Prescription Drug Addiction Epidemic in Veterans

November 17, 2013

prescription drug addiction, veterans, addiction treatment by AWAREmed, Dr. Dalal Akoury

Veterans of War Addicted to Prescription Drugs is Epidemic

With prescription pain reliever addictions and overdoses increasing, are doctors in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs over-prescribing medications to veterans of war?

Based on the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), opiates (such as hydrocodone, oxycodone, methadone and morphine) being prescribed has actually increased by 270 percent from the previous twelve years. This report leaves many anxious that VA protocol of over prescribing painkillers is not just lacking responsibility, but could be dangerous.

Information compiled by the CIR revealed that doctors in VA facilities in many regions have “greater than one opiate prescribed to each patient, usually, for the previous two years.” Some experts, interviewed concerning why there is such a dramatic rise in the variety of pain reliever prescriptions created for veterans, validated the fact that the VA is “overmedicating its patients as it has a hard time to stay up to date with their requirement for even more complex treatment.” (CIR).

“In 2009, new VA regulations required clinicians to follow an “integrated approach” to helping veterans in pain, including a stronger focus on treating the root causes of pain rather than using powerful narcotics to reduce symptoms.”

While this approach could be the new model, veterans waiting for the integrated care are left suffering and misusing the drugs prescribed to them, oftentimes not out of need to control physical pain, but to numb themselves from the addiction and symptoms of PTSD.

The CIR article relays the true stories of veterans who lost their battles, not only in service to our country, but battles with prescription drug addiction fueled by access to doctors who are willing to dispense them. Many lost their lives due to prescription drug addiction and the surrounding complications.

PTSD and Prescription Drug Addiction in Veterans of War

In a report published in the March 7, 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, a study led by Dr. Karen Seal stated that those veterans returning with PTSD are more likely to be prescribed opiates, further complicating their mental and physical situation. Although returning vets want nothing more than to improve, they are more likely to justify taking opiates simply because they were given by a doctor.

The current VA model is ineffective due to the fact that it’s merely covering up symptoms of veterans with prescription drug addiction, who are often switching from one drug to another, one doctor to another, one location to another.

In order to relieve PTSD and the addiction to prescription drugs, alcohol, and street drugs used by addicted veterans, they must be assisted to restore the balance in their lives with immediate relief.

AWAREmed Offers Help to Addicted Veterans of War

AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center and Dr. Dalal Akoury offers veterans a way to find the balance and immediate relief to their symptoms and prescription drug addiction. Neuro Endocrine Restoration treatment (NER) is an affordable and carefully crafted protocol that includes specific oral and intravenous natural substances for each patient and their personal requirement.

Because the NER provides the body with all the essential elements that are necessary to speed up and facilitate a smooth recovery, the body detoxifies gently with minimal and tolerable withdrawal symptoms. The methodology used by Dr. Akoury at AWAREmed safely and significantly reduces cravings, anxiety and depression by alleviating the stress levels, and restoring a sense of well-being and clarity of mind.

prescription drug addiction,Addiction recovery, AWAREmed, Dr. Dalal Akoury, live in balance

Veterans of War Addicted to Prescription Drugs is Epidemic

The main objective of any veteran addiction treatment program should be the elimination of the root cause of pain, either physical or mental, using the least amount of opiates needed.

Discovering the root cause is a long term event, not a quick fix, however it’s shown that NER treatment offered at AWAREmed, quickly and effectively relieves the known indications of addiction withdrawal and PTSD, including depression, anxiety and stress with a minimum of withdrawal symptoms.

Our Veterans of war deserve the best treatment available for prescription drug addiction, afterall, they gave the best of their lives to keep us free. Until changes in protocol at VA hospitals and facilities with regards to dispensing addictive drugs, we will continue to see more and more prescription drug addiction in returning veterans of war.

AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center believes there is help for addicted veterans of war and it’s quick, safe, and effective. If you are an addicted veteran of war, please make an appointment today.

Prescription Drug Addiction Epidemic in Veterans of War

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes

November 13, 2013

At an age when most young women are concerned with fitting in, being popular, or their future career paths, alcohol and the temptations associated with drinking, rarely cross their minds. While the perceived glamor of drinking alcohol is seen in popular culture, seldom are the risks considered by most young women. The result of that is breast cancer alcohol addiction gain ground in the life of users.

Early age alcohol consumption and the correlation to future breast cancer alcohol addiction are increasingly becoming serious points of concern.

A new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute may give young women something more to consider. From 1989 to 2009 approximately 91,000 mothers were enrolled in the study which came to the disturbing conclusions about the correlation between early age alcohol consumption and breast cancer.

