Results tagged “addiction” from 60 Second Science

Rock n' rollers have had unprejudiced access to the mind-expanding potential of drugs as fuel for inspiration for decades — why shouldn't Silicon Valley wondernerds have the same options?

Silicon Valley blog Valley Wag reports on an insider who says that OC-80 (that's oxycontin in an 80-milligram dose) has swept the valley by storm, seducing "everyone who's anyone" with its "much better than cocaine" effects. The expensive highs can cost $70 per pill at retail prices and $40 in bulk. Allegedly users get docs from the more permissive burg of L.A. to FedEx the prescription medication in its highest dose to their offices. Then it's scrape the green coating, crush, snort and on to some righteous beta testing! Saith Silicon Valley's Deep Throat:

You have no idea (or maybe you do) the amount of prescription painkillers flowing in Silicon Valley. If you think that Hollywood has drug problems, the Valley is way, way worse. It's just that people keep it much more secret.

A follow-up tip from another insider posits that OC use might have even contributed to the much-reported decline of Yahoo. I'm sure Microsoft will clean up the place...right after this last toot of OC. (What, those Yahoo guys practically left it on the counter!)

Continue reading 'Like rock n' roll before it, tech innovation is virtually impossible without drugs' >

Research published in Current Biology suggests that one reason we don't get hooked on on our endogenous "heroin" (endorphins and enkephalins) is that these natural ligands for the opioid receptor activate what can be seen as an "on/off" switch for the system, while morphine does not.

Consequently, the scientists engineered mice in which morphine does produce this effect-- and lo and behold, the mice were able to get pain relief from morphine, but developed less tolerance and fewer symptoms of withdrawal.

Continue reading 'Another crack at non-addictive opioids? Why we don't get hooked on our own endorphins' >

Want to create a cure for addiction with an 80-98% success rate? Easy-peasy. Just don’t count treatment drop-outs in your statistics-- a fact that numerous programs have capitalized on to sell themselves over the last 50 years. Alternatively, you can only admit addicted doctors to your treatment: but this severely limits your market.

Continue reading 'How to lie with statistics: drug treatment version 100.8' >

The AP is reporting on controversy in California over the way treatment for addicted doctors is handled by the state medical board.

California recently scrapped its system for anonymously treating addicted doctors without informing patients of their physicians’ condition-- following outrage over botched surgery by an addicted plastic surgeon. But its new cure for the problem may be worse than the disease.

For one, what the AP doesn’t mention is that treatment for addicted doctors is one of the shining successes in the addiction world: virtually all treatment (even programs known to contain elements that are ineffective or harmful) produces impressive outcomes.

Continue reading 'The only thing worse than letting addicted docs practice is banning them...' >

60 Minutes highlighted an expensive new addiction treatment called Prometa on Sunday-- the first half primarily consisting of “miracle cure” testimonials, the second exposing the fact that scientific studies don’t actually back the incredible claims being made for it.

A little context would have helped enormously. Although 60 Minutes made much of the idea that this is the first time a medical addiction cure had been sold without getting FDA approval, a “miracle” heroin detox has been sold virtually identically since the late 90’s.

Continue reading 'Take addiction cure reporting with large grain of salt' >

For an indiscernible reason, the New York Times front-paged a story on “recovery communities” today-- looking at how some recovering addicts and alcoholics move to particular cities and neighborhoods to support each other in a drug-free lifestyle. But can these communities be improved, based on the latest addiction research?

Continue reading 'Of recovery communities and overdoses' >

Ok, I’m going to stop soon. Really, I promise. But I just had to do one last curious- positive-finding-about-drugs-post this week.

Turns out, according to research published in Heart and Circulatory Physiology, exercise benefits the heart via endogenous opioids. At least in rats, if you give the opioid-blocker naltrexone while they exercise, the cardioprotective effects of exercise don't show up when their hearts are later challenged.

That’s right, it seems like the fun part of running is also the healthy part. Which, of course, raises the inevitable question: would taking exogenous opioids-- ie, heroin, Oxycontin, morphine-- provide the same benefit? Wouldn’t it be ironic if William Burroughs’ claim that “dope preserves” turned out to have some truth to it?

Continue reading 'Runner’s “high” protects the heart.. umm, what about heroin?' >