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Treating the person, not the addiction, can help reduce overdose death

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Treating the person, not the addiction, can help reduce overdose death

Melissa Flynn is not an addiction researcher, but she understands how addiction can explode like a tornado and destroy families. Three years ago, an opioid overdose ended the life of his stepson, Nicholas.

A recent national survey found that only two states – New Hampshire and South Dakota – have seen their overdose decrease over the past year. Still, Flynn knows that our entire country still has miles to go to deal with this crisis.

“Addiction is a brain disease and it’s a family disease,” he said. “The person you love who is addicted is still that person you love. They are the same, but their brains have changed. Too many people do not see this truth.

Flynn said that while efforts to help people with substance use disorders and to reformulate the discussion on this health issue have made some progress, improvements need to continue. It relates to other parents who have suffered the same fate. She no longer only thinks about it, but is an advocate with a mission.

“I never understood the people who were called, until the funeral,” Flynn said. “I realize I’m imperfect, but I ask God to help me with my messages to others, so if I can help one person in the audience, even for a few minutes, it’s a victory.”

The addiction crisis in America

Flynn doesn’t punch: he sees the United States and its reality as a full-blown addiction crisis. Each city can do better by developing more resources for each addict. She is not alone

“If we can ensure that early education about addiction is taught in all schools, in all children, we can affect good change,” said Malia Holbeck, LCSW, LAC, outpatient manager of the Addiction Recovery Program. ‘Addiction of Avera. Other suggestions Holbeck recommends include:

  • Make sure there are intervention tools along all points of the addiction journey
  • Put antidose drugs like Narcan (Naloxone) everywhere, from schools and churches to buses and grocery stores
  • Offer more 24/7 treatment evaluation options for addicts who want to start recovery

These starting points go back to the reason why so many people with substance use disorders face lonely and relapsed situations: mindsets that need to change.

“We can’t stop our exit from this crisis,” Flynn said. “We paint the person who is facing a substance use disorder with such a negative light in all our popular media. The bad guy is always a drug user or seller. We have to change our attitudes if we save lives. ”

Opening up can help everyone: people with substance use disorders, families who love them, co-workers and survivors. Resource usage can also be helpful.

“We spent more than ten years of the tornado that is addiction, and it took me a while to realize that I had to change my approaches,” he said. “Families joining the struggle can hope to do better.”

Working to change systems and minds, too

“An addiction economist I respect said we will overcome this challenge, we need 10 hands ready to help every hand he needs,” Flynn said. “That’s true. But it’s also important to find the best way to help your loved one.”

guitar donated to the Avera Addiction Care CenterHolbeck echoed Flynn’s prospects. He said no two families are alike and therefore finding an approach requires careful management and a flexible response.

“Kindness and compassion should be included in the mix,” Holbeck said. “There are a lot of approaches that aren’t just hard love or a skill.”

Holbeck said there can be frustration, but working with addiction care experts can help families find their ways to meet these multi-layered challenges.

“Shame and guilt won’t work,” Flynn said. “He realizes again that they are people we love. Focus on this as you face the problem. Start here “.

Flynn and her family honored her late stepson with a donation to the Avera Addiction Care Center. He was a music lover, so they bought a guitar available for residents who want to play.

Learn more about addiction care resources that can help you or your family.

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Source: https://www.avera.org/balance/behavioral-health/treating-the-person-can-help-reduce-overdose-deaths/

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The missing ingredient in Australia must definitely suffer from its addiction to smoking

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From 1 October, Australians using electronic cigarettes and other nicotine-containing vaporisation products will need a doctor’s prescription to buy them at a local pharmacy or order them abroad.

But there is another evidence-based way to help more smokers quit, which Australia has not yet acted on: reducing nicotine from cigarettes to non-addictive levels. And e-cigarettes could play an important role in this policy.

If you know someone who has tried to quit and failed, it is likely that nicotine addiction is the reason they have found it so hard. While nicotine itself is not a significant direct cause of the health damage caused by smoking, it does make tobacco products highly addictive. In 1963, lawyers for the tobacco industry wrote:

We are […] in the business of selling nicotine, an addictive drug.

So what are other countries doing to reduce nicotine addiction? What role could alternative nicotine products, including e-cigarettes, play, and how could nicotine be reduced in cigarettes if not managed properly? And, how much potential does a new, very low nicotine standard for cigarettes have to end Australian smoking addiction?