The more alcoholic beverages women consume prior to first full-term pregnancy increases the risk of breast cancer according to a vital new study from Washington University of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, one of the leaders in medical research, ranked sixth in the nation by U.S. News & World Report . Their research reveals there is a distinct correlation between alcohol behaviors of young women and the threat of future breast cancer.

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes: The correlation between drinking and breast cancer

This research is the first time which the danger for breast cancer is connected to drinking behaviors in early adolescence, college age women, and first time pregnancies.

The research at Washington University of Medicine concludes that if a young woman averages one alcoholic beverage per day (beer, wine or liquor) between the onset of her initial menstrual period and her first full term pregnancy, her threat of breast cancer cells boosts by 11% and the risk of benign breast disease by 15%. Although many of the breast diseases may be benign and curable, the threats triggered may enhance a woman’s threat of breast cancer by approximately 500%.

The trend of heavy drinking by college aged women and younger has not been considered as a risk factor for future breast disease until now.

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes: Solutions for women at risk for breast cancer

Solutions are placed on parents of young girls to educate them about the risks involved in consumption of alcohol, talking to them about all the inherent risks, and including the latest study on the risk of future breast cancer.

Teens and young women oftentimes don’t consider their future risks, but if given the proper information it’s hoped that they will make better choices.

AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center can provide information for parents and young women. If there’s a problem with addiction to alcohol parents must seek reliable intervention at the earliest point.

The addiction recovery treatment offered at AWAREmed is not only successful, but totally discreet.

Studies have shown there are several factors involved in addiction, whether to drugs or alcohol, and as many treatment options. What most treatments don’t offer is restoring the neuro-endocrine system.

AWAREmed and Dr. Dalal Akoury offer discreet and effective treatment plans for alcohol addiction and breast cancer

Dr. Dalal Akoury

Dr. Dalal Akoury, Founder of AWAREmed, offers quick and effective recovery from addictions of all kinds, including alcohol. Dr. Akoury’s belief that we must restore the spirit, mind and body to benefit from a comprehensive treatment program is something that is coming to the forefront of thinking within the medical community.

Once thought of as alternative treatment, restoring the spirit, mind and body is becoming more prevalent within traditional and alternative practices, including alcohol and drug treatment centers, as well as developed protocols for breast cancer.

If young women can learn at an early age the correct and proper information about alcohol consumption, their chances of becoming healthy adults, free from breast cancer or other breast diseases increases dramatically.

To learn more about breast cancer risk based on age and lifestyle factors, visit www.yourdiseaserisk.wustl.edu. A related free iPad app, called Zuum, is available on iTunes at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id521273376. (Washington Universtiy in St. Louis)

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes: Breast Cancer and the Relation to Early Age Alcohol Consumption

Smoking Addiction Causes Cancer

November 1, 2013

Dr. Dalal Akoury

How Smoking Addiction causes Cancer?

Thank you for smoking! is what you would expect from any one who benefits from the addiction and Cancer epidemics. Sad but true some people benefit from other people pain and affliction.

November is the Lung Cancer Awareness month, that is why AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center is dedicating a lot of time to raise the awareness about the association between smoking addiction and cancer. Addiction is an emotional and mental dependence on a substance. Nicotine is the principal addictive substance in tobacco, while there could be other substances that may also contribute to tobacco dependence. Regular smoking of tobacco products lead to addiction in most users. Nicotine is an addictive drug just like cocaine and heroin. Researchers are also investigating on some of the other chemicals in tobacco that make it harder to quit.

The susceptibility to lung cancer has been strongly related with cigarette smoking, in other words Smoking Addiction Causes Cancer . It’s estimated that about 90% of lung cancers are as a result of tobacco use. The susceptibility of lung cancer increases with the number of cigarettes an individual smokes over time. Doctors equate this risk in terms of pack-years of smoking chronology. For instance, if a person has smoked two packs of cigarettes in each day for 10 years, he has a history of 20 years of packs. Even though with a 10 pack-year of smoking history can lead to cancer risks, those with a history of smoking over 30 pack-years are considered more susceptible to cancer.

Smoking Addiction Causes Cancer, one in seven who smoke die from Lung Cancer!

Among those people who smoke more packs of cigarettes each day, one in seven will eventually die of lung cancer. Tobacco smoke has over 4,000 chemical substances, most of which have been shown to be causing cancer. The two basic carcinogens in tobacco smoke are substances known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and nitrosamines. The susceptibility of developing lung cancer will decrease every year following cessation of smoking. This is because normal cells always grow to replace the already damaged cells in the lungs. Former smokers have a high susceptibility to developing cancer even 15 years after cessation of smoking. It’s important to note that there is no safe exposure to tobacco. Even Pipe and cigar smoking may also cause lung cancer however not to the same high degree as with cigarettesSmoking. Pipe and cigar smokers have a five fold increase in cancer development compared to non smokers.

