Fentanyl abuse is currently the leading cause of death for younger people, and parents and educators must work together to overcome it.
One habit professional said an effective way to combat the illness needs more attention, particularly on school schools: naltrexone.
The “anticraving drugs” is taken everyday to prevent drugs ‘ pleasant results, helping detoxed users from quitting, said Percy Menzies with Assisted Recovery Centers of America.
In a recent phone interview, he claimed that colleges should render their school communities conscious of naltrexone in addition to guidance and behavioral therapy. In addition, naltrexone provides a long-term solution for struggling addicts in recovery.
Another major challenge for college students, he said, is that the drug is medically effective in stopping peaks from alcohol misuse. Some college students older 18 to 22 suffer from substance abuse problem, according to numerous statistics.
Menzies told The College Fix,” The goal is to give students a clear, logical option to avoid opiate and alcohol use and produce this common treatment as also known as naloxone.”
Naloxone, most commonly known as Narcan, is only taken after an opioid overdose. It prevents the body from absorbing the drug. In contrast, naltrexone, an FDA-approved nonaddictive drug, helps students break the cycle of cravings amid self-help groups, counseling, and other treatment options while still enrolled in classes, he said.
Menzies said,” We have this myth that the only way to get well is to go away for 30 days.” ” The majority of the patients can be treated successfully on an outpatient basis,” says Dr. B. J.
Menzies told The Fix,” We think that getting off of smoking should be the same as getting off alcohol and drugs.” ” If you’re smoking, you do n’t go away for 30 days to a program. Why should it apply to both drugs and alcohol?
Menzies is the founder of Assisted Recovery Centers of America, one of Missouri’s largest programs offering behavioral and anti-craving medications. Before founding ARCA, Menzies worked for the pharma division of DuPont, where he helped market naloxone and naltrexone.
Menzies, who left DuPont about 24 years ago to launch “evidence-based outpatient treatment programs,” claimed that he has no current financial interest in any pharmaceutical products or companies.
Menzies said he thinks a medical treatment of substance abuse disorder is the best way to recover from it.
When a patient takes naltrexone, a single pill prevents any opioid from activating the brain for up to 24 hours, giving you a fighting chance not to relapse, he said.
Narcan— which today is widely touted among first responders, parents of kids struggling with addiction, and lawmakers looking to find solutions to the epidemic — has limitations, he said.
” It can only be given after an overdose, it can be given only by a person other than the patient, and it lasts for only 30 to 45 minutes”, Menzies said.
With that, Narcan is not a preventative drug, he said. He continued, citing the importance of behavior modification through counseling as a part of the solution, including alcohol abuse, which has historically been a major issue on college campuses. Narexone alone cannot, he added, end addiction.
While most college campuses educate students on the risks of drinking, some campuses are even starting recovery centers, he said, and students engage in risky drinking and binge drinking as a form of socialization.
Naltrexone can help maintain sobriety for students who have stopped drinking, or at a minimum to cut down on drinking, he said.
Because there is no incentive to consume more drinks, he said,” the person takes a pill before drinking and it helps the person stop at one to two drinks.”
Menzies argued that safe prevention facilities on campuses should be built to educate students about drug abuse and provide information and access to naltrexone.
A slogan Menzies suggested: I hate opioids, I am on naltrexone, Ask me about naltrexone.
He claimed that it is unacceptable for students to die from drug and alcohol poisoning.
” We have options”, Menzies said. ” We have highly effective tools. Why do we hesitate to use them so much? Students do n’t ask for help, instead staying quiet because they have no idea what to do.
Menzies suggested that discussions of naltrexone should be included in orientation sessions for sororities, fraternities, and freshmen on the risks of alcohol and drugs rather than just praising solutions like Narcan and fentanyl test strips.
” The goal”, he said, “is to give young college students an option in case they run into a problem”.
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IMAGE: Addiction Resources
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