College life is already tough, but what if you're dealing with a substance use history? This is a reality for many students, and their quality of life can vary greatly depending on whether they're in recovery or not. While there's plenty of research on quality of life for people with chronic health issues, not enough has been done to understand how college students w...
Teens and drugs. It's a big topic. But what's it really like for them? A recent study dug into this, looking at the risks, what protects teens, and how to help. First, let's talk risks. Teens face a lot. Peer pressure, stress, and curiosity can push them towards drugs. But it's not all about them. Family life, school, and where they live play big roles too. Now, wh...
People who have struggled with drugs and been to jail often find themselves back in trouble. This is a big problem that costs a lot of money and affects many lives. To stop this from happening, it's important to understand why these people reoffend. A recent study looked at many research papers to find out what makes someone likely to return to crime. They started w...
Teen substance use is a big worry. It hurts not just the teens but also the whole country. Two big things can help keep teens from using drugs: their faith and their family life. Faith, or religiosity, is about how much someone believes in a religion and follows its practices. Family life, or family functioning, is about how well a family works together. Both of the...
Media plays a big role in how we see people with substance use disorders (SUDs). It can shape our opinions and even create harmful stereotypes. This is why it's important to look at how media portrays addiction and its effects on society. A recent study dug into how different types of media show people with SUDs. They found eight common themes in these portrayals. O...
The LGBTQ+ community faces higher rates of substance use compared to their straight peers. This isn't a coincidence. The extra pressure of being a minority in society, known as minority stress, plays a huge role. This stress can negatively affect mental health and disrupt the body's natural stress response. When the body's stress system is off balance, it can lead to...
People who inject drugs often face big hurdles when thinking about quitting. A recent study looked at what makes someone ready to change their drug use habits. Researchers talked to 472 people in Los Angeles and Denver between 2021 and 2022. They found that people were at different stages of readiness to quit. Some were not thinking about quitting at all. Others wer...
The journey of new parents battling substance use disorder is a tough one. A recent study looked into the lives of 22 new parents, all within a year of having a baby, who were in residential treatment for substance use issues. The goal was to understand how their social circles and environment affected their recovery. The participants were mostly white, single, an...
The link between tough times in childhood and substance use in teens is strong. A recent study dug into this connection, focusing on high school students across the United States. The research used data from a large survey that asked students about their experiences and habits. Eight different tough experiences were considered, ranging from abuse to household struggl...
The Northwest Territories in Canada face a significant challenge with high rates of hospitalizations and deaths linked to alcohol and drug use. This issue is complicated by the region's small, diverse population, making it difficult to provide effective substance use recovery services. A recent study delved into the obstacles people face when trying to access these s...