For Immediate Release
Groups Put Pressure on Governments to Reform Harmful Drug Policies
Contacts: Paul Silva, +1 212.548.0309, +1 917.478.8403, psilva@sorosny.org (United States)
Jon Lidén, +41 58.791.1723, +41 79.244.6006, jon.liden@theglobalfund.org (Europe)
NEW YORK / GENEVA
25 June 2009
As the United Nations launches the 2009 World Drug Report this week, more than 40 international groups and experts worldwide today issued a call to action that presses governments to adopt a humane approach to drug policy.
The call to action, signed by the Open Society Institute, former president of Brazil Fernando Cardoso, and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, urges governments to enact policies that are based on scientific and medical research rather than politics.
“In many regions, particularly Asia and Eastern Europe, the AIDS epidemic is largely dependent on HIV transmission through injection drug use,” said Dr. Michel Kazatchkine, Executive Director of the Global Fund. “Criminalizing individual possession of drugs undermines HIV prevention by marginalizing users, forcing them to hide from services and healthcare that could help them and keep others safe.”
Rather than being reached with harm reduction services—care and treatment that can stem the spread of HIV—millions of nonviolent drug users languish in prisons around the globe or live as outcasts from society as a result of current drug policies. As a result, HIV and other infectious diseases spread uncontrolled and threaten whole societies.
Criminalization does not ease the global problem of drugs. The drug trade continues to grow while families are torn apart by the global war on drugs. Instead of continuing with these ineffective and harmful policies, today’s call to action urges governments to focus on reducing the harms of drug trade and use. This involves providing services such as clean needle exchange and substitution treatment to help reduce the health risks associated with drug use. The groups also call on governments to decriminalize the possession of small quantities of drugs for personal use—a step which has been credited with reducing drug use and HIV infections in Portugal.
“In too many countries, the war on drugs has become a war on people,” said Kasia Malinowska-Sempruch, Director of the Open Society Institute’s Global Drug Policy Program. “We need to stop the spiral of drug-related violence by approaching this from a health and human rights perspective.”
In addition to criminalization, anti-drug measures such as crop destruction have had a devastating impact on peoples’ lives, according to the groups. In many regions, aerial eradication of coca and poppy fields have destroyed thousands of farms, while doing nothing to alleviate the poverty that causes many farmers to grow illicit crops. Yet, numerous studies have shown that crop eradication is the least effective method for controlling drug supply, and treatment and prevention programs are better suited to reduce the demand for drugs.
The call to action, along with full list of signatories, is available online at: www.soros.org/initiatives/drugpolicy
The Open Society Institute’s Global Drug Policy Program aims to broaden, diversify, and consolidate the network of like-minded organizations that are actively challenging the current state of international drug policy. The program strives to engage and support drug policy experts, economists, and other professionals as they analyze and publicize the effects of drug policy on public health, human rights, national20security, and the economy.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is an international financing institution that invests the world’s money to save lives. To date, it has committed US$ 16 billion in 140 countries to support large-scale prevention, treatment and care programs against the three diseases. www.theglobalfund.org
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
2009 International Drug Policy Reform Conference
Registration for the 2009 International Drug Policy Reform Conference is officially open. The conference, November 12-14 will take place in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As an attendee of the 2007 International Drug Policy Reform Conference you are receiving this notice for registration. Please take a minute to visit the Reform Conference website at http://www.reformconference.org.
Every two years drug policy reformers from across the United States and around the world come together to listen, learn, network and strategize. If you're working to bring about drug policies based on science, compassion, health and human rights, you can't afford to miss this extraordinary gathering.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
NAPW helps Immigrant Pregnant Woman Win Release from prison
Dear Friends and Allies:
NAPW is pleased to announce that yesterday morning a federal District Court judge, responding to a motion for bail and our emergency amicus brief, released Quinta Tuleh, a 28 year-old pregnant woman, from federal custody.
Ms. Tuleh, a woman from Cameroon, had already served 114 days in jail for allegedly having false immigration documents. Shortly after her arrest, she learned she was both pregnant and HIV positive. On May 14, 2009, instead of releasing her, a US District Court Judge extended Ms. Tuleh's sentence to ensure that she remain incarcerated for the duration of her pregnancy. (Judge Jails Pregnant Woman Until Baby is Born and Behind Bars for Being Pregnant and HIV-Positive.)
At the sentencing hearing, Judge Woodcock stated: "My obligation is to protect the public from further crimes of the defendant, and that public, it seems to me at this point, should include the child she's carrying...I don't think the transfer of HIV to an unborn child is a crime technically under the law, but it is as direct and as likely as an ongoing assault."
As is often the situation in cases involving pregnant women, Courts make decisions without the benefit of full briefing or input from experts. Indeed, uncertain of Ms. Tuleh's due date and how long he would need to extend the sentence to ensure she was imprisoned through her due date, the Judge looked out over the courtroom and said "So maybe we ought to consult with the women here. Any sense of what a safe range would be?"
Yesterday morning, National Advocates for Pregnant Women, the Center for HIV Law and Policy and attorneys Elizabeth Frankel and Valerie Wright of the Maine firm Verrill Dana, LLP filed an emergency amicus (friend-of-the-court) brief on behalf of 28 public health experts, advocates, and organizations, as well as a declaration from prison health expert Dr. Robert L. Cohen. The brief and expert testimony provided legal and public health information challenging the incarceration of a pregnant woman in order to protect an "innocent" "unborn child."
The judge called the brief "articulate and helpful" during yesterday's hearing where he released Ms. Tuleh on bail pending an appeal of her sentence to the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Tuleh will now be receiving medical, housing, and other support coordinated by the Frannie Peabody Center, a Portland, Maine community-based HIV resource center. Ms. Tuleh has expressed that she is deeply touched by all of the support she has received. The picture of her yesterday, smiling from ear to ear speaks volumes.
Ms. Tuleh is being represented on her appeal by Zachary L. Heiden of the Maine ACLU.
NAPW and Center for HIV Law and Policy are grateful to Laura McTighe, Director of Project UNSHACKLE, Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP), for her extraordinary help in this effort.
Your continued support of NAPW makes this kind of effective, cross issue collaboration possible. Please contribute what you can to NAPW so that we can continue our collaborative and successful advocacy on behalf of all pregnant women.