Passive smoking

Smoking addiction exposes innocent individuals to smoke passively. Passive Smoking happens when people co-live sharing a place of living or working quarters with active smoker. This scenario has also been established as one way of cancer susceptibility. Research has revealed that non-smokers who reside with smokers have a 24% risk increase of developing lung cancer as compared to other non-smokers. An estimated 3,000 people in the U.S die from cancer -attributable to passive smoking. Smoking Addiction Causes Cancer not only to the active smoker but also to the passive smoker.

Asbestos fibers

Cigarette smoking can also lead to a drastic increase in the chances of developing asbestos. That is how Smoking Addiction Causes Cancer by increasing the risk of asbestosis.
These are silicate fibers that persist for a long period in lung tissue following exposure to asbestos. These fibers are commonly associated with work places. This is because in the past, asbestos was widely used in both acoustic and thermal insulation materials. However, today most countries have banned the use of asbestos. Both mesothelioma and lung cancer are often associated with exposure to asbestos. It’s worth noting that asbestos workers and smokers have a susceptibility risk of about 50-90 times greater than non smokers to develop cancer. On the other hand, Asbestos workers who do not smoke have a lower risk to develop lung Cancer their risk to develop lung cancer of about 5 times that of the non-smokers.

At AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center we would like to share this information with you and help you to rid yourself from Smoking Addiction and Cancer

Smoking Addiction Causes Cancer

Poor Nutrition causes Addiction

November 1, 2013

Dr. Dalal Akoury

Why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction?

Understanding the relationship between nutrition and addiction is an important component for successful drug abuse recovery. Although many drug addicts become malnutritioned from their drug abuse behaviors, this issue is much deeper than you thought. This article purpose is to expose to you that Why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction? Drug addicts are deficient in a variety of vital nutrients, which leads to physiological and psychological symptoms and imbalanced neurotransmitters in the brain that often result in the relapse. Thus, identifying and correcting these deficiencies is another important step in maintaining drug-free and long-term sobriety.

The role of nutrition and addiction have brings two sided adverse effects on each other. You find that drug addiction causes nutritional deficiencies, while on the other side poor nutritional cause drug addiction. Both addiction and nutrition have a reciprocal effect on one another that often makes addicts to relapse. Remember that your recovery will be much easier and long lived if you know that Poor Nutrition causes Addiction.

A poor diet lacking in vital nutrients, high in sugar or salt, refined foods and with environmental toxins that average people takes nowadays, often results in nutritional deficiencies. Contrary to most people’s popular beliefs and culture, minerals and vitamin deficiencies are quite common in our society. Their deficiency or lack of it can result into imbalances causing uncomfortable symptoms. Scientific research indicates that Poor Nutrition causes Addiction.

On the literal form, nutrients are needed in the brain to form neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters are substances used by our brain to communicate with all body parts or relay messages within the brain. An imbalance or lack neurotransmitters such as GABA, serotonin, endorphins and dopamine have been found to be at the root of what causes alcohol and drug addiction. That is why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction because it causes lack of Amino acids the building blocks of all Neurotransmitters.

Why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction? is explained Below

The manufacturing process of these neurotransmitters, the body requires every nutrient with right amount to be present during the process of synthesis of neurotransmitters if the nutrients are lacking the neurotransmitter production is compromised causing imbalances leading to addiction and self medication. The lack of one or two of these nutrients during the manufacturing process can lead to failure of neurons in producing adequate quantity of neurotransmitters. This is explains why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction

You’ll want to read and understand alcohol and drug addiction and how to recover from the adverse effects caused by taking drugs. To achieve successful drug and alcohol addiction recovery, your body’s neurotransmitters must be brought into balance. So you need to understand the interrelationship between addiction and nutrition because they are important aspects if you want to maintain a lasting sobriety.

prevention an aid against drug addiction Deutsch: Kampf dem Drogenmissbrauch :*Ausgabepreis: 40 Pfennig :*First Day of Issue / Erstausgabetag: 14. August 1975 :*Michel-Katalog-Nr: 864 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Symptoms and Impact of Deficiencies explaining why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction?

Symptoms from a deficiency or lack of minerals, vitamins or amino acids may include hypoglycemia, depression, fatigue, anxiety, irritability, hyperactivity, learning disorders, cognitive dysfunction, insomnia, hypertension, memory problems, personality disorders, sugar cravings, heart disease, agitation, headaches, and many more. You will realize that that many of these symptoms, as a result of nutrient deficiencies, look extremely similar to the symptoms that an addict faces in their recovery experiences.

When your diet lacks proper nutrients that it needs, then your brain is out of balance in manufacturing and realizing neurotransmitters. You must understand the importance of these crucial chemicals in making your body feel relaxed, happy or normal. Lack of it or the imbalance of these chemicals in the brain can lead to depression, anxiety, sadness, tiredness, confusion and make one not to think clearly.

