ingredient to make the illegal narcotic methamphetamine.
The government has restricted the importation of pseudoephedrine to just four ports of entry: Manzanillo, Ciudad Juárez, Veracruz and the Mexico City airport.
Vehicles transporting loads of pseudoephedrine from customs to medical laboratories should be tracked with special security measures, the government says. It also said facilities receiving shipments of the chemical should also upgrade their security.
AIM-listed Cozart to help Scottish police with drug tests
Scotland’s drug users are facing a new threat to their freedom.
The Scottish Executive has awarded a contract to Cozart, an Oxfordshire-based forensic testing group, to supply portable drug-testing services for those arrested in Scotland.
Under a new policy approved last year by the Executive, all Scots arrested for so-called “trigger offences”, such as robbery and burglary, could be subject to saliva-based tests to determine whether their crime is linked to drug abuse.
Initially, the pilot project will cover three police stations in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, but the scheme could be rolled out more widely if deemed a success by the police, who are trying to destroy the link between drugs and acquisitive crime. Suspects who test positive for heroin or cocaine will be channeled into drug treatment programmes.
Cozart, which is listed on the Alternative Investment Market, already supplies its RapiScan testing equipment to 173 police stations in England and Wales under a similar scheme introduced last year.
RapiScan is a portable device that can be used by police to check for the presence of a number of substances in bodily fluids. It tests almost 20,000 people arrested in England and Wales each month.
The two-year contract in Scotland will come into effect in June, with options to extend it for a further two years. Financial details of the contract are not known.
After the launch of the pilot project last year, Hugh Henry, the Scottish Deputy Justice Minister, said: “Around a third of all recorded crime in Scotland is related to drugs and more than three quarters of those sentenced by the courts to a custodial sentence show signs of drug misuse and drug-related offending.
“We need effective interventions that nip drug-related offending in the bud and channel offenders into the treatments we are supporting. These pilots will give adults with drug problems in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen an incentive to engage with services and get the help they need.”
Cozart develops and manufactures drug-testing equipment, including kits for on-site testing of saliva and crime scene laboratory testing.
The company, which also has subsidiaries in Italy, Spain and Sweden, sells kits to police and law enforcement agencies, as well as to employers who operate drug-testing policies.
Up to 80% of new Scottish prisoners who test positive for drug abuse
£66.7m Amount Scotland invested in drug treatment in 2005-06
Source: http://www.timesonline.april/ 2007
The Scottish Executive has awarded a contract to Cozart, an Oxfordshire-based forensic testing group, to supply portable drug-testing services for those arrested in Scotland.
Under a new policy approved last year by the Executive, all Scots arrested for so-called “trigger offences”, such as robbery and burglary, could be subject to saliva-based tests to determine whether their crime is linked to drug abuse.
Initially, the pilot project will cover three police stations in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, but the scheme could be rolled out more widely if deemed a success by the police, who are trying to destroy the link between drugs and acquisitive crime. Suspects who test positive for heroin or cocaine will be channeled into drug treatment programmes.
Cozart, which is listed on the Alternative Investment Market, already supplies its RapiScan testing equipment to 173 police stations in England and Wales under a similar scheme introduced last year.
RapiScan is a portable device that can be used by police to check for the presence of a number of substances in bodily fluids. It tests almost 20,000 people arrested in England and Wales each month.
The two-year contract in Scotland will come into effect in June, with options to extend it for a further two years. Financial details of the contract are not known.
After the launch of the pilot project last year, Hugh Henry, the Scottish Deputy Justice Minister, said: “Around a third of all recorded crime in Scotland is related to drugs and more than three quarters of those sentenced by the courts to a custodial sentence show signs of drug misuse and drug-related offending.
“We need effective interventions that nip drug-related offending in the bud and channel offenders into the treatments we are supporting. These pilots will give adults with drug problems in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen an incentive to engage with services and get the help they need.”
