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Photo: Prof. Mina Seinfeld de Carakushansky met with Dr. Carmen Fernandez
Apr 27, 2009 | Full text

Headlines: Prof. Mina Seinfeld de Carakushansky met with Dr. Carmen Fernandez

Prof. Mina Seinfeld de Carakushansky, president of BRAHA (Brazilian Humanitarians in Action), met with Dr. Carmen Fernandez, the General Director of CIJ - Centros de Integracion Juvenil, a Mexican organization of Drug Prevention which is the largest of its kind in Latin America. [...]


Multimedia »


Interesting Information »


  • Marijuana Dispensaries and the Federal Government: Recommendations to the Obama Administration 2009: Part 2
    Jul 21, 2009 | Full text

    http://www.globaldrugpolicy.org/3/2/2.php
     
    Andrea G. Barthwell, M.D.
     
    Michael C. Barnes, Esq.
    DCBA Law & Policy
     
    The Scientific Process
     
    Crude Herbal Cannabis and Unstandardized Cannabis Preparations Do Not Meet the Standards of Modern Medicine.
    The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has recognized that crude herbal cannabis has little future as a true medication:
     
    Although marijuana smoked delivers THC and other cannanbinoids to the body, it also [...]

  • Marijuana Dispensaries and the Federal Government: Recommendations to the Obama Administration 2009: Part 1
    Jul 21, 2009 | Full text

    Cannabis dispensaries are proliferating at a rapid rate — a cause for concern, given the potential for such operations to take advantage of desperate patients and put seriously ill patients at affirmative risk. Local jurisdictions do not have sufficient resources to deal with these abuses. Requiring the DEA unequivocally to take a “hands-off” approach, no matter how egregious the dispensary’s practices, will not serve the best interests of patients.

  • Legalization proposal ignores significant risks
    Apr 30, 2009 | Full text

    Over the past week the issue of legalizing marijuana has been at the forefront of the media. In New York State, Assemblyman Richard N. Gottfried has sponsored a bill that would make marijuana available to individuals who he claims might benefit from its possible therapeutic effects.

Drug Facts »


Did You Know?

Inhalants, a group of chemicals found in home stuff like aerosols and cleaning solvents, are sniffed or huffed by users to get an immediate head rush or high. In addition to messing up your nose, inhalant abuse can cause liver, lung, and kidney problems, brain damage, nervous system damage, and even death.


A - Z of Drugs »

Highlights »

Photo: Playing on compassion
Oct 15, 2008 | Full text
Playing on compassion

The people who speak out the most vociferously in favour of Insite are addicted [...]


Photo: The Battle over the Future of Drug Abuse Prevention
Oct 6, 2008 | Full text
The Battle over the Future of Drug Abuse Prevention

The Swedish experience with drug abuse defines the problems we face [...]


Photo: Legalizing Drugs Would Undo Years of Progress
Sep 19, 2008 | Full text
Legalizing Drugs Would Undo Years of Progress

In a Viewpoints essay that first ran in The Economist, the writer says American drug policies [...]


Photo: Drug-Themed Comic Books Cause Stir In UK
Sep 19, 2008 | Full text
Drug-Themed Comic Books Cause Stir In UK

The Journal continues, “Britain’s Lifeline publishes guides that aim to help drug users [...]


Preventive Cities »

PREVENTIVE CITIES – what they mean and why we need them
Sep 1, 2009 | by BRAHA Editor | Full text
Photo: PREVENTIVE CITIES – what they mean and why we need them

Scientific studies in many countries show us that drug-use damage is not confined solely to drug users, it affects the whole community. Those studies also teach us that this massive damage increases or decreases according to something that seems obvious but is not: the growth or reduction of drug use.


Drug Law »


Photo: Decriminalization of drugs in Portugal – The real facts!
Decriminalization of drugs in Portugal – The real facts!

The national press, and especially the foreign, has referred with outlandish insistence, on the eve of two important elections in Portugal, the “resounding success” of the decriminalization of drugs launched in 2001 by the Socialist Government, neglecting all other European countries and in prejudice of the guidelines of the UN Conventions of which Portugal is a signatory.

