Drug Deaths Overlap Accidents in Ohio County

A recent NY Times article features Scioto County (county seat: Portsmouth) in Ohio. The article is entitled "Ohio County Losing Its Young to Painkillers' Grip" and gives a number of grim statistics, such as:

* Nearly 1 in 10 babies born in Scioto County are born addicted to drugs.
* In Ohio, the leading cause of accidental death is overdose, bypassing car accidents.
* Children as young as in junior high are being arrested for drug possession and intent to sell.

For more information on addiction and how to combat it, please visit the APA Addictions webpage, which has more information on changing behavior and dealing with addiction. To find a psychologist to help with addiction in Ohio, please visit the OPA "Referral" Page.

Pot and your Sex Life

Recently, I listened as a prominent sex researcher summarized the sexual impairment caused by dozens ofdrugs, both legal and illicit. Her list included marijuana. Afterward, several in the audience asked why.

"Because it's sex-inhibiting," she replied. "No it isn't," several countered. They all agreed it was sex-enhancing.

The presenter immediately pulled out her citation, one lone report published 40 years previously showing that marijuana reduced testosterone by up to half, enough for many women and some men to suffer libido loss.

Returning home, I delved into the literature and discovered what this researcher had failed to mention. The study she cited triggered a flurry of reports on marijuana and testosterone. Those studies, published in the late 1970s, showed no significant marijuana-induced suppression of the hormone, and no significant loss of libido or sexual impairment in lovers who used it, even frequent users.During the 1980s, several studies considered pot's effects on lovemaking. The results were all over the map, from strongly sex-inhibiting to strongly sex-enhancing. The best report, based on interviews with 97 adults in Kansas City, showed that "over two-thirds reported increased sexual pleasure and satisfaction with marijuana use. About half of both sexes also reported increased sexual desire while using marijuana. Emotional closeness and physical enjoyment of snuggling were also enhanced." But one-third said the drug was not sex-enhancing, and half reported no increase in desire. [Weller, RA and JA Halikas, "Marijuana Use and Sexual Behavior," Journal of Sex Research (1984) 20:186.]

For the rest of the article, please visit Psychology Today.

National Drug-Free Work Week

Did You Know? October 19-23 is National Drug-Free Work Week. This is a week sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, dedicated time each year to highlight the benefits that drug-free workplace programs bring to employers, workers and communities. It’s also a time to work toward making every week a drug-free work week!

According to recent research, it’s a message that many workers need to hear.

• 75 percent of the nation’s current illegal drug users are employed—and 3.1 percent say they have actually used illegal drugs before or during work hours.
• 79 percent of the nation’s heavy alcohol users are employed—and 7.1 percent say they have actually consumed alcohol during the workday.

For more information, visit the DOL's Drug-Free Work Week website.

Recovery Month 2009

Did You Know? September is National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month. More than 23 million people aged 12 or older needed treatment for a substance use disorder in the United States in 2007, and in Ohio alone, over 900 thousand individuals over the age of 12 per month report dependency and/or addiction to alcohol or illicit drugs. Many people do not understand that addiction is a treatable disease, and this misconception can keep people from getting help. In 2007, as many as 20.8 million people nationwide needed but did not receive treatment at a specialty facility. For more information, please visit the National Recovery Month 2009 website.

FYI: CDC Report on Drug Use and Sexual Behaviors

From the CDC, Drug Use and Sexual Behaviors Reported by Adults: United States, 1999–2002 (opens as a .pdf file). Data are from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), and are for adults age 20-59.