Cozart develops and manufactures drug-testing equipment, including kits for on-site testing of saliva and crime scene laboratory testing.
The company, which also has subsidiaries in Italy, Spain and Sweden, sells kits to police and law enforcement agencies, as well as to employers who operate drug-testing policies.
Up to 80% of new Scottish prisoners who test positive for drug abuse
£66.7m Amount Scotland invested in drug treatment in 2005-06
Source: http://www.timesonline.april/ 2007
School gives out nicotine patches
The Metro reports that children as young as 13 are being given nicotine patches at a school in an attempt to help them smoking. In a project, pupils take breath tests before morning lessons to check the levels of nicotine in their bodies. If they have smoked before they get to school they are given a nicotine replacement patch by a school nurse. The controversial idea was brought in at Greencroft High School, before the summer break. Seven girls, aged 13 and 14 sought help because they smoked between ten and 20 cigarettes a day. The breakthrough came when they took part in the dangers of addiction course and were asked about their smoking habits. In addition to patches they were given a hotline number to call if they felt unable to resist the urge to light up. Four girls managed to stick to the regime and remained tobacco free for two months. Now 30 of their school mates want to join the programme when they return for the autumn term in September. The Department of Health said it welcomed any effort to discourage under 16s from smoking. According to most recent figures, six percent of British 13 year olds smoke regularly and 22 percent of 15 year olds. However, ASH believes many children start as young as nine. Spokeswoman Amanda Sandford said: "If they start as young as nine or ten, then by thirteen they could be showing all the signs of addiction an adult smoker would. For those children, it is quite reasonable to be given help with nicotine patches. As long as it is done in a controlled way with a teacher or a nurse keeping an eye on them, I don't see any problem." Source: Metro, Daily Mail, Daily Express, 13 August 2004 |
High Times
| This month's 30th Anniversary edition of High Times Magazine has some interesting information that you may or may not already know. In articles by Richard Stratton, Rex Weiner and Ed Dwyer, there is reporting of marijuana use by Norman Mailer and Hugh Downs--something I've always suspected, but never have seen in print. In his editorial in the same edition, Richard Stratton presents an interesting history of High Times if you are interested. In the September issue, an article called "NORML 2004: A Conference of Heroes" states many of the goals of the pro-drug movement. Steve Bloom, as he accepted an award, said, "It's my great pleasure to know and work with all of you as we move closer to our ultimate goal, marijuana legalization." The movement's agenda is laid out in an article "Ten suggestions for the Pot Movement." They include: support for medical marijuana, buy hemp products, resist drug testing, support pot smokers and reach out to the mainstream, among others. These articles help connect all the "dots" together. Source : email from prevention worker in the USA to NDPA Nov. 2004 |
REAL COST OF CANNABIS
The following letter was printed in the Worthing Herald(UK) news paper on 10 sept 2003,and is very relevent to the item in The Times Jan'04
Regarding cannabis cafes, I work as a charge nurse at a local psychiatric hospital and and my colleagues have noticed a considerable increase in the number of people presenting with conditions caused by, or aggravated by cannabis use.This increase coincides with the time that Worthing has been home to cannabis cafes. I would be interested to see what the figures would be from an official audit of admissions to Meadowfield during the rest 12 months compared to a previous period. I feel that this cost to society in terms of expensive acute in-patient resources, and personal cost to peoples lives, is largely un-remarked upon by pro cannabis campaigners.Personally, I notice that many supporters present at court cases related to the cafes are not Worthing residents but are people with a vested interest. My impression is that there are not many local residents keen to see cannabis cafes thriving in Worthing. For these and many other reasons I fully support police efforts to close the cafes and thank police for the work done so far.
Forget your studies, now universities offer a ‘life experience’ shortcut
Forget your studies, now universities offer a ‘life experience’ shortcut
How being a drug addict can help win you a degree
‘Encouraging Drug Use’
How being a drug addict can help win you a degree
‘Encouraging Drug Use’
By Laura Clark
Daily mail August 2003
FORMER drug addicts are being offered a shortcut to a university degree on the basis of the ‘valuable life experience’ they have gained. They will be allowed to skip extensive periods of formal study if they can prove their ordeal and recovery was relevant to their course.
