Resources

The Addiction Series

Addiction Policy Forum – In Episode 1, “The Hijacker,” learn about how substance use disorders (SUDs) affect function in two main parts of the brain: the limbic system (responsible for basic survival instincts) and the prefrontal cortex (where decision-making and impulse control live).

What is Cocaine

National Institute on Drug Abuse – Cocaine is a powerfully addictive stimulant drug. For thousands of years, people in South America have chewed and ingested coca leaves (Erythroxylon coca), the source of cocaine, for their stimulant effects.

Patients & Families

National Institute on Drug Abuse – Find information for people struggling with drug abuse, as well as resources for their families and friends.

Children & Teens

National Institute on Drug Abuse – Get the inside information on how different drugs can affect the brain and the body and what you can do to get involved.

Parents & Educators

National Institute on Drug Abuse – Find the latest science-based information about the health effects and consequences of drug abuse and addiction and resources for talking with kids about the impact of drug use on health.

Medicines to Keep Addiction Away

The New York Times – America’s drug crisis now kills more people each day than car crashes or gun violence and has challenged the conventional wisdom about recovery. This week we’re discussing another idea whose time has past: trying to kick opioid addiction without medicines. That’s as smart as relying on willpower to overcome diabetes or asthma. Medicines greatly increase the chance of successfully kicking addiction and reduce the risk of death.

Letter From the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse

National Institute on Drug Abuse – Tobacco use kills approximately 440,000 Americans each year, with one in every five U.S. deaths the result of smoking. Smoking harms nearly every organ in the body, causes many diseases, and compromises smokers’ health in general. Nicotine, a component of tobacco, is the primary reason that tobacco is addictive.