Yours Truly,
Lynn M. Paltrow
Executive Director
National Advocates for Pregnant Women
www.advocatesforpregnantwomen.org
info@advocatesforpregnantwomen.org
NAPW is pleased to announce that yesterday morning a federal District Court judge, responding to a motion for bail and our emergency amicus brief, released Quinta Tuleh, a 28 year-old pregnant woman, from federal custody.
Ms. Tuleh, a woman from Cameroon, had already served 114 days in jail for allegedly having false immigration documents. Shortly after her arrest, she learned she was both pregnant and HIV positive. On May 14, 2009, instead of releasing her, a US District Court Judge extended Ms. Tuleh's sentence to ensure that she remain incarcerated for the duration of her pregnancy. (Judge Jails Pregnant Woman Until Baby is Born and Behind Bars for Being Pregnant and HIV-Positive.)
At the sentencing hearing, Judge Woodcock stated: "My obligation is to protect the public from further crimes of the defendant, and that public, it seems to me at this point, should include the child she's carrying...I don't think the transfer of HIV to an unborn child is a crime technically under the law, but it is as direct and as likely as an ongoing assault."
As is often the situation in cases involving pregnant women, Courts make decisions without the benefit of full briefing or input from experts. Indeed, uncertain of Ms. Tuleh's due date and how long he would need to extend the sentence to ensure she was imprisoned through her due date, the Judge looked out over the courtroom and said "So maybe we ought to consult with the women here. Any sense of what a safe range would be?"
Yesterday morning, National Advocates for Pregnant Women, the Center for HIV Law and Policy and attorneys Elizabeth Frankel and Valerie Wright of the Maine firm Verrill Dana, LLP filed an emergency amicus (friend-of-the-court) brief on behalf of 28 public health experts, advocates, and organizations, as well as a declaration from prison health expert Dr. Robert L. Cohen. The brief and expert testimony provided legal and public health information challenging the incarceration of a pregnant woman in order to protect an "innocent" "unborn child."
The judge called the brief "articulate and helpful" during yesterday's hearing where he released Ms. Tuleh on bail pending an appeal of her sentence to the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Tuleh will now be receiving medical, housing, and other support coordinated by the Frannie Peabody Center, a Portland, Maine community-based HIV resource center. Ms. Tuleh has expressed that she is deeply touched by all of the support she has received. The picture of her yesterday, smiling from ear to ear speaks volumes.
Ms. Tuleh is being represented on her appeal by Zachary L. Heiden of the Maine ACLU.
NAPW and Center for HIV Law and Policy are grateful to Laura McTighe, Director of Project UNSHACKLE, Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP), for her extraordinary help in this effort.
Your continued support of NAPW makes this kind of effective, cross issue collaboration possible. Please contribute what you can to NAPW so that we can continue our collaborative and successful advocacy on behalf of all pregnant women.
Yours Truly,
Lynn M. Paltrow
Executive Director
National Advocates for Pregnant Women
www.advocatesforpregnantwomen.org
info@advocatesforpregnantwomen.org
College Drinking Problems, Deaths On The Rise
ScienceDaily (June 16, 2009)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090615093919.htm
Alcohol-related deaths, heavy drinking episodes and drunk driving have all been on the rise on college campuses over the past decade, a new government study shows.
Using figures from government databases and national surveys on alcohol use, researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) found that drinking-related accidental deaths among 18- to 24-year-old students have been creeping upward -- from 1,440 in 1998 to 1,825 in 2005.
At the same time, the proportion of students who reported recent heavy episodic drinking (sometimes called "binge drinking") rose from roughly 42 percent to 45 percent, and the proportion who admitted to drinking and driving in the past year increased from 26.5 percent to 29 percent.
"The fact that we're not making progress is very concerning," says lead researcher Ralph Hingson, Sc.D., M.P.H., director of the NIAAA's division of epidemiology and prevention research.
"The irony," he adds, "is that during this same time period, our knowledge of what works as far as intervention in this age group has increased. That knowledge isn't yet being put into place."
Hingson and his colleagues report the findings in a special supplemental issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs devoted to college drinking problems. Fourteen studies in the issue report the results of projects funded by the NIAAA's Rapid Response to College Drinking Problems initiative -- which, between 2004 and 2005, selected 15 college campuses with serious student-drinking issues to work with the agency and other experts in developing programs to combat the problem.
The resulting programs ranged from the individual level -- like counseling for students found to have drinking problems -- to community-level efforts that involved law enforcement and residents of neighborhoods surrounding college campuses. All showed their own benefits.
It's likely, according to Hingson, that a mix of programs at these different levels is needed to best address problem drinking on college campuses.
"There's no silver bullet for this," he says, "but the more levels at which we try to intervene, the more effective we'll be. Colleges and communities need to work together, because neither can do it alone."
Broader legislation may also make a difference. Hingson and his colleagues found that although drinking and driving was more common among college students in 2005 than in 1998, the trend actually began to reverse course during that time: in 2002, just over 31 percent of students had driven under the influence in previous year; in 2005, that figure was 29 percent.
Hingson points out that in 2000, only 17 U.S. states had made it illegal to drive with a blood alcohol content of .08 percent or higher; by 2005, all had adopted that limit. That, he says, may at least partially account for the dip in college students' drinking and driving.
Similarly, state laws that set the legal drinking age at 21 have been credited with reducing alcohol-related road deaths. An "interesting" finding from this study, Hingson notes, is that the increases in heavy episodic drinking, drinking and driving, and alcohol-related deaths were seen among 21- to 24-year-olds, and not 18- to 20-year-olds.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090615093919.htm
Alcohol-related deaths, heavy drinking episodes and drunk driving have all been on the rise on college campuses over the past decade, a new government study shows.
Using figures from government databases and national surveys on alcohol use, researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) found that drinking-related accidental deaths among 18- to 24-year-old students have been creeping upward -- from 1,440 in 1998 to 1,825 in 2005.
At the same time, the proportion of students who reported recent heavy episodic drinking (sometimes called "binge drinking") rose from roughly 42 percent to 45 percent, and the proportion who admitted to drinking and driving in the past year increased from 26.5 percent to 29 percent.
