Addiction Solution Source

A recent study, published in the Public Library of Science (PLoS Medicine Journal), looked at Prozac (fluoxetine), Seroxat (paroxetine), Effexor (venlafaxine) and Serzone (nefazodone) and found "the antidepressants do not produce clinically significant improvements in depression in patients who initially have moderate or even very severe depression."

The researchers conclude that there is little reason to prescribe new-generation antidepressant medications to any but the most severely depressed patients unless alternative treatments have been ineffective.

This is another reason not to take any prescription drugs such as the SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)  mentioned above unless absolutely necessary!

Abram Hoffer, M.D., Ph.D., is an internationally recognized physician, author, medical researcher and pioneer in orthomolecular medicine.

In 1960 he met Bill Wilson, co-founder of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) and talked about using Niacin (Vitamin B-3) to help alcoholics. Bill W. was very interested in using it and he tested it with positive results.

Bill W. was a supporter of using Niacin but unbelievably his ideas were originally rejected by the AA International Headquarters because he was not a medical doctor!  View the video (9 1/2 minutes) to hear the story.

An interesting side note is that Vitamin B-3 is also good for balancing your cholesterol levels.

The cigarette is a very efficient and highly engineered drug delivery system.

By inhaling tobacco smoke, the average smoker takes in 1 to 2 mg of nicotine per cigarette. When tobacco is smoked, nicotine rapidly reaches peak levels in the bloodstream and enters the brain in a few seconds. A typical smoker will take 10 puffs on a cigarette over a period of 5 minutes that the cigarette is lit. Thus, a person who smokes about 1-1/2 packs (30 cigarettes) daily gets 300 “hits” of nicotine to the brain each day.

In those who typically do not inhale the smoke—such as cigar and pipe smokers and smokeless tobacco users––nicotine is absorbed through the mucosal membranes and reaches peak blood levels and the brain more slowly.

Here is a video of what happens to your body when you quit smoking cigarettes.

http://quitsmoking.about.com/cs/afterquitting/a/after_quitting.htm

This is an amazing research report about nicotine addiction I discovered.

Research has revealed that the nicotine from one cigarette is enough to saturate the nicotine receptors in the human brain. "Laboratory experiments confirm that nicotine alters the structure and function of the brain within a day of the very first dose. In humans, nicotine-induced alterations in the brain can trigger addiction with the first cigarette," commented Joseph R. DiFranza, MD, professor of family medicine & community health at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and leader of the research team. "Nobody expects to get addicted from smoking one cigarette." Many smokers struggle for a lifetime trying to overcome nicotine addiction.

Symptoms of nicotine addiction can appear when youth are smoking as little as one cigarette per month. At first, one cigarette will relieve the craving produced by nicotine withdrawal for weeks, but as tolerance to nicotine builds, the smoker finds that he or she must smoke ever more frequently to cope with withdrawal.

Research by a group of scientists studying the effects of heavy marijuana use shows that withdrawal from the use of marijuana is similar to what is experienced by people when they quit smoking cigarettes.

National Integrated Health Associates is the type of health center that should be located throughout the country. Doesn’t it make sense that you would want to have as many resources available as possible to help solve your health condition?

NIHA is an integrative medical and dental practice located in Washington, D.C.  Integrative doctors are traditionally trained with additional education in complementary and alternative medicine,  therapies, nutrition, and toxicity. The professional health team is comprised of M.D.’s, Dentists, Naturopathic Physicians, and other health care practitioners. By merging conventional and complementary/alternative medicine (CAM), you have the best chance of healing the body.

Integrative medicine looks at the patient holistically and tries to find the root cause of your body imbalance or illness and not just look at the symptoms.
 
NIHA  treats addiction, AD/HD and numerous other conditions.

Some of the therapies available include:

Older smokers are motivated to quit smoking by very different factors than are younger smokers.

Dr. Oz recently appeared on the Oprah show and offered a program to quit smoking. Along with Dr. Daniel Seidman and Dr. Mike Roizen, there is a helpful section on the Oprah web site for smokers who want to overcome both the “before” and “after” parts of living smoke-free. Motivated?

Four Steps to Quit Smoking

1) Addiction Self-Exam

2) Prepare yourself to go smoke-free,

3) Coping with life – This is one of the most important sections and covers coping with withdrawal, avoiding relapse, dealing with other smokers and relieving your anxiety.

4) Resources and support

Many smokers believe they need a cigarette most when their stress is highest. But is that belief true?

Teens abuse prescription drugs more than any other illicit drug, except marijuana; more than cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine combined.

Drug treatment admissions for prescription painkillers has increased more than 300 percent over the past 10 years. Teens are abusing prescription drugs because many believe the myth that these drugs provide a “safe” high. It is most troubling that a majority of teens who abuse prescription drugs say they are easy to obtain and many times free.

When prescription painkillers are used as prescribed, they can be of benefit. But now their abuse has become a serious public health concern along with an even greater concern for prescription drugs addictions.

Prescription drugs can be found in practically every home and parents can have immediate influence on stopping their teen from prescription drug abuse. Only a third of parents have discussed the risks of prescription drugs with their teen.

Smoking a joint is equivalent to 20 cigarettes in terms of lung cancer risk, and scientists have warned of an “epidemic” of lung cancers linked to cannabis (marijuana).

In an article published in the European Respiratory Journal, the scientists said cannabis could be expected to harm the airways more than tobacco as its smoke contained twice the level of carcinogens, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons, compared with tobacco cigarettes.

The method of smoking also increases the risk, since joints are typically smoked without a proper filter and almost to the very tip, which increases the amount of smoke inhaled. The cannabis smoker inhales more deeply and for longer, facilitating the deposition of carcinogens in the airways.

Marijuana addiction is becoming a real problem.

More information on this research: