Drug Facts in Media

A new study has definitively shown that regular exposure to THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, during pregnancy has significant impact on placental and fetal development.

New Zealand media reports on chronic pain are focusing on treatments involving opioids and cannabis at the expense of best practice non-drug treatments, researchers have found.

New research discovers a novel potential target for treating drug addiction through 'the hidden stars of the brain.'

Researchers have discovered gender-based differences in response to therapeutic oxytocin treatment in cocaine-addicted individuals with a history of childhood trauma. Oxytocin has been shown previously to function as a potential therapeutic in cases of addiction by reducing cravings. This study found that only men with past trauma had a reduction in cravings after oxytocin. Surprisingly, women with past trauma had a greater response to visual drug cues following oxytocin.

Researchers have discovered that recreational marijuana use affects driving ability even when users are not intoxicated. Cannabis users had more accidents, drove at higher speeds, and drove through more red lights than non-users.

Researchers assessed the time trends in alcohol and marijuana detected in homicide victims and found that the prevalence of marijuana almost doubled, increasing from 22 percent in 2004 to 42 percent in 2016. Alternately, the prevalence of alcohol declined slightly from 40 percent in 2004 to 35 percent in 2016.

A drug that provides the benefits obtained from medicinal cannabis without the 'high' or other side effects may help to unlock a new treatment for Parkinson's disease.

Regular cannabis use could affect the structure and function of the heart.

The United States in the grip of several simultaneously occurring opioid epidemics, rather than just a single crisis. The epidemics came to light after the researchers analyzed county-level data on drug overdose deaths. The study highlights the importance of different policy responses to the epidemics rather than a single set of policies.

New findings reveal the prevalence of cannabis, or marijuana, use in the United States increased from 2005 to 2017 among persons with and without depression and was approximately twice as common among those with depression in 2017.

The composition of suspicious powders that may contain illicit drugs can be analyzed using a quick and simple method called magneto-Archimedes levitation (MagLev), according to a new study. A team of scientists has developed the MagLev method to differentiate common street drugs in dilute mixtures. The method could complement or even replace other portable drug identification techniques, the scientists suggest.

A new study found that methamphetamine use was associated with more than twice the risk for dropping out of treatment for opioid-use disorder.

Young adults who seek enrollment in state medical marijuana programs are often those who already use heavily rather than those with mental or physical issues that could be addressed by the drug.

Daily marijuana use during pregnancy may lead to an increased risk of low birth weight, low resistance to infection, decreased oxygen levels and other negative fetal health outcomes, according to a new study.

A new study found there were more than 67,300 calls to US Poison Control Centers regarding exposures to natural psychoactive substances. The study looked at calls from January 2000 through December 2017, which totaled an average of 3,743 exposures each year, or approximately 10 calls every day.

Portland State University Chemistry Professor Rob Strongin led a research team to study what happens when additives are put into vaping products. Specifically, they studied the chemical reaction that takes place when cannabis is consumed using a vape pen or dab rig. 'What's inhaled is actually different than what's listed in the ingredients,' Strongin said.

Inhaled cannabis reduces self-reported headache severity by 47.3% and migraine severity by 49.6%, according to a recent study. The study also found no evidence that cannabis caused 'overuse headache,' a pitfall of more conventional treatments. The researchers did see patients using larger doses of cannabis over time, indicating they may be developing tolerance to the drug.

Researchers are investigating whether an anti-itch medication that targets a specific part of our nerve cells can make morphine -- which targets a different part--more effective. The findings suggest it can.

For those using illicit opioids to manage their chronic pain, cannabis may be a beneficial -- and a less dangerous -- alternative, according to new research.

Problematic use of marijuana among adolescents and adults increased after legalization of recreational marijuana use, according to a new study from NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.