"The fact that we're not making progress is very concerning," says lead researcher Ralph Hingson, Sc.D., M.P.H., director of the NIAAA's division of epidemiology and prevention research.
"The irony," he adds, "is that during this same time period, our knowledge of what works as far as intervention in this age group has increased. That knowledge isn't yet being put into place."
Hingson and his colleagues report the findings in a special supplemental issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs devoted to college drinking problems. Fourteen studies in the issue report the results of projects funded by the NIAAA's Rapid Response to College Drinking Problems initiative -- which, between 2004 and 2005, selected 15 college campuses with serious student-drinking issues to work with the agency and other experts in developing programs to combat the problem.
The resulting programs ranged from the individual level -- like counseling for students found to have drinking problems -- to community-level efforts that involved law enforcement and residents of neighborhoods surrounding college campuses. All showed their own benefits.
It's likely, according to Hingson, that a mix of programs at these different levels is needed to best address problem drinking on college campuses.
"There's no silver bullet for this," he says, "but the more levels at which we try to intervene, the more effective we'll be. Colleges and communities need to work together, because neither can do it alone."
Broader legislation may also make a difference. Hingson and his colleagues found that although drinking and driving was more common among college students in 2005 than in 1998, the trend actually began to reverse course during that time: in 2002, just over 31 percent of students had driven under the influence in previous year; in 2005, that figure was 29 percent.
Hingson points out that in 2000, only 17 U.S. states had made it illegal to drive with a blood alcohol content of .08 percent or higher; by 2005, all had adopted that limit. That, he says, may at least partially account for the dip in college students' drinking and driving.
Similarly, state laws that set the legal drinking age at 21 have been credited with reducing alcohol-related road deaths. An "interesting" finding from this study, Hingson notes, is that the increases in heavy episodic drinking, drinking and driving, and alcohol-related deaths were seen among 21- to 24-year-olds, and not 18- to 20-year-olds.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Legalize pot movement gains steam
Violence in Mexico, crumbling budgets build momentum for debate
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31375064/ns/health-addictions/
Associated Press
updated 4:47 p.m. ET, Mon., June 15, 2009
NEW YORK - The savage drug war in Mexico. Crumbling state budgets. Weariness with current drug policy. The election of a president who said, "Yes — I inhaled."
These developments and others are kindling unprecedented optimism among the many Americans who want to see marijuana legalized.
Doing so, they contend to an ever-more-receptive audience, could weaken the Mexican cartels now profiting from U.S. pot sales, save billions in law enforcement costs, and generate billions more in tax revenue from one of the nation's biggest cash crops.
Said a veteran of the movement, Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance: "This is the first time I feel like the wind is at my back and not in my face."
Foes of legalization argue that already-rampant pot use by adolescents would worsen if adults could smoke at will.
Even the most hopeful marijuana activists doubt nationwide decriminalization is imminent, but they see the debate evolving dramatically and anticipate fast-paced change on the state level.
"For the most part, what we've seen over the past 20 years has been incremental," said Norm Stamper, a former Seattle police chief now active with Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. "What we've seen in the past six months is an explosion of activity, fresh thinking, bold statements and penetrating questions."
Some examples:
* Numerous prominent political leaders, including California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and former Mexican presidents, have suggested it is time for open debate on legalization.
* Lawmakers in at least three states are considering joining the 13 states that have legalized pot for medical purposes. Massachusetts voters last fall decided to decriminalize possession of an ounce or less of pot; there are now a dozen states that have taken such steps.
* In Congress, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, and Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., are among several lawmakers contending that marijuana decriminalization should be studied in re-examining what they deem to be failed U.S. drug policy. "Nothing should be off the table," Webb said.
* National polls show close to half of American adults are now open to legalizing pot — a constituency encompassing today's college students and the 60-something baby boomers who popularized the drug in their own youth. In California last month, a statewide Field Poll for the first time found 56 percent of voters supporting legalization.
That poll pleased California Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, a San Francisco Democrat who introduced a bill in February to legalize marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol — taxing sales to adults while barring possession by anyone under 21. Ammiano hopes for a vote by early next year and contends the bill would generate up to $1.3 billion in revenue for his deficit-plagued state.
Ammiano, 67, said he has been heartened by cross-generational and bipartisan support.
"People who initially were very skeptical — as the polls come in, as the budget situation gets worse — are having a second look," he said. "Maybe these issues that have been treated as wedge issues aren't anymore. People know the drug war has failed."
New tone
A new tone on drug reform also has sounded more frequently in Congress.
At a House hearing last month, Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., challenged FBI Director Robert Mueller when Mueller spoke of parents losing their lives to drugs.
"Name me a couple of parents who have lost their lives to marijuana," Cohen said.
"Can't," Mueller replied.
"Exactly. You can't, because that hasn't happened," Cohen said. "Is there some time we're going to see that we ought to prioritize meth, crack, cocaine and heroin, and deal with the drugs that the American culture is really being affected by?"
In a telephone interview, Kucinich noted that both Obama and former President Bill Clinton acknowledged trying marijuana.
"Apparently that didn't stop them from achieving their goals in life," Kucinich said. "We need to come at this from a point of science and research and not from mythologies or fears."
Gil Kerlikowske, chief of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, has not endorsed the idea of an all-options review of drug policy, but he has suggested scrapping the "war on drugs" label and placing more emphasis on treatment and prevention. Attorney General Eric Holder has said federal authorities will no longer raid medical marijuana facilities in California.
Nonetheless, many opponents of pot legalization remain firm in their convictions.
Mixed message
"We're opposed to legalization or decriminalization of marijuana. We think it's the wrong message to send our youth," said Russell Laine, police chief in Algonquin, Ill., and president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
Marijuana — though considered one of the least harmful illegal drugs — consumes a vast amount of time and money on the part of law enforcement, accounting for more than 40 percent of drug arrests nationally even though relatively few pot-only offenders go to prison.
According to estimates by Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron, legalization of marijuana could save the country at least $7.7 billion in law enforcement costs and generate more than $6 billion in revenue if it were taxed like cigarettes and alcohol.