The astonishing deal is being offered as part of a new higher education scheme titled the Accreditiation of Prior Experiential Learning, which allows universities to waive up to two thirds of courses if students can show their previous experience overlaps with material covered in lessons.
This has been interpreted by Glasgow Caledonian University to offer recovering drug addicts the chance to offset formal study in the preliminary stages of a social science degree.
Another university advises students they may be able to count holiday work as a lifeguard towards a degree In sports science.
Critics lambasted the scheme yesterday as further evidence of dumbing down in higher education.
Shadow education minister Graham Brady said: Life experiences are important for everyone. But however significant those experiences, they can be no substitute for serious academic study.
‘It is particularly worrying if drug addicts are being given an advantage over those who have studied and worked bard.’
Other examples also raised eye-brows. Angila Polytechnic University advises students on its website: The experience of being a holiday life guard has no relevance to a degree In electronics, but would probably have some relevance to a degree in sports science.’
The Quality Assurance Agency, the higher education watchdog, has become so concerned It plans to launch new guidelines to stop dubious uses of the APEL scheme. Wide variations in how universities apply the rules emerged at a recent meeting hosted by the QAA. It revealed that in a few cases, up to two thirds of an award is eligible for APEL’. This means that some students would be able to complete a three-year degree course in a year. Students must pay a charge If they wish their pre-university experiences to be assessed under APEL. This can be anything from a few pounds to £100. But in some cases the assessment involves little more than an informal meeting with an academic.
Mary Brett, a grammar school teacher in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, said she was thunderstruck’ by the idea and warned it could encourage children to experiment with drugs. ‘It certainly isn’t a deterrent if they know the experience can help their future.’
Gone to pot
So this is what happens when the police take the law on cannabis less seriously. In the London borough of Lambeth the experiment of a softly-softly approach to the drug led to an explosion In its use. From the end of this month the Lambeth approach will be effectively introduced across the country as cannabis is downgraded to a ‘Class C’ substance. There is a real danger that cannabis use across the country will soar as teenagers assume they are safe from arrest and that it is acceptable to use the drug From whatever angle this is looked at, It Is a totally wrongheaded reform.
Cannabis Explosion
FEARS over the legal downgrading or cannabis increased last night as figures showed an
explosion in its use. Police in the London borough which pioneered a softly-softly approach to the drug have reported a three fold increase In the number of those caught with It. Anti-drug campaigners said last night that the trend suggested demand for cannabis will rocket when it is formally reclassified as a Class C substance later this month. The statistics are taken from crime figures Lambeth widely seen as a template for the government’s drug law reform. In July 2001, Commander Brian Paddick ordered his officers not to arrest and charge those caught with a small amount of cannabis, Instead they were let off with confiscation and a warning. Critics said the year long experiment made Lambeth, and the Britain area in particular, a magnet For so-called drug tourists and increased consumption among children. Supporters claimed that it freed officers to
concentrate on tackling harder substances such as heroin and crack cocaine. Figures show that in the year leading up to the experiment there were 805 incidents involving cannabis in Lambeth. By 2001/2002 they bad risen to 1,127. Last year, despite the decision to scrap the experiment, the figure had risen to 2,330. From January 29, the Brixton approach. will effectively become a nationwide policy and officers
will be able to arrest users only in aggravating circumstances’ – if they are under 18 or smoking persistently in a public place or near a school’
The official downgrading means the drug will be considered no more dangerous than prescription painkillers, steroids or tranquillisers. Doctors fear the change will lead young people to believe the drug is harmless.