Drug Culture »


Photo: Shocking UK Statistics Alcohol and Youth Drug Use
Shocking UK Statistics Alcohol and Youth Drug Use

In a report published in October 2008, the United Kingdom National Audit Office examined the National Health Service response to the rising levels of [...]

Drug News »


Photo: The biggest political party in the Netherlands wants to close coffee shops
The biggest political party in the Netherlands wants to close coffee shops

According to Joldersma, the punishment for producing hard and soft drugs should be the same and there are also plans to introduce legislation which will ban the growing of marijuana.

Scientific News »


Photo: Heavy Marijuana Use May Damage Developing Brain In Teens, Young Adults
Heavy Marijuana Use May Damage Developing Brain In Teens, Young Adults

Adolescents and young adults who are heavy users of marijuana are more likely than non-users to have disrupted brain development [...]

Drug Prevention »


Photo: We Need Harm Prevention, Not Harm Maintance
We Need Harm Prevention, Not Harm Maintance

Harm reduction or as I prefer to call it “harm maintenance,” in the USA, is one of the main projects of the Drug Policy Alliance [...]


Medicine & Health »

  • Liquid Candy - The new addiction is taxing addictions
    Oct 7, 2009 | Full text

    The world’s best business model has always been addiction. Tobacco and alcohol have been around for ages, but new temptations and spinoffs are being marketed all the time: meth, painkillers, energy drinks, you name it.

  • Substance Abuse, Schizophrenia And Risk Of Violence
    Aug 17, 2009 | Full text

    Importantly, the study also finds that the risk of violence from patients with psychoses who also have substance use disorder is no greater than those who have a substance use disorder but who do not have a psychotic illness – in other words, schizophrenia and other psychotic illnesses do not appear to be responsible for any additional risk of violence above the increased risk associated with substance abuse.

  • Marijuana Linked to Aggressive Testicular Cancer
    Feb 16, 2009 | Full text

    Smoking marijuana over an extended period of time appears to greatly boost a young man’s risk for developing a particularly aggressive form of testicular cancer, a new study reveals. [...]

Psychoactive Substances »

  • Prescription Pain Relievers
    Oct 22, 2008 | Full text

    Relief from pain. In some people, prescription pain relievers also cause euphoria or feelings of well being by affecting the brain regions that mediate pleasure. This is why they are abused. Other effects include drowsiness, constipation and slowed breathing. [...]

  • Study shows Ritalin may cause long-term changes in the brain
    Oct 21, 2008 | Full text

    On Sunday researchers at the University of Buffalo reported that Ritalin, used on children diagnosed with ADHD, may cause long-term changes in the brain. Many clinicians regard Ritalin as short-acting but the research with gene expression in an animal model suggests that it has the potential for causing long-lasting changes [...]

  • Brain Receptors for Marijuana/Cannabis
    Oct 20, 2008 | Full text

    The body produces many chemicals and hormones, i.e., histamines, steroids, thyroid hormone, digitalis-like substances, adrenalin, etc, all of which work by attaching to corresponding brain receptors. The key is that these natural substances produced by the body are present in nanogram amounts [...]

Cultural Environment »

  • Time for a Sales Tax on Sinsemilla?
    Mar 16, 2009 | Full text

    As California State Assembly member Tom Ammiano put it: “What if California could raise hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue to preserve vital state services without any tax increase?” [...]

  • Stop The Afghan Drug Trade, Stop Terrorism
    Mar 1, 2009 | Full text

    “The fight against drugs is actually the fight for Afghanistan,” said Afghan President Hamid Karzai when he took office in 2002. Judging by the current situation, Afghanistan is losing. [...]

  • Conventional wisdom strikes out
    Oct 6, 2008 | Full text

    Among the things everybody knows is that Democrats, being the party of the little people, raise money in small contributions, whereas Republicans, being the party of fat cats, raise funds in huge basketfuls from wealthy corporate types. At least, that’s the way the world is usually portrayed by the “Today Show,” The New York Times and the Democratic Party. So it’s of more than passing interest to see [...]