Maker of Tobacco Lozenges Seeks FDA Okay for 'Less Harmful' Claim
A small Virginia company, Star Scientific Inc., is seeking approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market one of its smokeless tobacco products as less harmful than other tobacco products.
Survey: Dramatic Decline in Teen Exposure to Anti-Drug Messages
The Monitoring the Future study -- the largest survey on teen drug abuse tracking over 46,000 8th, 10th and 12th graders â?? found a huge falloff in teensâ?? recalled exposure to drug abuse prevention messages over the past seven years -- even as teens report finding the messages effective.
Maine Tops Nation in Treatment Admissions for Prescription Painkillers
New government data shows that Maine consistently outstripped other states over the past decade when measured by the number of residents seeking treatment for prescription painkillers.
Mass. Expands Prescription Drug Tracking, Will Check More IDs
Masachusetts has added cough medicines with codeine, sedatives, some anti-anxiety medication, and other Schedule 3, 4, and 5 drugs to its program that requires patients to show photo IDs when picking up certain prescriptions.
ER Visits Due to Prescription Drug Abuse Double in Five Years
Federal data shows that prescription drug abuse now sends twice as many people to the emergency room (ER) as it did five years ago -- outstripping illegal drugs for the third year in a row.
Leading Critic of Menthol Cigarettes Resigns from FDA Advisory Committee
Gregory N. Connolly, a professor of public health at Harvard, has resigned from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee that will soon make recommendations on whether to ban menthol in cigarettes.
Opioid Pain Contracts Can Damage Patient Trust, Bioethics Panel Says
A group of physicians and experts on pain policy have published an article arguing that while opioid treatment contracts - also known as "pain contracts" - between patients and their physicians can be useful, they may be bad for patients unless presented in the right way.
Tobacco companies will have to obtain approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for all new products brought to market, as well as some products previously released.
Supply of Anti-Smoking Drug Runs Out After Japan Raises Cigarette Tax
A Japanese cigarette tax increase intended to get smokers to quit has been so successful that supplies of an anti-smoking drug ran out twelve days after the tax hike.
Study: AA Can Help Women Leaving Prison Cut Drinking
Regular attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings appears to have a positive impact on reducing drinking among women released from incarceration, according to a new study.
Youth Alcohol-Related ER Visits Spike on New Year's Day
A study released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) showed that emergency room visits related to underage drinking shot up over 250 percent on New Year's Day 2009.
SAMHSA: Regional Shifts in U.S. Treatment Admissions over Decade
A new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) shows large regional shifts in rates of drug treatment admissions between 1998 and 2008 -- even as national rates remained steady.
Anti-smoking signs required by the city of New York have been barred by a district court judge because they violate the free speech rights of tobacco vendors.
Researchers: Alcohol a Risk Factor for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)?
Researchers at UC San Diego analyzed 33 years of data and found that alcohol consumption could be a contributing factor in many incidents of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).