Last night, senior police sources said that even though a more aggressive approach to drug use in Lambeth has been employed over the past l8 months, demand for cannabis has continued to rise. Lambeth has also continued to attract drug users from outside the borough. That factor may end when the law is changed. Those opposed to liberalisation believe that what has happened in Brixton is likely to be repeated in many parts or the country. The fear is that demand will go through the roof. Anti-drugs campaigner Mary Brett, a grammar school teacher, said: These figures prove that since the Home Secretary David Blunkett mode his announcement that the law was going to be changed, usage of the drug and demand has gone tip, In some ways it was inevitable. People. particularly children, pick up messages and the message is that it’s OK to take cannabis.’ Alter January 20, those caught in possession for personal use can expect the police to confiscate the drug and issue a routine warning. The maximum sentence for possession will fall from five years to two, although punishments for dealers will increase. However, last night there were Fears that the changes will lead to more confusion.
John DunFord, of the Secondary Heads Association, said: There is considerable confusion on the pert o as to the effect that tills will have, particularly on school discipline. Our advice is to continue to treat cannabis as before. The penalties we advise are a suspension possession Or exclusion for anyone who is supplying it. About 2 million Britons use cannabis regularly and a third of all l5-year olds have tried the drug according to official figures. Figures yesterday showed that the price of the drug has dropped by 20 per cent t £66 for an ounce of resin and there is increasing evidence that road accidents re being caused by drivers high on the drug. Last night Chief Superintvn’ dent Richard Quinn, Lambeth’s current commander admitted there had been a perception that users would not be prosecuted for carrying drug and that it had been ‘legalised’. The bottom line is that the dealers are more overt he said. Mr Quinn, said that as tile new law was rolled out across the country flourishing new markets for the drug would develop unless local officers took a firm decision to keep a lid on it.
‘Epidemic’ of mental illness warning
SINCE the decision to downgrade cannabis revealed there have been persistent claims that it is linked to serious mental illness. Last November, a court heard how Christopher Francis, a paranoid schizophrenic with a history of smoking the drug, killed his grandmother and aunt with a house brick and kitchen knife. The Judge, Mrs. Justice Heather Hallet, said: “It would not be the first time, that the use of apparently harmless drugs such as cannabis has led to a tearful explosion of violence.”
Earlier this month a leading expert warned that cannabis is the biggest single cause of mental illness in the UK. Consultant psychiatrist Professor Robin Murray said that up to 80 per cent of new patients at many units hey, a history of smoking the drug. He added that the vast majority of psychotic patients those who lose contact with reality have used cannabis. He has also led a study which showed that cannabis users are seven times more at risk of developing mental illness than the population in general. One of the main problems, he believes, is that the cannabis is now far stronger than what was available in the 1960s and 1970s. It contains up to ten times as mush of the ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol which includes the ‘high’. The fear is that its wide spread use among youngsters could result in an epidemic of schizophrenia. he warned: the more cannabis that is consumed the more psychiatrists we need. the drug has also been linked to cancer and lung disease.
PREVENTION WORKS
A positive experience from Florida, USA. The following article shows how a proactive prevention approach can make a significant difference in a community.
From drug capital to good example
BY ROBERT McCABE
In the past eight years, Miami-Dade youth have reduced drug use by 50 percent. But there is more to the story. The Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey found Miami-Dade to have the lowest rate of youth marijuana use of any Florida county, and the Federal Risk Behaviour Survey reported that Miami youth had the lowest rate of marijuana use of 14 large metropolitan areas.
In addition, the Miami Coalition School Survey showed that alcohol and cocaine use were down by a third, and the use of cigarettes, marijuana, LSD, rohhypnol, heroin, MDMA and amphetamines fell by more than half. Although drug use remains a major problem, our youth and the community have reason to be proud of this significant achievement.
We are a better place to live, work and raise families. What caused this amazing change?
