The Worst Drug Addiction Epidemic in U.S. History…

The Worst Drug Addiction Epidemic in U.S. History…

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It’s now a well established fact that the class of drugs known as opioids are at the root of what is by far the worst drug addiction epidemic in U.S. history.

Between the years 2000 and 2015, over 500 thousand Americans died from drug overdoses – the majority of which were caused by opioids.

We also know the crisis was caused by pharmaceutical companies aggressively marketing opioid drugs they knew were unsafe and by physicians prescribing them recklessly for an ever-widening number of physical complaints.

Sadly, Americans now consume substantially more opioid drugs than any other country on earth.

Given these dire facts, researchers were anxious to know when dependency to these drugs actually starts so that they could perhaps rein in the crisis.   Is it after a month of taking the drugs?  Six months?

Nope.

Four days.

In a study just published by the Centers for Disease Control, researchers discovered that the risk of developing an opioid dependency jumps dramatically after just four days of taking the drug. They also discovered that for each additional day of use after the fourth day, the risk of dependency continues to rise dramatically.

The study, which looked at 1.3 million non-cancer patients using opioids, also found that even those prescribed opioids for just a single day were still taking them a year later.

As should be expected, some in the medical community are pushing back, claiming that limits to the number of days patients can be prescribed opioids will result in treatment that is inhumane.

The problem with that argument?

We don’t yet know whether opioids are even effective in the treatment of long-term pain.

Can they help with acute pain? Yes.  Is that reason enough to rely on them so heavily?  Of course not. As history and clinical results show – they are simply too dangerous a class of drugs.

Are you someone living with pain? If you are – learn all you can about the many treatment options that do not rely on these drugs.  There are a number that are both effective and very safe.

If you are someone who is already caught in the web of opioid addiction – there is hope.  The new addiction treatment protocol used by Aware Recovery Care is making a huge difference in people’s lives.  In fact, according to data released by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, those working with Aware are six times more likely to recover from addiction to opioid drugs than are those working with other programs.

If you are struggling with an addiction to these drugs and need help in Connecticut or New Hampshire, the recovery teams at Aware Recovery Care are here to help. To learn more or to talk to one of our Recovery Specialists, visit www.awarerecoverycare.com.