Pot usage is pervasive. The latest federal survey indicates that more than 100 million Americans have tried it at some point and more than 14 million used it in the previous month.
Testifying recently before Congress, Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard said U.S. demand for pot is a key factor in the Mexican drug war.
"The violence that we see in Mexico is fueled 65 percent to 70 percent by the trade in one drug: marijuana," he said. "I've called for at least a rational discussion as to what our country can do to take the profit out of that."
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency remains on record against legalization and medical marijuana, which it contends has no scientific justification.
"Legalization of marijuana, no matter how it begins, will come at the expense of our children and public safety," says a DEA document. "It will create dependency and treatment issues, and open the door to use of other drugs, impaired health, delinquent behavior, and drugged drivers."
The DEA also says marijuana is now at its most potent, in part because of refinements in cultivation.
Even in liberal Vermont, with the nation's highest rates of marijuana usage, many substance-abuse specialists are wary of legalization.
Two bigger wars going on
Annie Ramniceanu, clinical director at Spectrum Youth and Family Services in Burlington, Vt., said her agency deals with scores of youths each year whose social development has been hurt by early and frequent pot smoking.
"They don't deal with anything," she said. "They never learned how to have fun without smoking pot, never learned how to deal with conflict."
Legalization proponents acknowledge that pot use by adolescents is a major problem, but contend that decriminalizing and regulating the drug would improve matters by shifting efforts away from criminal gangs.
"The notion that we have to keep something completely banned for adults to keep it away from kids doesn't hold up," said Bruce Mirken, communications director of the Marijuana Policy Project.
As for Obama, the activists don't expect him to embrace the cause at this point.
"Obama's got two wars, an economic disaster. We have to realize they're not going to put this on the front burner right now," said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of NORML, or the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. "But every measurable metric out there is swinging our way."
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31375064/ns/health-addictions/
Associated Press
updated 4:47 p.m. ET, Mon., June 15, 2009
NEW YORK - The savage drug war in Mexico. Crumbling state budgets. Weariness with current drug policy. The election of a president who said, "Yes — I inhaled."
These developments and others are kindling unprecedented optimism among the many Americans who want to see marijuana legalized.
Doing so, they contend to an ever-more-receptive audience, could weaken the Mexican cartels now profiting from U.S. pot sales, save billions in law enforcement costs, and generate billions more in tax revenue from one of the nation's biggest cash crops.
Said a veteran of the movement, Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance: "This is the first time I feel like the wind is at my back and not in my face."
Foes of legalization argue that already-rampant pot use by adolescents would worsen if adults could smoke at will.
Even the most hopeful marijuana activists doubt nationwide decriminalization is imminent, but they see the debate evolving dramatically and anticipate fast-paced change on the state level.
"For the most part, what we've seen over the past 20 years has been incremental," said Norm Stamper, a former Seattle police chief now active with Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. "What we've seen in the past six months is an explosion of activity, fresh thinking, bold statements and penetrating questions."
Some examples:
* Numerous prominent political leaders, including California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and former Mexican presidents, have suggested it is time for open debate on legalization.
* Lawmakers in at least three states are considering joining the 13 states that have legalized pot for medical purposes. Massachusetts voters last fall decided to decriminalize possession of an ounce or less of pot; there are now a dozen states that have taken such steps.
* In Congress, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, and Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., are among several lawmakers contending that marijuana decriminalization should be studied in re-examining what they deem to be failed U.S. drug policy. "Nothing should be off the table," Webb said.
* National polls show close to half of American adults are now open to legalizing pot — a constituency encompassing today's college students and the 60-something baby boomers who popularized the drug in their own youth. In California last month, a statewide Field Poll for the first time found 56 percent of voters supporting legalization.
That poll pleased California Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, a San Francisco Democrat who introduced a bill in February to legalize marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol — taxing sales to adults while barring possession by anyone under 21. Ammiano hopes for a vote by early next year and contends the bill would generate up to $1.3 billion in revenue for his deficit-plagued state.
Ammiano, 67, said he has been heartened by cross-generational and bipartisan support.
"People who initially were very skeptical — as the polls come in, as the budget situation gets worse — are having a second look," he said. "Maybe these issues that have been treated as wedge issues aren't anymore. People know the drug war has failed."
New tone
A new tone on drug reform also has sounded more frequently in Congress.
At a House hearing last month, Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., challenged FBI Director Robert Mueller when Mueller spoke of parents losing their lives to drugs.
"Name me a couple of parents who have lost their lives to marijuana," Cohen said.
"Can't," Mueller replied.
"Exactly. You can't, because that hasn't happened," Cohen said. "Is there some time we're going to see that we ought to prioritize meth, crack, cocaine and heroin, and deal with the drugs that the American culture is really being affected by?"
In a telephone interview, Kucinich noted that both Obama and former President Bill Clinton acknowledged trying marijuana.
"Apparently that didn't stop them from achieving their goals in life," Kucinich said. "We need to come at this from a point of science and research and not from mythologies or fears."
Gil Kerlikowske, chief of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, has not endorsed the idea of an all-options review of drug policy, but he has suggested scrapping the "war on drugs" label and placing more emphasis on treatment and prevention. Attorney General Eric Holder has said federal authorities will no longer raid medical marijuana facilities in California.
Nonetheless, many opponents of pot legalization remain firm in their convictions.
Mixed message
"We're opposed to legalization or decriminalization of marijuana. We think it's the wrong message to send our youth," said Russell Laine, police chief in Algonquin, Ill., and president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
Marijuana — though considered one of the least harmful illegal drugs — consumes a vast amount of time and money on the part of law enforcement, accounting for more than 40 percent of drug arrests nationally even though relatively few pot-only offenders go to prison.
According to estimates by Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron, legalization of marijuana could save the country at least $7.7 billion in law enforcement costs and generate more than $6 billion in revenue if it were taxed like cigarettes and alcohol.
Pot usage is pervasive. The latest federal survey indicates that more than 100 million Americans have tried it at some point and more than 14 million used it in the previous month.
Testifying recently before Congress, Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard said U.S. demand for pot is a key factor in the Mexican drug war.
"The violence that we see in Mexico is fueled 65 percent to 70 percent by the trade in one drug: marijuana," he said. "I've called for at least a rational discussion as to what our country can do to take the profit out of that."