All psychotropic substances mimic the effects of your neurotransmitters and thus provide one with a temporary, but artificial boost. When neurotransmitters are not balanced in the brain, then we crave things like drugs, alcohol, sugar, cigarettes and caffeine to provide us with the feelings and relieve which we could otherwise get naturally.

Since most people are eating a diet that lacking in nutrients or deities that are toxic, nutritional deficiencies are usually present in the drug and alcohol addict prior to addiction. Actually this is one of the things that lead to substance abuse and eventually addiction. You find that our body doesn’t produce enough dopamine, GABA, serotonin or endorphins, and therefore taking drugs provides us with a temporary boost to those neurotransmitters. These drugs provide us with what we are missing. However, in the long run, the temporary stimulation of these brain chemicals only depletes them even further and leads to diverse problem of substance addiction.

AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center offers an NER a Neuroendocrine Restoration that replenishes targeted amino acids in an attempt to achieve quick and long term craving free without withdrawal recovery. That is how we address the fact that Poor Nutrition causes Addiction.

Why Poor Nutrition causes Addiction?

Women Addiction on the Rise

October 21, 2013

Dr. Dalal Akoury

Women Addiction on the Rise

According to the report released by National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, addiction is on the rise among women abusers in the United States. The report shows that about six million women are dependent on alcohol and about 2.6 million women drug abuse issues. The report shows also shows that the number of women abusing drugs has increased sharply over the last decade. This is because women have always felt stigmatized in the society. Some of them keep their drinking or drug habits a secret; a factor that can hinder the true statistics of women who abuse alcohol and other related substances.
Why Are Women Engaging More Than Ever In Addiction
Violence
The rate of sexual abuse and physical abuse, among women, continue to rise. Rape cases continue to be reported in various parts of the country. A part from sex abuse, others continue to be physically abused by their male counterparts. As a result of the above factors, many women result into taking drugs and other substances to help them forget what they underwent or what they continue to face in the society. In an attempt to maintain family or relations Most of the women who continue to stay in violent domestic relationships or those who grew up in violent homes continue to turn into substance abuse to cope with their life’s dysfunctional circumstances. They do so in an attempt to

Women Addiction on the Rise how does it affect the family?

maintain family or relations.
Emotional abuse or marginalization
In most relationships there is unequal distribution of household responsibilities and lack of empathy. In this kind of relationships, women are the one who are affected most. They therefore feel trapped in this relationship, unable to quite because of the reason to maintain family or relationship. These women seek ways to cover the pain of feeling under-appreciated thus resulting into abuse of drugs. They turn to substance abuse to help them achieve their own happiness. They think that by taking drugs, it gives them a sense of comfort, power and relief from to give them a sense of power, comfort and relief from depression over their dwindled relationship. Also, other women continue to grow up feeling stigmatized because of their gender. They feel disrespected for being female and as a result they lead into drug abuse.
Isolation

Pregnant Woman-Alcohol-Cigarette addiction

Factors like divorce, separation or where husband die leaving a woman to take care of children are o the raise in our society. The most affected party is women who feel lonely or isolated. You find that it is mothers who are left with a burden of caring children and when they feel that they are stressed up with the situation, they seek solace in drugs and other substances. They use drugs to help them feel forget about their partners, feel energized, make connections and feel loved. For example, a mother might initially begin drinking alcohol with friends, only leading to her addicted at the end. What begins as a social activity can quickly result into a social problem among women who feel that their sense of companionship or belonging is connected to their drug use.

White House Visits Christiana Care’s Substance Abuse Intervention Program (Photo credit: Christiana Care)

Women Addiction on the Rise; What is the role of lifestyle changes

Change in lifestyle
With an effort to feel part of certain social class or lifestyle, many women try hard to feel part of the ‘wine society’. They feel that by taking wine, they are not actually abusing drugs. In modern society women don’t want to feel like they’ve had their freedom and fun taken out of their lives by having children. They admire their past lives without children and attempt to feel young ones more. Their initial purpose is not to take drugs but wine which they recognize as being accepted as woman’s drink. But eventually they result into full abuse of alcohol and other substances.

Tag Archives: Addiction

Prescription Drug Addiction Epidemic in Veterans

PTSD and Prescription Drug Addiction in Veterans of War

AWAREmed Offers Help to Addicted Veterans of War

Prescription Drug Addiction Epidemic in Veterans of War

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes: The correlation between drinking and breast cancer

Breast Cancer Alcohol addiction relationship and causes: Solutions for women at risk for breast cancer

AWAREmed and Dr. Dalal Akoury offer discreet and effective treatment plans for alcohol addiction and breast cancer