Addiction Solution Source

Federal prosecutors have slapped Pfizer with the largest criminal fine in U.S. history. This is part of a $2.3 billion settlement in fines for the illegal promotions of drugs that have influenced doctors with free golf, massages and resort gatherings.

The pharmaceuticals giant is pleading guilty to promoting its withdrawn arthritis painkiller Bextra to doctors for unapproved uses and is paying to settle other claims over its marketing of nine other drugs. Bextra, which was withdrawn in 2005 after being linked to an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes, was among several drugs Pfizer promoted to doctors for unapproved uses.

The government said Pfizer also paid kickbacks to market a host of well-known drugs that include: Aricept, Celebrex, Lipitor, Norvasc, Relpax, Viagra, Zithromax, Zoloft and Zyrtec.

The term addiction usually refers to the chronic use of one of three kinds of psychotropic substances, legal drugs (eg. alcohol, nicotine), illicit drugs (eg. cocaine, marijuana) or prescription drugs (eg. valium, prozac), in large enough quantities to cause life-damaging consequences in various aspects of one’s life.

Craving is the primary symptom of addiction, and if severe enough, an addict will destroy anyone or anything to get to the “substance” which they are deluded into believing will satisfy their craving and bring happiness.

Cause of Addiction

Biochemical imbalances in eight key neurotransmitters are the driving force behind all addictions. (Brain cells or neurons, produce chemical substances called neurotransmitters and they control virtually every aspect of your life by communication with other cells.) When they are deficient, the addicted person finds it extremely difficult to satisfy their cravings. Addicts become progressively powerless over the dictates of their imbalanced brain chemistry.

Recent research by David Zald at Vanderbilt and published by the Journal of Neuroscience shows that people that have less of a particular type of dopamine receptor may lead them to taking more risks including the use of drugs.

Dopamine has long been known to play an important role in how we experience rewards from a variety of natural sources, including food and sex, as well as from drugs such as cocaine and amphetamine. Previous research has shown that individuals differ in both their number of dopamine receptors and the amount of dopamine they produce, and that these differences may play a critical role in addiction. Zald and his colleagues set out to explore the connection between dopamine receptors and the novelty-seeking personality trait.

“We’ve found that the density of these dopamine autoreceptors is inversely related to an individual’s interest in and desire for novel experiences,” stated David Zald. “The fewer available dopamine autoreceptors an individual has, the less they are able to regulate how much dopamine is released when these cells are engaged. Because of this, novelty and other potentially rewarding experiences that normally induce dopamine release will produce greater dopamine release in these individuals.”

Most people in the prison system are there because of drugs. Why do you think?

Could some of it be that the persons body chemistry was out of balance and they were self medicating to try and find an answer and that is why they started using drugs in the first place?

Research has also shown that many violent kids have had an unbalanced biochemistry. Violence often leads people to prisons.

Don’t you think that the people in charge of our prison systems would look at all possibilities to lower prison violence and recidivism. Like maybe they should test prisoners and see if they are biochemically out of balance? Or, at least they could give a very nutritious meal?

Professor Stephen Schoenthaler from California State University, Stanislaus, has some fascinating research that should enlighten all of us.

In the past 25 years, Professor Stephen Schoenthaler’s work has appeared in many prestigious scholarly journals worldwide and he has published over 40 peer reviewed articles and 150 professional presentations in addition to having multiple television specials devoted to his work. What interests many is his discovery that the use of vitamin-mineral supplements was able to reduce, on average, prison rule violations 38% in California using supplements that cost 4 cents per day, with a savings to taxpayers in a ratio of $1 invested in supplement returning $1,000 to the State within one month. This research has been repeated and confirmed by Oxford University in England and other researchers in The Netherlands.

How did Dr. Schoenthaler figure a ratio of $1 invested in supplements returns $1,000 within a month to the Department of Corrections?

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics document entitled “Prison Rule Violators,” there is an average of 1.75 violations per inmate per year, but 8% average 11 or more per year. Approximately 20% are violent without injury and 10% are violent with injury. Rule violations typically result in administrative actions that result in sanctions such as a loss of good time (that allows early prison), segregation, solitary confinement, and occasional criminal prosecution by local district attorneys.

The costs associated with rule violations include:

Electrical signals in the brain are sent using chemicals called neurotransmitters. All addictive drugs affect the production, release, or elimination of neurotransmitters. The major Neurotransmitters implicated in addiction are noted below.

Serotonin

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine or 5-HT) is synthesized from dietary tryptophan and its primary function is regulation of sleep and mood. Low levels of serotonin have been associated with mood disorders such as depression.

Medications called specific serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as Prozac and Zoloft, increase serotonin levels but can be very dangerous. You should consider taking the essential amino acid trytophan instead. Check with a holistic doctor for advice.

Norepinephrine (NE)

NE’s common function is associated with arousal and alertness. It is synthesized from the essential amino acid tyrosine. The levels of NE fluctuate throughout the day and therefore there are periods when we feel more awake and alert, while at other times we are tired and sleepy.

Certain drugs of abuse, such as stimulants or “uppers”, increase alertness and arousal and cause talkativeness, restlessness, and agitation because of their action on NE systems.

Dopamine

Dopamine release gives us the experience of pleasure and therefore causes us to want to repeat the behaviors necessary to acquire the reward in the future.

It’s interesting that amphetamine and cocaine both increase the amount of dopamine. However, cocaine achieves this action by preventing dopamine reuptake, while amphetamine helps to release more dopamine.

So, these drugs with similar effects produce their actions through entirely different processes. In turn, addiction to the two drugs may call for somewhat different types of addiction treatment.

GABA

Gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) is synthesized from glutamate (an amino acid) and is found in very high concentrations throughout the brain. It is considered an “inhibitory neurotransmitter”. Because GABA has inhibitory effects on neurons, any drug that increases the actions of GABA will decrease general brain activity and can be considered a “downer” or depressant. Depressants include alcohol, sleeping pills such as Ambien, muscle relaxants such as Valium, and barbiturates such as Secobarbital. Some depressants are very powerful and can cause coma or death.

The Most Addictive Drugs

Different drugs have different effects on the neurotransmitters. For instance, cocaine and methamphetamine are much more addicting than THC (marijuana) because they increase dopamine levels more quickly and to a greater extent.

As a smoker, you are always on the brink of a serious condition because your body is acidic and is always struggling to be in balance. Think of a smoker as walking around "off-center", leaning to one side.

Your health depends on the acid-base equilibrium of the body. This should be done with food - not drugs, because drugs will just make your body more acidic.

Neurotransmitter Restoration (NTR) is the restoration and re-balancing of normal neurotransmission in the brain through IV amino acids and is one way to overcome a drug addiction. Thousands of people have successfully used this program to beat their addiction.

When tobacco is smoked, nicotine is absorbed by the lungs and quickly moves into the bloodstream and then reaches the brain within 8 seconds! Nicotine also acts directly on the heart to change heart rate and blood pressure and also on the nerves that control respiration to change breathing patterns.

Vulnerability to addiction differs from person to person. In general, the more risk factors an individual has, the greater the chance that taking prescription drugs or street drugs will lead to abuse and addiction. “Protective” factors reduce a person’s risk of developing addiction.

What factors determine if a person will become addicted?

No single factor determines whether a person will become addicted to drugs. The overall risk for addiction is impacted by the biological makeup of the individual – it can even be influenced by gender or ethnicity, his or her developmental stage, and the surrounding social environment (e.g., conditions at home, at school, and in the neighborhood).
Which biological factors increase risk of addiction?

Many people die every year because of a drug overdose or of errors in taking the wrong drug.