Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Don’t become your kids’ drug dealers

Roy Benaroch, MD
Meds
September 11, 2014
Share
Tweet
Share

Doing drugs no longer requires a dealer on the street corner.

Between the late 1990′s and 2010 sales of narcotic pain medicines quadrupled in the United States. Hydrocodone use increased by 280%, methadone by 1300%, and oxycodone by 900%. As the consumption of these medicines increased, so did ER visits and deaths from overdose — up by about 500%.

A whole lot of these medicines are not going to medical use. And a lot of the abuse is by our children.

And our kids, they know where to get these medicines. 10% of 8th graders and 45% of 12th graders believe they’re easy to obtain. Pain medicines are kept unsecured and unmonitored in about 75% of homes with teenagers. And over 50% of teens who abused narcotic prescription drugs say they got them from their own friends or family, just by opening a pill bottle, usually in their own homes.

Doctors and parents are both to blame. They get the drugs from us. We need to do a better job protecting our own children.

Doctors need to prescribe carefully, and keep track of refills. Pain has to be treated with more than just narcotics (though narcotics have to be part of the treatment of almost all serious pain.) We need to be careful to look for the early signs of dependence, which can develop into addiction and abuse.

Parents, grandparents, and neighbors need to lock up and keep track of these medications. Pain meds, ADHD meds, any kind of meds — they all can be abused. Set a good example by always using medications as directed.

“Leftovers” should be safely discarded, never hoarded. The best way to discard most medications is in your household trash, mixing the pills or liquid into something unpalatable, like coffee grounds or kitty litter. The FDA advises that some medications are best flushed down the toilet, including most narcotics. Alternatively, some pharmacies and doctors are happy to take back unused medicines to put with medical trash for incineration. (We may not legally be allowed to collect “controlled subtances,” including painkillers and ADHD medications.)

Medications, especially narcotics used for pain relief, are a crucial part of the relief of real suffering for many people. But there’s no doubt that a lot of the narcotics prescribed in the U.S. are being abused. You owe it to your kids — don’t become their drug dealer. Keep those medicines safe.

Roy Benaroch is a pediatrician who blogs at The Pediatric Insider. He is also the author of Solving Health and Behavioral Problems from Birth through Preschool: A Parent’s Guide and A Guide to Getting the Best Health Care for Your Child.

Prev

Implantables and embeddables: Is health care ready?

September 11, 2014 Kevin 0
…
Next

Value-based care: Bad for doctors, bad for patients?

September 11, 2014 Kevin 46
…

Tagged as: Medications, Pediatrics

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Implantables and embeddables: Is health care ready?
Next Post >
Value-based care: Bad for doctors, bad for patients?

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Roy Benaroch, MD

  • Goodbye, Benadryl: It is time for you to retire

    Roy Benaroch, MD
  • Telemedicine overprescribes antibiotics: Are you really receiving the best care over the phone?

    Roy Benaroch, MD
  • No, phones don’t cause horns to grow on skulls

    Roy Benaroch, MD

More in Meds

  • From stigma to science: Rethinking the U.S. drug scheduling system

    Artin Asadipooya
  • How drugmakers manipulate your health from diagnosis to prescription

    Martha Rosenberg
  • The food-drug interaction risks your doctor may be missing

    Frank Jumbe
  • Why retail pharmacies are the future of diverse clinical trials

    Shelli Pavone
  • Why does rifaximin cost 95 percent more in the U.S. than in Asia?

    Jai Kumar, MD, Brian Nohomovich, DO, PhD and Leonid Shamban, DO
  • A world without antidepressants: What could possibly go wrong?

    Tomi Mitchell, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...