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency remains on record against legalization and medical marijuana, which it contends has no scientific justification.
"Legalization of marijuana, no matter how it begins, will come at the expense of our children and public safety," says a DEA document. "It will create dependency and treatment issues, and open the door to use of other drugs, impaired health, delinquent behavior, and drugged drivers."
The DEA also says marijuana is now at its most potent, in part because of refinements in cultivation.
Even in liberal Vermont, with the nation's highest rates of marijuana usage, many substance-abuse specialists are wary of legalization.
Two bigger wars going on
Annie Ramniceanu, clinical director at Spectrum Youth and Family Services in Burlington, Vt., said her agency deals with scores of youths each year whose social development has been hurt by early and frequent pot smoking.
"They don't deal with anything," she said. "They never learned how to have fun without smoking pot, never learned how to deal with conflict."
Legalization proponents acknowledge that pot use by adolescents is a major problem, but contend that decriminalizing and regulating the drug would improve matters by shifting efforts away from criminal gangs.
"The notion that we have to keep something completely banned for adults to keep it away from kids doesn't hold up," said Bruce Mirken, communications director of the Marijuana Policy Project.
As for Obama, the activists don't expect him to embrace the cause at this point.
"Obama's got two wars, an economic disaster. We have to realize they're not going to put this on the front burner right now," said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of NORML, or the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. "But every measurable metric out there is swinging our way."
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Preventing Overdose, Saving Lives. Drug Policy Alliance; June 2009.
This report examines the nationwide opioid overdose epidemic and calls for immediate action to address this public health crisis. As “Preventing Overdose, Saving Lives,” details, evidence-based strategies already exist that can reduce overdose risk, protect Good Samaritans and medical professionals, streamline government response systems, and save lives. A national overdose prevention effort is urgently needed, and this report provides a clear way forward for policymakers seeking a public health approach to the overdose emergency.
View the full-screen version or download the PDF.
Announcement: Today is a BIG DAY for Overdose Prevention!
Dear Friends,
Today is such an exciting, important day for all of us who care about overdose prevention! I’m thrilled to announce two significant things:
Today is such an exciting, important day for all of us who care about overdose prevention! I’m thrilled to announce two significant things:
- The Drug Policy Alliance released a landmark report on the national overdose crisis, “Preventing Overdose, Saving Lives.” This report assesses the crisis, examines policy solutions available and how such policies have been successfully implemented across the country. The report recommends a range of solutions, including expanded access to naloxone and “Good Samaritan” immunity laws.
To read or download the report, visit http://www.drugpolicy.org/homepage.cfm - Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards (D-MD) introduced the groundbreaking Drug Overdose Reduction Act of 2009. This bill—the first of its kind—will allocate resources to community groups and public health agencies to implement overdose prevention and education programs, including expanded naloxone distribution.
This is an exciting time to be an overdose prevention supporter. There is fantastic progress on the horizon. I personally invite you to read this terrific report and share the information and ideas with your friends and local legislators.
Drug Policy Alliance remains committed to the fight to save lives from being lost to accidental overdose. Working together, we can all make a difference. The national dialogue about preventing overdose fatalities starts with all of us, right now, today.
-Meghan Ralston
Purple Ribbons for Overdose Prevention, creator
P.S. Thank you, each and every one of you, for so incredibly quickly growing Purple Ribbons for Overdose Prevention to over 5,000 people from around the world. Amazing. Thank you.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Smoking-cessation Research Highlights Importance Of Keeping Teens From Smoking
ScienceDaily (June 7, 2009)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090603103809.htm
Despite the efforts of college students to quit smoking, recent research conducted by Joyce M. Wolburg at Marquette University suggests that an extended trial and error period is necessary. Given that most college students begin smoking in high school, another study by faculty at HEC Montreal and University of Texas at San Antonio provides insights into how graphic cigarette warning labels impact intentions of American and Canadian teens. Both studies appear in the Summer 2009 issue of the Journal of Consumer Affairs.
The Wolburg study reveals that, despite good intentions to quit smoking after college, multiple strategies (and multiple attempts) are typically necessary to be successful at smoking cessation. Despite the best efforts to prevent teens from smoking, some ignore the risks and become smokers. By the time they are college students smokers, many want to quit but need strategies that get results. Programs that incorporate the real stories and experiences of those who failed early on but didn’t give up offer hope to a group of people who may be among the best candidates for quitting. Future research will continue to refine those strategies.
The second study, conducted by Lalla Ilhame Sabbane and Jean-Charles Chebat, both at HEC Montreal, and Tina M. Lowrey at the University of Texas at San Antonio, reveals that graphic cigarette warning labels are most effective for Canadian participants, leading to negative attitudes and lower smoking intentions, but the graphic label was least effective at lowering smoking intentions for US participants.
"These results suggest that American teens were negatively impacted by the graphic label, perhaps because of its novelty," Lowrey said.
Additional research should be conducted to determine whether the positive impact for Canadian teens is, indeed, due to their level of familiarity with the graphics that have been used for the past decade in Canada. If more teens can be convinced not to begin smoking, then fewer college students will need to struggle with the cessation attempts studied by Wolburg.
Journal references:
Wolburg et al. Misguided Optimism Among College Student Smokers: Leveraging Their Quit-Smoking Strategies for Smoking Cessation Campaigns. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 2009; 43 (2): 305 DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2009.01141.x
Sabbane et al. The Effectiveness of Cigarette Warning Label Threats on Nonsmoking Adolescents. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 2009; 43 (2): 332 DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2009.01142.x
Adapted from materials provided by Wiley-Blackwell.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090603103809.htm
Despite the efforts of college students to quit smoking, recent research conducted by Joyce M. Wolburg at Marquette University suggests that an extended trial and error period is necessary. Given that most college students begin smoking in high school, another study by faculty at HEC Montreal and University of Texas at San Antonio provides insights into how graphic cigarette warning labels impact intentions of American and Canadian teens. Both studies appear in the Summer 2009 issue of the Journal of Consumer Affairs.