In the 1980s, Miami was seen as the drug capital of the world. Cocaine cowboys roamed our streets as crime, corruption and addiction caused by cocaine and inflamed by crack put us at risk. Drug-related deaths, medical emergencies and demand for drug treatment rose dramatically. We had become the drug badlands. Our community rose up in response to this dire circumstance, and in 1988, with the leadership of Alvah Chapman and Tad Foote, the business community organized and funded the Miami Coalition for a Safe and Drug Free Community, which helped unleash a blitzkrieg of anti-drug activity. Miami’s was the nation’s first broadly based community anti-drug coalition and has become the model for more than 900 that exist today. Key to success has been the breadth of involvement New organizations and new methods of prevention sprang up and others intensified their anti-drug efforts. These include Abriendo Puertas (Opening Doors) Switchboard of Miami, Informed Families, D-FY-IT, Catholic Charities, Agape, Camillus House, Betterway, Miami-Dade County Programs, Community Crusade Against Drugs, Here’s Help, Spectrum Programs, The Village and Concept House. Thousands of people continue to participate in these efforts that have been sustained and grown. Under coalition leadership, the courts, corrections and all the law-enforcement groups came together for the first time to coordinate activities. One result was federal designation as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area bringing additional resources that reduced drug trafficking through Miami. The county increased crack-house demolition from 54 in 1988 to 376 in 1989. It also passed a law that created “safe no-drug zones” 1,000 feet around schools, and a parent-led effort ensured that the law was enforced. Another first was the creation of a very successful drug court. its success spawned over 100 drug courts in other American communities.
Other accomplishments include the establishment of a countywide Juvenile Assessment Centre to coordinate services. The Miami-Dade School Board placed drug counsellors in the schools and retained them through budget-cutting years. The Faith Committee promoted anti- drug messages. The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce and the coalition organized a drug-free workplace programme, which now includes 60 percent of the workplace. The media stepped to the plate and in the critical early years, The Miami Herald and community newspapers contributed a full page a week to the coalitions efforts. In the 11 years that data have been kept, the Miami electronic media led the nation nine times in providing public service time for anti-drug messages. More than half of the surveyed youth indicate that they see these messages every month.
Today the coalition has been transformed from a reactive to a proactive organization. Driven by multiple data sources, strategies are developed to address identified needs. The strategies involve many groups that draw on the communities’ drug-related resources. With the broad-based participation and these strategies in place, Miami is well positioned to continue the fight against drug use. We are proud of our community’s accomplishments. The transformation of our city from a dangerous drug-infested area to a model of national leadership in drug prevention is a stunning achievement and testimony to what can be done when we all work together.
Source: Author Robert McCabe Chair the Miami Coalition for a Safe and Drug Free Community.
Posted on website of Miami Herald FEB 2004.
Posted on website of Miami Herald FEB 2004.
Taxpayers In Australia Fund Drug-taking tips
By Nick Papps,Herald Sun
December 15. 2003
December 15. 2003
A TAXPAYER-funded magazine is telling people how to inject drugs, use rock heroin and how to beat a drug test. The magazine, Whack, is produced by drug user group VIVAIDS and even includes a section on finding the best location to inject and tips on how to inject pills.
The organisation. which receives up to $580,000 a year from government, also has a website telling users how to avoid police questions. with links to pro-drug organisations. sex sites and pornographic video outlets. The revelations coincide with the release of statistics showing that Victorian health officials gave away 5.58 million needles in the past 12 months - up 827.000 on the previous year.
Critics claim the needles are being used for heroin start-up kits and health officials have admitted that they are concerned about the rise in needle numbers.
A Herald Sun investigation has also revealed:
- INDIVIDUAL drug users are taking up to 400 needles each at needle exchanges.
- SOCIAL workers say drug dealers are waiting outside prisons for former users.
- THE Department of Human Services says increased heroin supplies and injection of prescription drugs are fuelling the rise in needle use.
“The articles in the magazine encourage efficient drug use." Mr Doyle said.
“The message should be about the dangers of drugs.
