Self-Service tills and opportunity for under age purchasing of alcohol...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-12107971

The above link relates to an article expressing a call to ban self-service tills for buying alcohol. The Scottish National Party's Stewart Maxwell is suggesting to retailers that they act responsibly and voluntarily end the use of self-service tills for the sale of alcohol. It is suggested that having one supervisor overseeing a number of self-service tills makes it difficult to accurately monitor customer's ages, hence allowing under age customers to buy alcohol undetected. Many self service tills require manual authorisation by an assistant when age restricted items are being purchased, do you think this is enough to prevent under age drinkers from purchasing alcohol or should the use of self-service tills be banned for all age restricted items?

 

 

 

Mephedrone – just because it's legal doesn't mean it's safe?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/mar/17/mephedrone-explained-plant-food-miaow

The above link is in reference to an article published by The Guardian this morning. Yesterday two teenagers died after using mephedrone and there has been a public outcry for the reclassification of the drug. Currently legal in the UK, mephedrone, not to be confused with methadone, has been deemed as the possible drug of the next decade. In the 90's there was ecstasy, in the 00's there was cocaine and ketamine and now it would seem the party drug of choice is rapidly becoming mephedrone (or m-Cat as it is commonly known).

The major concern about this drug is not dissimilar to that of other drugs that have come up the club rankings since the 70's – what are the long terms effects, what are the chances of overdosing etc. However, perhaps the most controversial element of this debate is the fact that mephedrone is legal to buy, which may be a significant indicator of why children as young as 11 have been turning up at school high on mephedrone. This touches on the wider debate of legal highs. Are legal highs any safer than illicit drugs (or could it even be a case where some illicit highs are dubbed safer by the recreational drug taking community than legal highs?). Despite the actual chemical make up of these drugs and whether they are deemed to be safe or not by experts, surely the legal status of such drugs gives an illusion of safety if they are legal?

Meow Meow - legal high, but for how long?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/7053731/Children-12-taking-legal-high-drug-meow-meow-on-school-bus.html

The above link is to an article published in the Telegraph that refers to children aged 12 and up taking ‘meow meow’ (

Mephedrone) during their bus ride to school. The drug, which has been compared to ecstasy (but with side effects including convulsions, hallucinations, nose bleeds, headaches, breathing problems and in some cases cardiac arrest) is starting to be widely seen amongst school children - it’s cheap, easily available, but using it presents far more risks that it’s ‘legal high’ label suggests.

Freshers week drinking - problem or right of passage?

Over the last few weeks numerous reports regarding 'freshers week' drinking have been aired on the television, heard on the radio and read about on the internet. Some stories have focused on the fact that first year university students can go out on a pub crawl expecting to buy a pint for a £1 and a shot for as little as 20p. Other broadcasts have looked at the 'chaperone' service that pub crawl leaders (older students) are offering, I.e. having fun and drinking responsibility, and whether it is actually possible with low drink prices and inexperienced teenagers. Whilst others argue that going to 10 pubs at a pound a pint is not drinking responsibly. Some news reports have touched on the facts that some of the older student population drink as irresponsibly as those in their first few weeks despite having more experience of drinking and university life.

The problem with generalising about freshers week is that whilst there appears to be a general trend in 18 year old students getting heavily intoxicated, this is not limited to freshers week and nor does it extend to all new students. The mentally of 18 years old moving into halls having never been away from home before and never experienced drinking alcohol before can perhaps mean that they are not equipped to cope with the inevitable (?) binge drinking that is likely to ensue, but surely that applies to everyone, regardless of whether they go to uni or not? Do you think that first week university binge drinking is a major problem, or like some of the students (new and old) that have been answering blogs all over the UK – is it just a right of passage? And if so, are you agreeing that the beneficial consequences (sociality, experience....) outweigh the negative consequences (alcohol poisoning, hospital admissions, accidents...)

 

The Crazy Chemist - making a point or pointless?

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Legal-Highs-Frank-Campaign-Is-Not-Eough-Says-Family-Of-Drug-Death-Girl-Hester-Stewart/Article/200909315385088?lpos=UK_News_First_Home_Article_Teaser_Region_5&lid=ARTICLE_15385088_Legal_Highs%3A_Frank_Campaign_Is_Not_Enough%2C_Says_Family_Of_Drug_Death_Girl_Hester_Stewart

The above link is to an article published on the Sky News website that refers to the death of 21 year old, Hester Stewart, who died a few hours after using GBL. GBL is currently legal, although is reported to be classified as class C later this year.

The family has criticised the home office and the 'Crazy Chemist' Talk To Frank campaign and state that this young woman would still be alive if she had been aware of the dangers.

There are two points here, one the pointless loss of a young life and the other wider picture: Whist it is clear that classifying drugs as illegal does not stop people from using them, conversely, does classifying drugs as legal make people think they are safe (or at least safer than their illegal alternatives?).

If this is the case then when is education going to change? Isn't it about time that alcohol and other legal drugs, such as OTC pain killers are considered in the substance abuse equation more readily?

