Narconon Drug Addiction News

Trois-Rivières, Canada – Drug addiction is quite real and can destroy a person’s life, but it’s not a worthy defense when going up against the legal system. The bottom line is everyone who commits a crime should be held accountable and drug addiction is not an excuse for committing violent crimes. However, should an addict be simply thrown in jail or be rehabilitated as well.

Following the Vital Signs report from Community Foundations of Canada, which stated that Kelowna, BC had the highest violent crime rates out of 16 Canadian cities surveyed in 2008, Kelowna RCMP Supt. Bill Mckinnon called a press conference on October 7, 2009. First he reassured his citizens by saying they had no reason to feel unsafe in their community, second he made the point that it was not enough to simply jail drug users: “Drugs and violent crime tend to go hand in hand when you have situations where people are running up a debt incurred because of their addictions, and they can’t pay it. Often these people need help other than just being put in jail,” McKinnon stated.

Drug court has been a relatively successful system to rehabilitate the nonviolent substance abusing offenders as an alternative of sending them strait to prison. However, what should be done with the addicts who commit violent crimes?

“Without lessening the responsibility of the offenders for their crimes, a drug addict offender should be given the opportunity to do an effective drug rehabilitation program,” stated Nick Hayes, a certified chemical dependency counselor and representative of Narconon Trois-Rivières. He added, “It is no secret that drug addiction leads to desperate acts. Thus it’s worthwhile for the society, not to mention the family and the individual, to rehabilitate a drug or alcohol addict as most of the crimes committed in our cities are related to drug addiction.”

© 2009 Narconon Trois-Rivières. All Rights Reserved.
NARCONON is a trademark and service mark owned by Association for Better Living and Education and is used with its permission.

Trois-Rivières, Canada – In recent years, calls made by teenagers to poison control centers in some areas have as much as tripled, indicating a serious problem with prescription drug abuse. This is according to a study that was published in Pediatrics. As the increase of prescription drug abuse rises amongst teens the prescription drugs of choice amongst them are the stimulant drugs used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The drugs used to treat ADHD are divided into two types – methylphenidates and amphetamines, both being addictive drugs.

While studies show that calls made by teens to poison control centers have been on the rise the actual calls made by teens to poison control centers for ADHD type drugs has risen as much as 75%, which indicated a cause for alarm and a serious problem of abuse amongst teens. Also reported, is the number of prescriptions written for ADHD medications have risen as much as 85% in recent years, which increases the availability of the drugs amongst teens.

Prescription drug abuse amongst teens is rising in epidemic proportions, with ADHD medications being at the top of the list of preferred teen prescription drug use. The drug abuse of ADHD medications is attributed to the fact that it’s so easily accessible.

“Unfortunately, more and more adults who are finding themselves battling drug addiction normally started in their teens by taking prescription drugs, or low level street drugs,” commented Nick Hayes a certified chemical dependency counselor at the Narconon rehab center Trois-Rivières. “While no one wants to have a drug addiction problem, there is help available to overcome addiction with a purely natural approach, no matter what is the nature of the drug addiction,” added Hayes.

© 2009 Narconon Trois-Rivières. All Rights Reserved. NARCONON is a trademark and service mark owned by Association for Better Living and Education and is used with its permission.

Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, Canada – Across North America the month of September is known as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery month, with activities throughout the United States and Canada to raise awareness and celebrate recovery.

Narconon LIVE Graduation

This year the program celebrated 20 years of raising awareness of the benefits of alcohol and drug treatment programs while organizing events across the country to deliver the message that substance abuse recovery is possible.

Recovery month is a time not only to celebrate the success stories of those who have recovered from drug and alcohol addiction, but also those currently in recovery to overcome substance abuse.

Recovery month is also used as a time to raise awareness on the misery of drug and alcohol addiction, and serves to educate the public on the benefits of the treatment options available throughout recovery centers.

Substance abuse is something that can strike any family regardless of their social status or economic situation. Recovery from addiction to drugs or alcohol is possible, and recovery month serves to educate those affected by addiction by sharing information on how treatment facilities operate and how help is available for those who want to overcome their addiction.

“Once an addict is willing to change their life, recovery can be achieved with great results. This is made very obvious to anyone attending our weekly graduation,” said Nick Hayes, a representative of the drug rehab center Narconon Trois-Rivières located in Quebec, Canada. This last Friday, September 25th, to commemorate National Recovery Month, this center broadcasted their weekly graduation live on the Internet. “This was our 3rd live broadcast,” added Mr. Hayes. “People watching these graduations see for themselves what recovery from addiction is all about – it’s always very exciting.” Live broadcast on the Internet was recorded and can be watched at http://narconon.ca/live_graduation.htm.

Drug and alcohol addiction is a real problem in our society, but help and recovery are possible thanks to the professional staff in so many drug rehab centers across North America.

© 2009 Narconon Trois-Rivières. All Rights Reserved.
NARCONON is a trademark and service mark owned by Association for Better Living and Education and is used with its permission

Trois-Rivières, Canada. The importance of a healthy diet rich in vitamins and nutrients has always been important, but now research shows there could be a link between drug addiction and nutrient deficiencies.   Per Carolyn Reuben, a Sacramento, California nutrition expert, the human body can react to certain vitamin and nutrient deficiencies in a manner that can ultimately lead to mood disorders and/or addiction.  She and other nutritionists blame the lack of natural foods for animals such as cows, which decreases the Omega 3 fatty acids found in the animals, passing on the deficiency to humans as part of the problem.

Researchers believe they can determine which amino acids are missing from a persons diet based on the particular problem they are having, adding them back to the diet and decreasing the chances of addiction.

An example of this process would be that if a persons body is producing low levels of dopamine, the body’s ‘feel good’ hormone, the result could be that the person could engage in compulsive behavior, such as drug or alcohol abuse in order to find relief.  Correcting the problem and raising the natural levels of dopamine could be as simple as adding particular amino acids and nutrients to the persons diet.

Almost 25 years ago, similar research done by CSU Stanislaus Professor Stephen Schoenthler, PhD, revealed a link with high sugar and low vitamin consumption levels being associated with violence.  The research also revealed that when given vitamin and mineral supplements, the violence rates amongst those tested dropped as much as 43%, which led researchers to begin exploring the association between nutrition and addiction.

“Balanced nutrition and proper intake of vitamins and minerals are key elements of the successful Narconon drug rehab program,” said Nick Hayes, a representative of Narconon Trois-Rivières. “Drugs deplete vitamins and minerals within the addicts body and these should be replaced and maintained in order for him or her to successfully lead a drug-free life,” added Hayes.

For more information on how to help a drug or alcohol addict you can call 1-877-782-7409 or visit this web page: http://addicthelp.org/addict-help/helping-a-drug-addict/

© 2009. Narconon Trois-Rivières. All rights reserved. Narconon and the Narconon logo are trademarks and service marks owned by the Association for Better Living and Education International and are used with its permission.