The Wolburg study reveals that, despite good intentions to quit smoking after college, multiple strategies (and multiple attempts) are typically necessary to be successful at smoking cessation. Despite the best efforts to prevent teens from smoking, some ignore the risks and become smokers. By the time they are college students smokers, many want to quit but need strategies that get results. Programs that incorporate the real stories and experiences of those who failed early on but didn’t give up offer hope to a group of people who may be among the best candidates for quitting. Future research will continue to refine those strategies.
The second study, conducted by Lalla Ilhame Sabbane and Jean-Charles Chebat, both at HEC Montreal, and Tina M. Lowrey at the University of Texas at San Antonio, reveals that graphic cigarette warning labels are most effective for Canadian participants, leading to negative attitudes and lower smoking intentions, but the graphic label was least effective at lowering smoking intentions for US participants.
"These results suggest that American teens were negatively impacted by the graphic label, perhaps because of its novelty," Lowrey said.
Additional research should be conducted to determine whether the positive impact for Canadian teens is, indeed, due to their level of familiarity with the graphics that have been used for the past decade in Canada. If more teens can be convinced not to begin smoking, then fewer college students will need to struggle with the cessation attempts studied by Wolburg.
Journal references:
Wolburg et al. Misguided Optimism Among College Student Smokers: Leveraging Their Quit-Smoking Strategies for Smoking Cessation Campaigns. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 2009; 43 (2): 305 DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2009.01141.x
Sabbane et al. The Effectiveness of Cigarette Warning Label Threats on Nonsmoking Adolescents. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 2009; 43 (2): 332 DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-6606.2009.01142.x
Adapted from materials provided by Wiley-Blackwell.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Former drug addicts find new fixation on triathlons
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/06/05/triathlon.drug.addiction/index.html#cnnSTCText
updated 9:34 a.m. EDT, Fri June 5, 2009
By Madison Park
CNN
(CNN) -- When rehab and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings didn't work for Eddie Freas, he sought another way to kick his 20-year drug and alcohol addiction.
Eddie Freas fights drug addiction by putting all his energy into training for triathlons.
He swam 2.4 miles. He biked 112 miles. He ran 26.2 miles. The Pennsville, New Jersey, resident found relief in triathlons.
"I feel better when I'm working out," said Freas, 33. "It does wonders for the mind. The reason I started running -- it was a switch that went off in my head. I started feeling positive and feeling great about myself."
Freas spent his youth in pursuit of drugs. At the age of 13, he snuck bottles of Amaretto and rum from his mother's liquor cabinet. He also developed a taste for marijuana and cocaine. By his senior year of high school, Freas was kicked off the wrestling and football teams after failing a drug test.
Then in 2007, after a three-day binge, "I came home and was crying," Freas said. "I was so depressed. I turned on the TV." The set was tuned to ESPN, which was airing a story about a former drug addict who competed in triathlons.
The program's subject was Todd Crandell, who had lost a college hockey scholarship because of a drug addiction. After 13 years of using drugs, Crandell started competing in Ironman races and championed finding positive ways to fight addiction through his program called Racing for Recovery.
"Having an athletic background, I was drawn to getting back in shape," Crandell said. "It makes you turn intellectually and spiritually fit. Exercise is essential. It decreases addiction, depression and you use it as part of the recovery."
Freas was entranced by the parallels.
"His whole story seemed like mine," Freas said. "That's why it hit me so much. It was my story but it happened to somebody else. I knew I had to get back into fitness."
He took a bus to Racing for Recovery's office in Sylvania, Ohio. There, Freas said he learned to "stay clean and use other things -- fitness, instead of drugs." On his first day, Freas pushed himself to run 10 miles.
"It killed me," Freas said. "I was just motivated. I was sore for a week and I gradually got into it. As soon as I started including fitness into my everyday lifestyle, it made it so much easier. It kept me busy and because of the physical fitness, it was making me feel better about myself."
He pushed himself to run farther and raced in his first Ironman competition in 2008.
"It's different when you use drugs, you temporarily feel good and afterwards, you feel like doing more drugs," Freas said. "When you go for a long run and do physical fitness, you feel good doing it."
Research in animals and humans show that exercise can be a mild antidepressant.
"It isn't a huge surprise when you consider many positive effects exercise can have with regards to the brain chemistry: dopamine, serotonin, endorphin, epinephrine -- these are all associated with mood altering effects," said Dr. Cedric Bryant, the chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise. "If they're able to get this natural high, through a natural endeavor such as exercise, it allows them to replace the means to achieve that high with a more positive approach."
One study showed that women trying to quit smoking were more successful when they exercised. And the National Institute on Drug Abuse held a conference last year to explore the possible role of physical activity in substance abuse prevention.
"The thought centers around the release of mood-altering brain chemical, mainly endorphins," Bryant said. "It gives you euphoria or what you call 'runner's high.' "
Crandell said some people who battle drug addiction "want something more than sitting in support groups filled with smoke, complaining about drinking."
"I've had some of my naysayers from other programs who say you've taken one addiction and replaced it for another," Crandell said. "I've taken addiction and put into a new focus that includes exercise. Exercise for me is essential to my recovery and well-being."
The purpose of Racing for Recovery is not to turn everyone into an athlete, but to focus on positive pursuits in a person's life.
"Whatever you lost during your addiction, that should be your Ironman, not just running," Crandell said. "If your goal is to become a teacher, let that be your Ironman."
updated 9:34 a.m. EDT, Fri June 5, 2009
By Madison Park
CNN
(CNN) -- When rehab and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings didn't work for Eddie Freas, he sought another way to kick his 20-year drug and alcohol addiction.Eddie Freas fights drug addiction by putting all his energy into training for triathlons.
He swam 2.4 miles. He biked 112 miles. He ran 26.2 miles. The Pennsville, New Jersey, resident found relief in triathlons.
"I feel better when I'm working out," said Freas, 33. "It does wonders for the mind. The reason I started running -- it was a switch that went off in my head. I started feeling positive and feeling great about myself."
Freas spent his youth in pursuit of drugs. At the age of 13, he snuck bottles of Amaretto and rum from his mother's liquor cabinet. He also developed a taste for marijuana and cocaine. By his senior year of high school, Freas was kicked off the wrestling and football teams after failing a drug test.
