drdĒv
05-10-2007, 05:54 PM
Thursday, May 10, 2007
WASHINGTON - Parents may be unaware that their teenage sons and daughters are getting high on drugs - not bought off the streets - but found in medicine cabinets in their own homes, Julie Bermant, a pediatric nurse practitioner at Springfield Central High School, warned yesterday.
Bermant, the mother of a pre-teen daughter, is one of five mothers who launched a national campaign aimed at educating parents about their teenagers and increasing the awareness to the problem.
Statistics show that one in 10 high school students drink cough medicine to get high and that one in four teenagers knows about the practice.
"I didn't realize the scope of the issue," said Bermant, who works in the Baystate Medical Center's program that brings health clinics into schools and is funded by the state.
"I had no idea that one in 10 kids used cough medicine to get high," she said.
It is not because of an alcohol content that has teens downing bottles of cough syrup, said Virginia A. Cox, spokeswoman for Consumer Healthcare Products Association, which represents drug manufacturers including the makers of cough medicines.
Cough suppressants contain the active ingredient dextromethorphan which, if abused, causes hallucinations and loss of motor control, she said. Side effects to abusing the drug include dizziness, vomiting, rapid heartbeat, blurred vision, slurred speech and loss of physical coordination.
The active ingredient is known as Dex, DXM, Robo, Skittles, Syrup, Triple-C and Tussing. Terms for using dextromethorphan include Robo-ing, Robo-tripping and Skittling.
The practice of drinking cough syrup is not new, but health officials are concerned that the trend appears to be increasing, and they want to beat teenagers at their own game of getting all sorts of information off the Internet to abuse drugs.
"It is not new," Cox said. "What has become a new trend is teenagers going to the medicine cabinet to get high and abusing medicine to get high.
"We, the manufacturers, have started a campaign to build awareness among parents that this type of abuse is happening, and it may be happening in their home. They are aware of other substance abuse, alcohol and marijuana," Cox said. "We know that parents don't know that kids can get high on cough medicine."
Bermant is one of five mothers who launched the Consumer Healthcare Products Association's campaign "To Stop Cough Medicine Abuse" by unveiling an interactive Web site where parents can share information and read about the experiences of other parents. The plan is that by word-of-mouth, more and more parents will become aware of the problem.
The Web site, www.fivemoms.com, also features Bermant's experience in the health field, a video underscoring the health risk involved in abuse cough medicine and testimonials from teens about their drug abuse stories.
Signs of cough medicine abuse include empty cough medicine boxes in teen's room or missing bottles or boxes from medicine cabinets, visiting pro-drug Web site that provide information on how to abuse dextromethorphan, changes in friends, eating habits, physical appearance and sleeping patterns, loss of interest in hobbies or sports, declining grades, hostile or uncooperative attitude.
http://www.masslive.com/metrowest/republic...3120.xml&coll=1 (http://www.masslive.com/metrowest/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-9/117878385883120.xml&coll=1)
WASHINGTON - Parents may be unaware that their teenage sons and daughters are getting high on drugs - not bought off the streets - but found in medicine cabinets in their own homes, Julie Bermant, a pediatric nurse practitioner at Springfield Central High School, warned yesterday.
Bermant, the mother of a pre-teen daughter, is one of five mothers who launched a national campaign aimed at educating parents about their teenagers and increasing the awareness to the problem.
Statistics show that one in 10 high school students drink cough medicine to get high and that one in four teenagers knows about the practice.
"I didn't realize the scope of the issue," said Bermant, who works in the Baystate Medical Center's program that brings health clinics into schools and is funded by the state.
"I had no idea that one in 10 kids used cough medicine to get high," she said.
It is not because of an alcohol content that has teens downing bottles of cough syrup, said Virginia A. Cox, spokeswoman for Consumer Healthcare Products Association, which represents drug manufacturers including the makers of cough medicines.
Cough suppressants contain the active ingredient dextromethorphan which, if abused, causes hallucinations and loss of motor control, she said. Side effects to abusing the drug include dizziness, vomiting, rapid heartbeat, blurred vision, slurred speech and loss of physical coordination.
The active ingredient is known as Dex, DXM, Robo, Skittles, Syrup, Triple-C and Tussing. Terms for using dextromethorphan include Robo-ing, Robo-tripping and Skittling.
The practice of drinking cough syrup is not new, but health officials are concerned that the trend appears to be increasing, and they want to beat teenagers at their own game of getting all sorts of information off the Internet to abuse drugs.
"It is not new," Cox said. "What has become a new trend is teenagers going to the medicine cabinet to get high and abusing medicine to get high.
"We, the manufacturers, have started a campaign to build awareness among parents that this type of abuse is happening, and it may be happening in their home. They are aware of other substance abuse, alcohol and marijuana," Cox said. "We know that parents don't know that kids can get high on cough medicine."
Bermant is one of five mothers who launched the Consumer Healthcare Products Association's campaign "To Stop Cough Medicine Abuse" by unveiling an interactive Web site where parents can share information and read about the experiences of other parents. The plan is that by word-of-mouth, more and more parents will become aware of the problem.
The Web site, www.fivemoms.com, also features Bermant's experience in the health field, a video underscoring the health risk involved in abuse cough medicine and testimonials from teens about their drug abuse stories.
Signs of cough medicine abuse include empty cough medicine boxes in teen's room or missing bottles or boxes from medicine cabinets, visiting pro-drug Web site that provide information on how to abuse dextromethorphan, changes in friends, eating habits, physical appearance and sleeping patterns, loss of interest in hobbies or sports, declining grades, hostile or uncooperative attitude.
http://www.masslive.com/metrowest/republic...3120.xml&coll=1 (http://www.masslive.com/metrowest/republican/index.ssf?/base/news-9/117878385883120.xml&coll=1)