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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: drug addiction

drug addiction stories: 64 news summaries

21 - 40 of 64 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 4 Next >>

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 Jackson 
 'Self-Harmed' 
 to Get Drugs 

Singer was spending $50K a month on prescriptions

Aug 19, 09 8:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - Toward the end of his life Michael Jackson was so desperate for prescription drugs, sources tell investigators he harmed himself in an effort to get more, the Mirror reports. Jackson was reportedly spending nearly $50,000 a month on drugs including Vicodin, Soma, Xanax, Zoloft, Paxil, and Prilosec, and... More »

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entertainment • drug addiction • celebrity • addiction • painkiller • Michael Jackson • prescription painkillers • celebrity death

(Newser) - Opium is taking a heavy toll on the women and children of Afghanistan, but it's addiction, not production, that's entering the spotlight. Opium is cheaper than a meal, staves off hunger, and brings the family some happiness, one addicted mother tells CBS News as she prepares opium tea for her... More »

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Afghanistan • drug addiction • children • addiction • opium • drug addicts

(Newser) - Advocates and critics of marijuana are wielding scientific data as the debate over legalization becomes one about addiction, the New York Times reports. "Science really has proven, if anything, that cannabis is likely one of the safest substances we can interact with,” says one marijuana legal reformer. But... More »

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drug addiction • marijuana • marijuana legalization • potency

Was Jackson Healthy or On the Brink? Yes.

Drug-addled or ready to rock, his inner-circle tells it from all sides

Jul 12, 09 2:43 PM CDT
(Newser) - Was Michael Jackson happy and healthy, or drug-addled and depressed in his final days? Depends who you ask. The AP compiles a list of contradictory reports from the star’s inner circle:
  • Concert promoter Randy Phillips initially told reporters Jackson was "a healthy, vibrant human being,” but
... More »

MORE ABOUT:
drug addiction • painkiller • Michael Jackson • Akon • Deepak Chopra • Randy Phillips • celebrity death • Arnold Klein

JACKSON ROUNDUP

 MJ Popped 10 Xanax a Night 

Plus, family argues over remains, and more

Jul 10, 09 11:19 AM CDT
(Newser) - Michael Jackson was taking 10 Xanax pills a night, but that was an improvement—he “was doing better because he was down from 30 to 40” pills, according to a confidential document obtained by CNN. Among other details: To get prescriptions, he used his employees’ names and traveled to... More »

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entertainment • drug addiction • celebrity • drug abuse • Michael Jackson • Conrad Murray • celebrity death • Berry Gordy

OPINION

 Let's Lock Up 
 Casual Drug Users 

Addicts need help, but casual users need jail: Monbiot

Jun 30, 09 12:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - The head of the UN drug and crime office recommended last week that casual drug use be decriminalized and said users "need medical help, not criminal prosecution." We should certainly help addicts, but casual users of marijuana and cocaine belong in jail, George Monbiot of the Guardian writes.... More »

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United Nations • War on Drugs • drug addiction • heroin • cocaine • drug use • addiction • marijuana • drug trade

(Newser) - Michael Jackson's former nanny says the pop icon was so addicted to prescription drugs that she had to pump his stomach regularly, the Times of London reports. “There was one period that it was so bad that I didn’t let the children see him," said Grace... More »

MORE ABOUT:
drugs • drug addiction • Los Angeles • Michael Jackson

(Newser) - The Paula Abdul roller-coaster continues. The Idol judge says Ladies' Home Journal got it all wrong: She now insists she was never addicted to painkillers, and she never checked into a rehab facility, E! reports. “It was very stressful for me to hear that and to be quoted... More »

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entertainment • reality TV • American Idol • rehab • drug addiction • spa • Paula Abdul

(Newser) - Portugal decriminalized drug possession 8 years ago, so it must have high abuse rates, right? Not according to a new study from the Cato Institute, Time reports. Teen drug use and HIV infection from needles have declined, and more addicts now enter treatment programs. "Judging by every metric, decriminalization... More »

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drugs • drug addiction • HIV • Portugal • treatment • drug possession • decriminalization

More Students Get Fix From Study Drugs

Adderall, Ritalin used
to boost concentration despite health risks

Feb 7, 09 2:20 AM CST
(Newser) - Attention-deficit disorder drugs such as Adderall and Ritalin are gaining popularity on college campuses as an easy way for students to knuckle down, NPR reports. The drugs offer a “perfect kind of transition into a study mentality,” says one student, and can make work more pleasurable. But they’... More »

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Adderall • drug addiction • study • college • university • prescription drugs • student • drug abuse • Ritalin

Drug Centers Hit by Worker Overdoses

Burnt-out harm reduction volunteers fall prey to addiction

Jan 10, 09 5:47 AM CST
(Newser) - Needle exchange programs have helped drastically cut rates of HIV infection among heroin users but often take a heavy toll on their volunteers, the Wall Street Journal reports. Unpaid or poorly paid staff members work long hours in tough inner-city conditions, often without proper training. All too often they end... More »