Read more: From October onwards, it will be virtually impossible for most Australians to vaporize, largely due to Canberra’s little-known “task force”.

Like other countries they face a world assassin

Most people know someone who has died or suffered serious health problems due to smoking.

Even today, smoking remains the leading preventable cause of premature death in Australia, killing more than 20,000 Australians each year. It also costs the Australian economy $ 136.9 billion annually.

As a result, many countries, including Australia, are setting targets to reduce smoking to very low levels. But new approaches are needed to achieve this goal.

Reducing nicotine levels in cigarettes to non-addictive levels was first proposed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1994. Although not implemented at the time, there has been renewed interest. for this policy.

New Zealand has recently proposed a nicotine reduction strategy as an option for its Smotefree Aotearoa 2025 action plan.

When you smoke around your pets, they are twice as likely to get cancer: Quitline New Zealand.

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is also considering the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s proposal to reduce nicotine levels to “give addicted users the option and ability to quit smoking more easily “.

The World Health Organization supports a global nicotine reduction strategy and has provided recommendations for its implementation.

The good news is that it is possible to reduce nicotine levels in cigarettes and that these cigarettes have already been tested in clinical trials.

The results show that people smoke fewer cigarettes when given 95% or more nicotine consumption compared to regular cigarettes. They are also more likely to quit smoking. This is because regular smokers find that cigarettes with very low nicotine levels are less pleasant and rewarding.

While it is unethical to conduct similar studies with young people who do not yet smoke, reducing nicotine levels is also expected to reduce the number of adolescents who become addicted to smoking, with promising results from animal studies.

How can alternative nicotine products help?

Allowing only very low-nicotine cigarettes to be sold would require greater investment in smoking cessation services and assistance, such as nicotine replacement therapies (including patches and gums), prescription drugs, and behavioral support from health professionals. .

The missing ingredient in Australia must definitely suffer from its addiction to smoking

Vaporization devices.
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A policy to reduce nicotine for tobacco products has also become more feasible thanks to changes by the Australian government on how smokers can access nicotine-containing e-cigarettes from 1 October 2021 .

While not harmless, e-cigarettes are likely to be significantly less harmful than smoked tobacco products. They can provide an alternative source of nicotine for those who depend on nicotine, and it has been shown to increase their consumption compared to nicotine replacement therapy.

Read more: Electronic Cigarettes: Misconceptions About Their Dangers May Prevent People from Quitting Smoking

Ensuring access to lower-risk nicotine forms is critical to policies that both New Zealand and the US consider.

But there are possible unintended consequences of a nicotine reduction policy. Many people have misconceptions about nicotine and one risk is that people may believe that reduced nicotine cigarettes are less harmful than regular cigarettes. This could reduce the motivation to quit.

Therefore, we would also need a health education campaign to encourage people to quit smoking and warn of the harms of continuing to smoke regardless of nicotine content.

Another risk is the growth of the illicit tobacco market, which should be controlled with a greater enforcement effort.

Policy makers may also be concerned that the tobacco industry is growing legal challenges. However, Australia’s successful defense of normal tobacco packaging laws demonstrates that these challenges can be overcome by the industry.

A cigarette butt came out.


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It’s easier to quit smoking and keep kids from getting hooked

Michael Russell, founder of medical approaches to helping people quit smoking, famously said that if nicotine were removed from cigarettes, people “would be a little more inclined to smoke cigarettes than to blow bubbles or light sparks.”

Modeling suggests that requiring very low nicotine levels for cigarettes would give New Zealand a “realistic chance” of reaching the target of less than 5% of the smoking population. It has been estimated that 24 million deaths in the U.S. would have been prevented if nicotine from cigarettes had been reduced decades ago.

If we make tobacco less addictive, we could prevent a new generation from becoming addicted to smoking and help people who currently smoke stop smoking. And that’s good, given the high cost of cigarettes and their contribution to health inequalities in Australia.

Australia led the world in tobacco policy by introducing tobacco packaging laws. Taking a leading role in new tobacco control policies, such as reducing the addiction to tobacco products, could help us achieve a smoke-free Australia.

But does Australia have the critical ingredient, the political will, to finish the job?

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Source: https://theconversation.com/the-missing-ingredient-australia-needs-to-kick-its-smoking-addiction-for-good-167973

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