The Latest News from Our Field

A survey by the American Automobile Association finds one-fifth of licensed drivers who drink at least occasionally say they have driven when they thought their alcohol level may have been close to, or over, the legal limit in the past year.

The Endocrine Society is warning about the health consequences of taking performance-enhancing drugs. The vast majority of people who use these drugs are non-athlete weightlifters, according to the group.

The U.S. Defense Department will start randomly testing service members for synthetic marijuana, the Air Force News Service reports.

Alcohol companies’ “social responsibility” campaigns increase brand loyalty and positive perceptions of the products, without reducing alcohol-related harms, according to a critic of the industry.

Attorneys General from 42 U.S. states and territories are urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to require drug companies to ensure generic prescription opioids have abuse-deterrent features.

A study that shows nicotine contributes to smokers’ higher risk of developing heart disease suggests the nicotine in e-cigarettes is not necessarily safe for the heart, CNN reports.

A study that evaluated a wide variety of parenting programs found five that help parents and children avoid teen behavior problems.

For the past year, adults in Denmark with a serious drug addiction have been allowed to take illegal drugs in “fix rooms,” supervised by a nurse. Research suggests these drug consumption rooms can save lives, NPR reports.

The dramatic rise in the diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder coincided with a two-decade campaign by drug companies, aimed at doctors, educators and parents, to promote pills to treat the disorder, according to The New York Times.

Some Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers are beginning to treat substance use disorders and mental illness together, The Columbus Dispatch reports. Until recently, VA hospitals tended to treat the two problems separately.

People who use e-cigarettes indoors may be exposing the people around them to nicotine, a new study suggests. The amount of secondhand nicotine exposure from e-cigarettes is much smaller than from traditional cigarettes, the researchers conclude.

Heavy marijuana use in the teenage years could damage brain structures vital to memory and reasoning, a new study suggests.

Should doctors recommend alcohol as a way to reduce their risk of heart disease? At the recent Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse annual meeting, an expert in heart health and an expert in addiction and primary care medicine came up with sharply different answers.

The Ohio Attorney General’s office is investigating complaints that some people are abusing drugs prescribed for pets, or intentionally abusing animals to obtain painkillers.

A study of female drug offenders in the St. Louis area finds one-quarter report experiencing police sexual misconduct, MedicalXpress reports.

Tobacco manufacturers are raising the prospect of costly, long legal battles against antismoking laws in developing nations, according to The New York Times. The industry is telling these countries their tobacco laws violate trade and investment treaties.

A series of online courses is being offered to help behavioral health providers prepare their organizations to expand in 2014, as part of the Affordable Care Act.

The attorneys general from 28 states are asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reassess its decision to approve Zohydro ER (extended release), a pure form of the painkiller hydrocodone. Earlier this month, four U.S. senators told the FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg they disagree with the agency’s decision to approve the drug.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced its plans to provide $50 million to expand treatment for substance use disorders and mental health. The funds will be used to hire staff, add services and employ team-based models of care.

Children whose mothers drank during pregnancy are more likely to have problems with social skills, compared with their peers whose mothers did not drink while pregnant, according to a new study.

A bill to legalize, tax and regulate the sale of marijuana to adults in New York state was introduced this week by three state legislators.

States with stronger alcohol control policies have lower rates of binge drinking than states with weaker policies, a new study concludes.

A new study finds smokers who are addicted to methamphetamine or cocaine can stop smoking while they are being treated for their addiction to stimulants, without adversely impacting their addiction treatment.

A new analysis of previous studies involving more than 30,500 smokers concludes smoking cessation therapies do not increase the risk of heart attack or stroke. The study included nicotine patches and gums, as well as the medications bupropion and varenicline.

The Uruguay Senate has voted to legalize marijuana, The Wall Street Journal reports. The law, approved Tuesday, puts the government of the South American nation in control of the distribution and sale of marijuana.