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drugs • drug addiction • HIV • heroin • overdose • drug abuse • needles

Surprise! Coked-Up Bees
Get Buzzed, Too 

Drugged-up bees get overexcited and dance like crazy

Jan 6, 09 11:08 AM CST
(Newser) - Coked-up bees get as buzzed as their human counterparts, the New York Times reports. Researchers probing the nature of addiction discovered that when bees were given a dose of cocaine their judgment was altered and they became much more enthusiastic about food finds, performing the waggle dance more often, faster,... More »

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bees • drugs • drug addiction • cocaine • insects • scientific research

 Winehouse Ex 
 Back in the Pokey 

Winehouse hubby violated bail

Dec 3, 08 10:03 AM CST
(Newser) - It’s shockingly back to prison for Amy Winehouse’s soon-to-be ex-hubby, the Independent reports. Blake Fielder-Civil reportedly broke the terms of his early-release bail by failing a drug test. He had earlier claimed to be clean, thanks to his forced stint in rehab. After failing the test, Fielder-Civil supposedly... More »

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rehab • prison • drug addiction • celebrity • Amy Winehouse • Blake Fielder Civil • drug test

Coke Addicts Can Blame It
on DNA

Newly uncovered gene boosts chance of
getting hooked

Nov 10, 08 8:34 PM CST
(Newser) - A newly discovered gene can improve your chances of getting hooked on cocaine, scientists said today. A study of 670 cocaine addicts and 700 non-users found that addicts were 25% more likely to have the gene variant. The discovery could lead to DNA screenings for those likely to try the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
drug addiction • cocaine • DNA • genes

 Winehouse 
 Freaks Out as 
 Hubby Freed 

Singer hit photographer, flashed chest before passing out

Nov 6, 08 11:22 AM CST
(Newser) - Hours after her husband was freed from jail, Amy Winehouse went on a rampage reminiscent of darker days, the Sun reports. With makeup smeared across her face, Winehouse, 25, stormed from her London home and hit a photographer, asking, “Who wants some?” The singer flashed the group and sucked... More »

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drug addiction • paparazzi • celebrity • jail • Amy Winehouse • Blake Fielder Civil

'Marcia Brady' Thanks Prozac for Her Life

Actress fought misery, addiction for years before drug saved her

Nov 2, 08 7:42 PM CST
(Newser) - Maureen McCormick fought drug addiction and depression for years after The Brady Bunch until antidepressants helped her “feel like a normal person for the first time in my life,” she writes in Newsweek. She struggled with private fears even when shooting the show and hit bottom in... More »

MORE ABOUT:
drug addiction • cocaine • Maureen McCormick

GLOSSIES

 Eat Your Way Out 
 of Addiction: Experts 

Foods that help make neurotransmitters may assist treatment

Oct 17, 08 8:14 PM CDT
(Newser) - Good grub may be enough to rewire an addict's brain. The trick is to serve up meals that revive pleasure-inducing neurotransmitters disrupted by addiction, neuroscientists say. Foods as simple as steak, milk, and nuts can boost the brain's production of serotonin or glutamine, both of which help addicts recover. But... More »

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drug addiction • gambling addiction • diet • addiction • neurotransmitter • biochemistry

 Marcia: 'I Traded Sex for Drugs' 

Brady Bunch darling reveals struggle with addiction, depression

Oct 14, 08 4:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - The actress who played the nation's perky darling Marcia in the wholesome Brady Bunch TV family once traded sex for drugs during years in the abyss of depression and drug addiction, reports E! Online. Maureen McCormick, now 52, reveals her very un-Brady life in her new memoir, Here's the Story:... More »

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Steven Spielberg • drug addiction • cocaine • Steve Martin • Maureen McCormick • Marcia Brady • Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice. • Barry Williams • Quaaludes • Sammy Davis Jr. • Playboy Mansion

Cindy's Addiction: It Claimed Several Other Victims

Misuse of charity embroiled doctor, aide

Sep 12, 08 11:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - Cindy McCain is open about her painkiller addiction in the early 1990s—to a point, the Washington Post reports in an account of that period. Though she speaks of it frequently as a story of personal struggle, what she doesn't say is that she was in serious legal jeopardy for... More »

MORE ABOUT:
John McCain • drug addiction • Phoenix • charity • doctor • Cindy McCain • prescription painkillers

 Cindy McCain, 
 Lonesome Cowgirl 

Candidate's wife likes her privacy, and her past isn't easy to unravel

Sep 10, 08 3:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - Cindy McCain is a classic Western loner who chose to raise her kids as a self-styled “single parent” in Phoenix rather than join John in Washington as he served in the Senate. She may be a size zero, but she has "unusual grit": she drives a race car,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
John McCain • drug addiction • New Yorker magazine • privacy • Cindy McCain • Election 2008

21 - 40 of 64 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 4 Next >>


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