Then in 2007, after a three-day binge, "I came home and was crying," Freas said. "I was so depressed. I turned on the TV." The set was tuned to ESPN, which was airing a story about a former drug addict who competed in triathlons.
The program's subject was Todd Crandell, who had lost a college hockey scholarship because of a drug addiction. After 13 years of using drugs, Crandell started competing in Ironman races and championed finding positive ways to fight addiction through his program called Racing for Recovery.
"Having an athletic background, I was drawn to getting back in shape," Crandell said. "It makes you turn intellectually and spiritually fit. Exercise is essential. It decreases addiction, depression and you use it as part of the recovery."
Freas was entranced by the parallels.
"His whole story seemed like mine," Freas said. "That's why it hit me so much. It was my story but it happened to somebody else. I knew I had to get back into fitness."
He took a bus to Racing for Recovery's office in Sylvania, Ohio. There, Freas said he learned to "stay clean and use other things -- fitness, instead of drugs." On his first day, Freas pushed himself to run 10 miles.
"It killed me," Freas said. "I was just motivated. I was sore for a week and I gradually got into it. As soon as I started including fitness into my everyday lifestyle, it made it so much easier. It kept me busy and because of the physical fitness, it was making me feel better about myself."
He pushed himself to run farther and raced in his first Ironman competition in 2008.
"It's different when you use drugs, you temporarily feel good and afterwards, you feel like doing more drugs," Freas said. "When you go for a long run and do physical fitness, you feel good doing it."
Research in animals and humans show that exercise can be a mild antidepressant.
"It isn't a huge surprise when you consider many positive effects exercise can have with regards to the brain chemistry: dopamine, serotonin, endorphin, epinephrine -- these are all associated with mood altering effects," said Dr. Cedric Bryant, the chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise. "If they're able to get this natural high, through a natural endeavor such as exercise, it allows them to replace the means to achieve that high with a more positive approach."
One study showed that women trying to quit smoking were more successful when they exercised. And the National Institute on Drug Abuse held a conference last year to explore the possible role of physical activity in substance abuse prevention.
"The thought centers around the release of mood-altering brain chemical, mainly endorphins," Bryant said. "It gives you euphoria or what you call 'runner's high.' "
Crandell said some people who battle drug addiction "want something more than sitting in support groups filled with smoke, complaining about drinking."
"I've had some of my naysayers from other programs who say you've taken one addiction and replaced it for another," Crandell said. "I've taken addiction and put into a new focus that includes exercise. Exercise for me is essential to my recovery and well-being."
The purpose of Racing for Recovery is not to turn everyone into an athlete, but to focus on positive pursuits in a person's life.
"Whatever you lost during your addiction, that should be your Ironman, not just running," Crandell said. "If your goal is to become a teacher, let that be your Ironman."
Friday, May 15, 2009
White House Czar Calls for End to 'War on Drugs'
MAY 14, 2009
Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124225891527617397.html
Kerlikowske Says Analogy Is Counterproductive; Shift Aligns With Administration Preference for Treatment Over Incarceration
By GARY FIELDSWASHINGTON -- The Obama administration's new drug czar says he wants to banish the idea that the U.S. is fighting "a war on drugs," a move that would underscore a shift favoring treatment over incarceration in trying to reduce illicit drug use.
In his first interview since being confirmed to head the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Gil Kerlikowske said Wednesday the bellicose analogy was a barrier to dealing with the nation's drug issues."Regardless of how you try to explain to people it's a 'war on drugs' or a 'war on a product,' people see a war as a war on them," he said. "We're not at war with people in this country."
Mr. Kerlikowske's comments are a signal that the Obama administration is set to follow a more moderate -- and likely more controversial -- stance on the nation's drug problems. Prior administrations talked about pushing treatment and reducing demand while continuing to focus primarily on a tough criminal-justice approach.
The Obama administration is likely to deal with drugs as a matter of public health rather than criminal justice alone, with treatment's role growing relative to incarceration, Mr. Kerlikowske said.
Already, the administration has called for an end to the disparity in how crimes involving crack cocaine and powder cocaine are dealt with. Critics of the law say it unfairly targeted African-American communities, where crack is more prevalent.
The administration also said federal authorities would no longer raid medical-marijuana dispensaries in the 13 states where voters have made medical marijuana legal. Agents had previously done so under federal law, which doesn't provide for any exceptions to its marijuana prohibition.
During the presidential campaign, President Barack Obama also talked about ending the federal ban on funding for needle-exchange programs, which are used to stem the spread of HIV among intravenous-drug users.
The drug czar doesn't have the power to enforce any of these changes himself, but Mr. Kerlikowske plans to work with Congress and other agencies to alter current policies. He said he hasn't yet focused on U.S. policy toward fighting drug-related crime in other countries.
Mr. Kerlikowske was most recently the police chief in Seattle, a city known for experimenting with drug programs. In 2003, voters there passed an initiative making the enforcement of simple marijuana violations a low priority. The city has long had a needle-exchange program and hosts Hempfest, which draws tens of thousands of hemp and marijuana advocates.
Seattle currently is considering setting up a project that would divert drug defendants to treatment programs.
Mr. Kerlikowske said he opposed the city's 2003 initiative on police priorities. His officers, however, say drug enforcement -- especially for pot crimes -- took a back seat, according to Sgt. Richard O'Neill, president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild. One result was an open-air drug market in the downtown business district, Mr. O'Neill said."The average rank-and-file officer is saying, 'He can't control two blocks of Seattle, how is he going to control the nation?' " Mr. O'Neill said.
Sen. Tom Coburn, the lone senator to vote against Mr. Kerlikowske, was concerned about the permissive attitude toward marijuana enforcement, a spokesman for the conservative Oklahoma Republican said.
Others said they are pleased by the way Seattle police balanced the available options. "I think he believes there is a place for using the criminal sanctions to address the drug-abuse problem, but he's more open to giving a hard look to solutions that look at the demand side of the equation," said Alison Holcomb, drug-policy director with the Washington state American Civil Liberties Union.
Mr. Kerlikowske said the issue was one of limited police resources, adding that he doesn't support efforts to legalize drugs. He also said he supports needle-exchange programs, calling them "part of a complete public-health model for dealing with addiction."