Do you think campaigns like the Crazy Chemist are effective or widespread enough ti actually make a difference?

 

When is old enough to be formally educated about addiction?

Is there enough information available to children and parents about legal and illegal drugs? There is plenty of information available on the internet, but is that enough to educate parents and their young children about the reality of developing a drug or alcohol addiction? Should there be more education in schools and if so, what age should children first be experiencing lessons about addiction? Would you say that 8 years old is too young or that 14 years is too old?

 

How could we go about implementing more information for children whose parents have an addiction: crisis lines, on line info, school welfare etc...

Liver failure at 22 years old - the tragic story and the wider implications

http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2009/jul/25/gary-reinbach-alcoholic-madeline-hanshaw

Above is a link to an article published in The Guardian over the weekend that writes about Gary Reinbach, a 22 year old who died from liver failure last week. The article discusses his mothers experience of her son's drinking and ultimately his death as well as more general issues, such as should an alcoholic be given a liver transplant if there is a chance they may start to drink again? Surely there is always a chance that an addict will return to drinking or using, but they deserve the opportunity to get into recovery and that requires specialist help.

“Gary Reinbach was denied a transplant because, under guidelines drawn up by the Liver Advisory Group, patients who are likely to return to a damaging pattern of alcohol consumption aren't deemed suitable candidates.”

As Gary's mother discusses and reject, the population have attributed a far proportion of blame to her for Gary's death, but it is also clear that if Gary was eligible for a transplant he may well still be alive, so who should decide if someone should or should not be given a second chance? A key point is that if more alcoholics were treated in suitable rehab clinics then there would not be so much demand for livers or indeed so many alcohol related deaths.

What is most shocking about this tragic story is that a man aged 22 years old could die from a condition that is widely associated with older people who have 40 years old alcohol abuse under their belts. Indeed, even Dr Nick Sheron, a liver specialist has been shocked by the number of liver failure cases he has seen in young people.

“What Luke and his mates have discovered the hard way is what liver specialists like Dr Nick Sheron, of Southampton General hospital, have been saying for some time: that young people who abuse alcohol heavily will suffer the same consequences that older people who've been abusing it for many years do; in other words, their livers will fail.

"I became a liver specialist 15 years ago, and I remember how shocked I was when I first saw a man of 23 with liver failure. But this year already I've seen five people with it in their early 20s. Gary isn't going to be the last death. We're going to see a lot more young people in this state over the next few years.

The lost of this young man's life not only highlights the severity of alcohol abuse, but also emphasises the need for people who are experiencing problems with alcohol to seek help no matter how old they are.

Rise in cocaine use = rise in heart problems

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/cocaine-britain-25-per-cent-rise-in-the-last-year-1759267.html

The above link refers to an article published in The Independent today that discussed the 25% rise in cocaine use that the UK has seen in the last year. The impact this is having is that addicts are getting younger and heart problems are increasing.

“According to the College of Emergency Medicine, the admission to hospital of young adults with heart problems caused by cocaine abuse has become almost routine since 2004.”

Aside from the odd newspaper article or television documentary there is not much public information advising about the significant risk of serious heart problems arising from a short time abusing cocaine. Do you think our young people are aware of what damage they are doing to themselves?

Binge drinking UK Versus Wine cultured continent?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8157725.stm

The article above refers to the recent changes in alcohol consumption laws in Milan. Milan has always embraced wine as part of the local culture – children and young adults included. The easy going attitude of Italians to their younger population drinking is about to change, but these new laws have not been welcomed by all – especially not the bar tenders who feel they have effectively been asked to police Milan's young people.

“In a country where for centuries wine has been part of local culture – and prohibition would be unthinkable – the ban has come as a shock.”

But how will this change in policy impact on the children who it is designed to help? Children as young as 11 years old are experiencing alcohol related problems in Milan. The idea is that if alcohol is not so freely available that younger people will not develop so many problems, but what about the children who are already experiencing problems?

In a country like the UK, where alcohol has never been part of the growing up experience, at least not in local cultures across the board, we often discuss if relaxing the drinking laws so alcohol is not such a mystery until late teenage years would halt the binge drinking we see devastating teenage lives – do you think this would be the case or has culture just changed too much in recent years for relaxed drinking laws to work in any European country?

 

 

Starting to drink at 10 years old and all we do is print pictures in the paper?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jun/17/young-people-alcohol

Above is a link to an article published in The Guardian that explores young people's perspectives of teenage drinking – if it's going to be talked about so much in the media then we might as well know what the actual people the media is discussing think about their national portrait 'as a bunch of booze-addled louts'?

The key points raised by the group of 17 young people that were invited to share their opinions by The Guardian and Drinkaware at a youth roundtable, included:

• Young participants thought the media portrayal of young people and alcohol was exaggerated. Nevertheless, many worried about friends, and how much some of them were drinking.

• They copied their parents, who also sometimes used alcohol to cope with the stresses of life.

