The Hidden Danger In Your Medicine Cabinet
As parents, we teach our children to avoid drugs. We warn them about pot, meth, coke. We warn
them about tobacco and alcohol. We have D.A.R.E and we talk about the drugs in health class. We think of dealers in dark alley ways, packets of coke smuggled in by mules, cartels streaming across borders. What we don't talk about are the dangers hiding in our own medicine cabinets.
The Human Aspect
In 2014, there were over 47,000 deaths from Prescription drug overdose. That is 1 1/2 times the number of deaths from car accident.
This epidemic has had a personal impact on our family. In 2008, we lost my step-father to an accidental overdose of pain medication. In 2011, we lost my niece to an overdose of oxycotin. Recently, we lost my brother in law.
For us, the numbers aren't just statistics - they are names. They are grandchildren who will never go fishing with a grandfather. They are college dreams and senior proms and graduations and marriages that will never happen. They are small children growing up with out a parent. They are grieving parents, siblings, spouses, children, and friends.
The Risk Factors
According to the CDC:
Research shows that some risk factors make people particularly vulnerable to prescription painkiller abuse and overdose, including:
Obtaining overlapping prescriptions from multiple providers and pharmacies.1,2,3,4
- Taking high daily dosages of prescription painkillers.2,5,6,7
- Having mental illness or a history of alcohol or other substance abuse.8
- Living in rural areas and having low income.
Medicaid Patients
- Inappropriate provider prescribing practices and patient use are substantially higher among Medicaid patients than among privately insured patients.
- In one study based on 2010 data, 40% of Medicaid enrollees with painkiller prescriptions had at least one indicator of potentially inappropriate use or prescribing:9
- overlapping painkiller prescriptions
- overlapping painkiller and benzodiazepine prescriptions
- long-acting or extended release prescription painkillers for acute pain and high daily doses ("What the Public Needs to Know about the Epidemic")
Prevention
There are some steps that one can take to help prevent misuse or abuse:
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| Courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
Talk with your doctor about:
- The risks of prescription painkillers and other ways to manage your pain.
- Making a plan on when and how to stop, if a choice is made to use prescription painkillers.
Use prescription painkillers only as instructed by your doctor. Store prescription painkillers in a safe place and out of reach of others. Help prevent misuse and abuse by not selling or sharing prescription painkillers. Never use another person's prescription painkillers. ("What the Public Needs to Know about the Epidemic")
Also, when disposing of old, expired, or unneeded medications, there are prescription disposal locations in most communities. However, if there is not one in your community, follow these steps:
- Remove the label from the bottle.
- Do not flush the medication, as it will enter the water system.
- Instead, pour the medication into a ziplock bag.
- Crush it (if in pill or tablet form), and add hot water to dissolve the medication.
- Empty coffee grounds into the mixture as well, to make it unappetizing to both humans and animals, and dispose of the bag in the trash.
The Warning Signs
The Mayo Clinic provides the following as signs of drug abuse:
Stealing, forging or selling prescriptionsSeeing this signs in a friend or relative may indicate a cause for concern.Taking higher doses than prescribed Excessive mood swings or hostility Increase or decrease in sleep Poor decision-making Appearing to be high, unusually energetic or revved up, or sedated Continually "losing" prescriptions, so more prescriptions must be written Seeking prescriptions from more than one doctor ("Prescription drug abuse")
What To Do If You Suspect Abuse
If you suspect drug abuse by a friend or loved one, your support will be important. You may contact medical professionals, treatment groups, or agencies such as drugabuse.gov to seek additional information. While you can not force someone to seek treatment in most cases without seeking the aid of the court, you can provide support and incentives for them to do so.
Additionally, if you suspect a loved one of having a problem, seek out counseling services to assist you in dealing with the aftermath and effect, as it can be very stressful for those associated with the addict as well.
1-800-662-HELP (4357) is a fantastic service from the Department of Human Services for those battling addiction, and for their loved ones.
What the Public Needs to Know about the Epidemic." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 5 May 2015. Web. 16 Jan. 2016.
"Prescription Drug Abuse." Symptoms. Web. 16 Jan. 2016.
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