“The Government has taken its eyes off the drug issue. This is also shown through the huge numbers of needles being handed out - it’s open slather needle distribution.”
The Department of Human Services figures show that VIVAIDS received $193,000 from the State Government and almost $390,000 in funding from the Federal Government last year.
The magazine includes:
- A CHART on how long it takes to get a clean urine test after using drugs.
- TIPS on how to inject pills and break up rock heroin fix injecting.
- ADVICE on finding a good vein for injection.
- A YOUNG drug user describing chroming.
The VIVAIDS website has extensive advice on using drugs and guides to each drug, including advice on “how to have a good time” on some drugs. A section on the law includes advice on avoiding police questions. The magazine is distributed in needle exchanges and is written for drug users.
Yesterday Health Minister Tony Abbott said the Federal Government would not knowingly support any organisation that promoted drug use.
“There’s no such thing as a safe way to use illegal drugs,’ Mr Abbott said.
A State Government spokeswoman said that although it funded VIVAIDS. none of the money went towards the magazine. VIVAIDS could not be contacted yesterday for comment. Health workers said that up to 400 needles were being given to drug users a day.
A nurse at a regional hospital said one user demanded he be given 400 needles - “and we must give it to him."Another man takes 100 needles at a time”. “The person that collects them takes them to a dealer and they’re used as heroin start-up kits.”
But the Department of Human Services’ director of drug policy and services. Paul McDonald said health officials should hand out as many needles as they could. Mr McDonald said there was no requirement For users to hand in needles despite the drug programs being called needle exchanges.
“You can never hand out too many, from a public health perspective,” he said. “The more you are able to make clean syringes available, the more you are going to prevent HIV and Hep C.” Mr McDonald said it was the department’s policy to supply users with the number of needles they requested.
Youth worker Les Twentyman said rising supplies of heroin in Victoria had led dealers to entice former drug users back. “They hang around the jails when they get released. They visit the user at home, Mr Twentyman said.
Condoms to waterproof a roof? It's a stretch
NEW DELHI -- Millions of the condoms distributed free in India to combat AIDS and a soaring population are used for other purposes, such as waterproofing roofs, reinforcing roads and even polishing saris, say health workers. In fact, only a quarter of the 1.5 billion condoms manufactured annually in India were being "properly utilized," said a report by doctors at King George's Medical University in Lucknow
According to two university reports, villagers have used them as disposable water containers to wash, after relieving themselves in the fields.India
A large number of condoms were also used as waterproofing for roofs. Builders spread a bed of condoms beneath the roof's cement plastering, ingeniously preventing water seepage during the monsoon rains. Weavers inVaranasi , 170 miles from Lucknow
Source: http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-india13.html
August 13, 2004
BY RAHUL BEDI
According to two university reports, villagers have used them as disposable water containers to wash, after relieving themselves in the fields.
A large number of condoms were also used as waterproofing for roofs. Builders spread a bed of condoms beneath the roof's cement plastering, ingeniously preventing water seepage during the monsoon rains. Weavers in
Source: http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-india13.html
August 13, 2004
BY RAHUL BEDI
Opiates for the Masses
Harm reduction holds that drug abuse is inevitable, so society should try to minimize the damage done to addicts by drugs (disease, overdose) and to society by addicts (crime, health care costs). According to the Oakland, Calif.-based Harm Reduction Coalition, harm reduction "meets users where they are at . . . accepting for better or worse, that drug use is part of our world."
Its advocates present harm reduction as a rational compromise between the alleged futility of the drug war and the extremism of outright legalization. But since harm reduction makes no demands on addicts, it consigns them to their addiction, aiming only to allow them to destroy themselves in relative "safety" -- and at taxpayer expense.
The recent debate over needle exchange illuminates the political strategy of harm reductionists. First, present the public with a specious choice: Should a drug addict shoot up with a clean needle or a dirty one? (Unquestioned is the assumption that he should shoot up at all.) Then misrepresent the science as Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala did when she pronounced "airtight" the evidence that needle exchange reduces the rate of HIV transmission. In fact, most needle exchange studies have been full of design errors; the more rigorous ones have actually shown an increase in HIV infection.