• One participant thought that the taboo nature of alcohol made it particularly attractive. Others cited doing what other people did, a desire to have fun, relax and combat boredom.

• Many participants had their first drink at 13 or 14; a few were younger. One participant blamed the variety of alcoholic drinks on offer.

• A survey conducted by Drinkaware showed that people in general were starting to drink alcohol at a younger age.

• When shown tabloid press cuttings about young people and alcohol, several participants - but not all - felt the coverage was skewed against them.

• Several participants felt the media encouraged young people to drink.

• All thought schools needed to offer improved education concerning alcohol. It was felt they should offer advice about drinking sensibly, rather than prohibition. · Some thought that peer education worked well; others that young people needed to learn from their own mistakes.

However, perhaps the most salient thing about the opinions of these young people, is the fact that they have all had vastly different experiences of alcohol consumption and hold varied opinions on what would work to improve the stigma of teenage drinking, and moreover and how new schemes to reduce alcohol related problems in our youth population could be implemented. This emphasises the need for a more modern strategy to deal with teenage drinking – as the policeman quoted by Jack, one of the young people involved in the debate stated, 'We know you are going to drink and take drugs but do it somewhere quiet, do it nicely. If you do get drunk, call us. We will help'.

We can't ignore the fact that our young people are started to drink earlier and earlier and that more than just a pint is consumed, but we can start to do is face facts and talk honestly to work out what help young people need – whatever it is, it certainly isn't more stereotypes.

 

Close our only unique specialist young persons unit? = madness

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jun/15/health-drugs

The above links refers to an article published in The Guardian that discusses the potential closure of Middlegate – Britain's only specialist residential drug and alcohol unit for young people. Whilst the article makes points about the development of new and alternative services to units like Middlegate, it remains a travesty to our society that our only facility geared up solely to deal with severe substance abuse problems in our young population is facing closure – and why? It seems to come down to finances. Treatment is not inexpensive, but it is life saving and whilst intense residential treatment is not needed by everyone, we are kidding ourselves if we think that losing a specialist facility like Middlegate is anything but a crying shame. We need to wake up and stop ignoring the fact that children as young as 11 and 12 are using hard drugs – having a place for young people to get the help they really need, and not just a few counselling sessions a month, is vital for the recovery of many young people; what we need is more places like Middlegate, not to rid our country of the only unit of it's kind.

Shift in drug habits...

This week sees Radio 1 launch Drug Week – offering an accessible and informative debate about drug use in the UK. The link below refers to a Newsbeat page discussing the shift in young people's drug habits. Whilst the article advises that there has been a drop in the use of hard drugs (i.e. heroin and crack) and that more young people than ever are getting addiction treatment, it also emphasises that party drugs (i.e. cocaine, ecstasy and cannabis) are getting stronger and taking them is increasing risky, especially when mixing multiple drugs together. This implies that whilst one problem is decreasing a bigger one is increasing.

 “Alcohol is cheaper and more available, cannabis is far stronger, cocaine is half the price it used to be and you can get half a dozen ecstasy tablets for £10," according to Howard Parker, Professor Emeritus at Manchester University, who coined the term 'ACCE' last year.

Not to mention the fact that alcohol abuse is at record levels across the population and that the statistics publish recently quite possibly do not include thousands of young people who abuse legal prescription drugs, albeit attained by illegal means.

The facts are that drug use in this county, whether legal or illegal, is a big problem and we need a new approach to support our young people – 'just saying no' is no longer a valid preventative measure. It seems that taking drugs is part of the teenage culture and we need more understanding if we are going to nurture our young people to make more informed decisions about what drugs they use and how they use them.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/the_p_word/newsid_8084000/8084968.stm

Are you For or Against drug testing in schools?

As random drug testing in schools becomes more common place, so does the ongoing debate about what good it will do. The idea of random drug testing is not to catch out those using drugs, but to act as a deterrent to try and stop children and teenagers developing drug addictions in the first place. But is it working to alleviate peer pressure and to stop young people taking drugs or is it having an unforeseen negative effect which is making our younger popular feel like their schools are presuming they are using drugs until they prove otherwise?

Drugs are bad for kids, rather than bad kids do drugs...

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article4958885.ece

The above link to an article written in the Times Online refers to the chicken and the egg scenario - do drugs make kids lives bad or do bad kids use drugs - this article suggests that scientists have determined that drugs are bad for kids, rather than bad kids do drugs.

"Early drinking and drug-taking raise the future risk of addiction, teenage pregnancy, failure at school, sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) and crime, independently of other factors that might predispose to these outcomes, scientists have determined.|"

So, what is the answer? - how can we educate the young members of our society to stop them from experiencing all the negative events that are proven to be directly associated with drinking and taking drugs as young teenagers?

 

Hospital admissions soar...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7414322.stm

As hospitals face more and more admissions related to alcohol how will the NHS cope and what can we do to stop future problems, such as the developing teenage drinking cycle?