Mr. Kerlikowske's career began in St. Petersburg, Fla. He recalled one incident as a Florida undercover officer during the 1970s that spurred his thinking that arrests alone wouldn't fix matters.
"While we were sitting there, the guy we're buying from is smoking pot and his toddler comes over and he blows smoke in the toddler's face," Mr. Kerlikowske said. "You go home at night, and you think of your own kids and your own family and you realize" the depth of the problem.
Since then, he has run four police departments, as well as the Justice Department's Office of Community Policing during the Clinton administration.
Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance, a group that supports legalization of medical marijuana, said he is "cautiously optimistic" about Mr. Kerlikowske. "The analogy we have is this is like turning around an ocean liner," he said. "What's important is the damn thing is beginning to turn."
James Pasco, executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, the nation's largest law-enforcement labor organization, said that while he holds Mr. Kerlikowske in high regard, police officers are wary.
"While I don't necessarily disagree with Gil's focus on treatment and demand reduction, I don't want to see it at the expense of law enforcement. People need to understand that when they violate the law there are consequences."
Write to Gary Fields at gary.fields@wsj.com
Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A3
"New Drug-Treatment Care" - New York Times Letter to the Editor from Howard Josepher
New York Times
Letters to the Editor
May 15, 2009
"New Drug-Treatment Care"
To the Editor:
“Shrinking the Prison Population” (editorial, May 11) rightly points out that parole and probation systems are sending too many drug-addicted and mentally ill offenders back to jail but doesn’t mention that the primary mechanism triggering these sanctions is failed drug tests.
Some recidivism would be addressed by expanding community-based drug treatment and mental health services, but unless we change our understanding of addiction, and its treatment, we will continue to unjustly punish people for their disease or their mental condition.
Many of us who work in this field have come to understand addiction as a relapsing, recurring disease or condition requiring us to address lapses in a way that does not trigger a punitive response. This emerging chronic care approach to drug treatment distinguishes itself from more punitive approaches where anything less than total sobriety is considered a failure.
Howard Josepher
New York, May 11, 2009
The writer is president and chief executive of Exponents, an organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of people affected by drug addiction.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Drinkers zone out — but may not know it
Even a little alcohol can make minds more prone to wander
Reuters
updated 4:23 p.m. ET, Tues., May 12, 2009
NEW YORK - Even a modest amount of alcohol can make the mind prone to wandering, but drinkers may be slow to notice it, a new study suggests.
Researchers found that when they had a group of men read "War and Peace" after either an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink, those who'd imbibed were markedly more prone to zoning out while reading. They were also less likely than their sober counterparts to realize their minds had wandered far from Tolstoy.
While most people may not reach for "War and Peace" after a cocktail, the findings could have implications for behaviors more likely to go hand-in-hand with social drinking, according to the researchers.
Other tasks that require "sustained attention," such as driving a car, could be affected, explained lead researcher Dr. Michael A. Sayette, a professor of psychology at the University of Pittsburgh.
In addition, he told Reuters Health, the alcohol zone-out might hinder a person's ability to resist "impulses and temptations" — a task that often requires a great deal of mental effort. For instance, Sayette noted, studies suggest that when smokers are trying to quit, drinking alcohol makes them more vulnerable to relapse.
For their study, published in the journal Psychological Science, Sayette and his colleagues recruited 55 men who were social drinkers and had them slowly drink either a cocktail or a non-alcoholic beverage. The men then took on the task of reading "War and Peace" from a computer screen for 30 minutes.
The men were told to press a particular key any time they found themselves zoning out as they read. They were also prompted every few minutes with the message, "Were you zoning out?" This allowed the researchers to gauge how often the men's minds had wandered without their realizing it.
Overall, the study found, men in the alcohol group let their minds wander more than twice as often as their completely sober counterparts — spending about 25 percent of their reading time zoned out.
Yet despite having many more chances to catch themselves wandering, men in the alcohol group were actually less likely to do so.
Alcohol also seemed to affect the content of the men's mental distractions, the study found. Those in the alcohol group were more likely than their counterparts to say their zone-outs included thoughts of eating, drinking or smoking -- which, the researchers note, is consistent with studies showing that alcohol may boost cigarette cravings.
Copyright 2009 Reuters.
Reuters
updated 4:23 p.m. ET, Tues., May 12, 2009
NEW YORK - Even a modest amount of alcohol can make the mind prone to wandering, but drinkers may be slow to notice it, a new study suggests.
Researchers found that when they had a group of men read "War and Peace" after either an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink, those who'd imbibed were markedly more prone to zoning out while reading. They were also less likely than their sober counterparts to realize their minds had wandered far from Tolstoy.
While most people may not reach for "War and Peace" after a cocktail, the findings could have implications for behaviors more likely to go hand-in-hand with social drinking, according to the researchers.
Other tasks that require "sustained attention," such as driving a car, could be affected, explained lead researcher Dr. Michael A. Sayette, a professor of psychology at the University of Pittsburgh.
In addition, he told Reuters Health, the alcohol zone-out might hinder a person's ability to resist "impulses and temptations" — a task that often requires a great deal of mental effort. For instance, Sayette noted, studies suggest that when smokers are trying to quit, drinking alcohol makes them more vulnerable to relapse.
For their study, published in the journal Psychological Science, Sayette and his colleagues recruited 55 men who were social drinkers and had them slowly drink either a cocktail or a non-alcoholic beverage. The men then took on the task of reading "War and Peace" from a computer screen for 30 minutes.
The men were told to press a particular key any time they found themselves zoning out as they read. They were also prompted every few minutes with the message, "Were you zoning out?" This allowed the researchers to gauge how often the men's minds had wandered without their realizing it.
Overall, the study found, men in the alcohol group let their minds wander more than twice as often as their completely sober counterparts — spending about 25 percent of their reading time zoned out.
Yet despite having many more chances to catch themselves wandering, men in the alcohol group were actually less likely to do so.
Alcohol also seemed to affect the content of the men's mental distractions, the study found. Those in the alcohol group were more likely than their counterparts to say their zone-outs included thoughts of eating, drinking or smoking -- which, the researchers note, is consistent with studies showing that alcohol may boost cigarette cravings.
Copyright 2009 Reuters.
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