And so it is with heroin maintenance. First, the false dichotomies: pure vs. contaminated heroin; addicts who commit crime to support their habit vs. addicts who don't. Then the distortion of evidence. The
In fact, the Swiss "experiment," conducted by the Federal Office of Public Health from 1994 to 1996, was not very scientific. Addicts in the 18-month study were expected to inject themselves with heroin under sterile conditions at the clinic three times a day. They also received extensive counseling, psychiatric services and social assistance (welfare, subsidized jobs, public housing and medical care). Results: The proportion of individuals claiming they supported themselves with illegal income dropped to 10% from 70%; homelessness fell to 1% from 12%. Permanent employment rose to 32% from 14%, but welfare dependency also rose to 27% from 18%. The rate of reported cocaine use among the heroin addicts dropped to 52% from 82%.
These numbers may look promising, but it's hard to know what they mean. Verification of self-reported improvement was spotty at best. And addicts received so many social services -- five times more money was spent on them than is the norm in standard treatment -- that heroin maintenance itself may have played no role in any overall improvement.
Definitions of success were loose as well. Anyone who kept attending the program, even intermittently, was considered "retained." By this standard, more than two-thirds made it through -- a much higher retention rate than in conventional treatment. But considering that the program gave addicts pharmaceutical-grade heroin at little or no cost, it's astonishing that the numbers weren't higher. It turned out that the patients who dropped out were those with the most serious addiction-related problems -- those who had been addicted the longest, were the heaviest cocaine users, or had HIV -- the very groups that are of the greatest public-health concern.
What's more, the researchers did not compare heroin maintenance with conventional treatments such as methadone or residential, abstinence-oriented care. They abandoned their original plan to assign patients randomly to heroin maintenance or conventional methadone -- because, among other reasons, the subjects, not surprisingly, strongly preferred heroin.
"The risk of heroin maintenance is the incentive it provides to `fail' in other forms of treatment in order to become a publicly supported addict," says Mark Kleiman of UCLA School of Public Policy. And in fact, once the heroin maintenance project started, conventional treatment facilities reported a sharp decline in applications, even though the rate of drug use remained steady.
The Swiss heroin experiment was born out of desperation. In the mid-1980s, the Swiss government became disenchanted with drug treatment and turned to a policy of sanctioned drug use in designated open areas. But this was unsuccessful; the most visible failures being the squalid deterioration of
It is telling that harm reduction efforts have evolved in countries that provide addicts with a wide array of government benefits. Rather than throw up their hands at the poor record of drug rehabilitation, the Swiss and others should acknowledge the extent to which welfare services enable addiction by shielding addicts from the consequences of their actions, financing their drug purchases and encouraging dependency on public largesse.
Nonetheless,
Not everyone shares
And indeed, the trials' principal investigator and project directors have traveled to
Even if heroin maintenance "worked" -- if it could be proved that heroin giveaways enhanced the addicts' health and productivity -- we would still have to confront the raw truth about harm reduction. It is the public-policy manifestation of the addict's dearest wish: to use free drugs without consequence. Imagine extending this model -- the use of state-subsidized drugs, the offer of endless social services and the expectation of nothing in return -- to
Today the U.N. General Assembly opens a special session on global drug-control policy. Harm reduction advocates will tell the world body that drug abuse is a human right and that the only compassionate response is to make it safer to be an addict. The Swiss and the Dutch seem to view addicts as irascible children who should be indulged, or as terminally ill patients to be palliated, hidden away and written off. But heroin maintenance is wrong. As an experiment, thus far it is scientifically groundless. As public-health policy it will always be a posture of surrender.
By Sally Satel M.D.
Source: www.sallysatelmd.com
By Sally Satel M.D.
Source: www.sallysatelmd.com
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