They are the most powerful painkillers that family doctors have at their disposal, and as the queue of patients suffering from chronic pain grows longer doctors have been handing them out in greater numbers.

A review by the National Treatment Agency for Substance Abuse, published in June, found a six-fold increase in the prescribing of opioid analgesics by GPs from 228 million items in 1991 to 1.38bn items in 2009.

Brian Iddon, the former chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Drug Misuse, which reported in 2009, warned that the UK faced a similar epidemic to that in North America within a decade. Des Spence, a GP in Glasgow, wrote in the BMJ that the increased prescribing of opioids for chronic pain – other than that caused by cancer – was a "disaster in the making".

The increase is being driven by drug-company marketing that is fuelling patient demand. As populations age in the UK and across Europe, and more succumb to conditions such as arthritis, between 20 and 50 per cent are estimated to suffer from chronic pain.

Chronic pain caused by injury or disease has been poorly treated in the past and specialists acknowledge the growing use of powerful painkillers is a sign of a more compassionate society, prepared to dispense comfort to those in need. But there is a risk, as doses rise and dependence grows, that the dangers outweigh the benefits.

The review, Addiction to Medicines, by the National Treatment Agency for Substance Abuse, found that 3,735 patients receiving treatment for addiction said their primary problem was with prescription medicines, just 2 per cent of the total in drug-treatment services.

But the authors admitted that most of those with such a problem would be likely to seek treatment from their GPs.

Dr Cathy Stannard, a consultant in pain medicine at North Bristol NHS Trust and the author of Opioids in Chronic Pain, said: "There has been a huge increase in prescribing of opioid painkillers and they are being overused. I run a pain clinic where patients are coming in on 10 times the recommended dose. They keep going back to their doctors complaining of pain and the doctors don't know what to do – so they increase the dose.

"With other conditions, if the drug isn't working, doctors stop it and try something else. But it doesn't seem to be common clinical practice for doctors to say, 'if this painkiller isn't working we should stop it'."

Dependence on painkillers in the UK remained a hidden problem because there was "absolutely no data", Dr Stannard said.

The Public Health minister Anne Milton said: "Next month, we will convene a round-table meeting of experts to discuss action needed in light of new evidence from two recent Department of Health commissioned studies on addiction to prescription medicines. We will discuss how healthcare professionals can best address the issue."

The Back to Black singer was found dead at her flat in north London on July 23.
The family statement said: ''Toxicology results returned to the Winehouse family by authorities have confirmed that there were no illegal substances in Amy's system at the time of her death
''Results indicate that alcohol was present but it cannot be determined as yet if it played a role in her death.
''The family would like to thank the police and coroner for their continuing thorough investigations and for keeping them informed throughout the process. They await the outcome of the inquest in October.''
An initial post-mortem examination proved inconclusive and an inquest was opened and adjourned with no cause of death given for the 27-year-old star.

For three years Alberta Health Services [AHS] has been quietly handing out clean crack pipes to drug users on the street through a mobile van program called Safeworks.

But when Vancouver health officials announced a similar initiative a few weeks ago, the Calgary program gained a lot of attention in the media, much of it critical.

Earlier this week, AHS sent an email to Safeworks employees instructing them to stop handing out crack pipes.

Tim Richter, the CEO of the Calgary Homeless Foundation, called it a step backwards.

"I think it is unfortunate. It … feels to me that we are letting some negative publicity stymie good public health," he said. "I think it has been proven that distributing these crack pipes to street involved addicts reduces transmission of everything from tuberculosis to HIV."

In an email to CBC News, AHS defended its decision to end the program.

"Although the initiative was focused on health objectives, there is reasonable potential for a legal challenge with respect to distribution. As such, crackpipes and all related devices are no longer offered through the Safeworks van," the email says.

"In Calgary, the Safeworks program van will continue to offer healthcare services – including referrals, immunizations, testing for communicable diseases and STIs, wound care, and health education – to at-risk individuals."

Steve Walton, a former police officer and drug expert in Calgary, said there is a criminal charge for distributing drug paraphernalia.

"[They] were in the process of seeking out direction from the crown prosecutors office and I think that that's a reasonable way to proceed and I think that it demonstrates they were undergoing due diligence to make sure that their position was a correct one."

However, Walton said providing free crack pipes gives medical professionals a chance to help addicts clean up, and improves public safety if a free hand-out stops even one addict from getting sick by sharing a pipe.

If you're suffering from a hangover after an ill-advised drink after work last night, you may not be pleased to know it is just one of 726 that you will experience.

It's not surprising when you consider the average Briton will down more than 5,800 pints during their adult life as well as glug 8,700 glasses of wine.

A survey of 2,000 people found we drink at least three nights a week and have nine drinks in total - which works out at 468 a year.

However, while over half (57 per cent) sip a beverage in the comfort of their own home, just 17 per cent say they regularly visit the pub.

The resulting bar bill comes to an eye-watering £58,201 over a lifetime.

The poll, by Benenden Healthcare Society, also revealed a fairly widespread dependency on alcohol.

The average Briton starts experimenting with alcohol at the tender age of 14.

Four out of 10 admitted they can’t go longer than a week without having a drink, while 10 per cent said they would struggle to make it through just two days without cracking open a bottle.

 


Meanwhile, one in five polled admitted they can’t have fun out on a night out if they don’t drink.

Andrew Meredith, medical director at Benenden Hospital, said: ‘This survey highlights the dysfunctional relationship many of us have with alcohol.

'The results can be seen in our town centres every weekend, in A&E departments where alcohol related conditions and injuries are a large part of the workload and the increasing numbers of admissions with alcohol related liver disease.’

Lawrence Christensen, of Benenden Healthcare, added: ‘We wish to draw attention to these levels of alcohol consumption, which not only pose a medical risk but a lifestyle risk in terms of financial cost.

'With 726 hangovers and being £58,201 out-of-pocket, "enjoying a drink" regularly takes on a new dimension.’

Father-of-two Dale Burns, 27, was stunned with the 50,000-volt taser three times by police after he began trashing his own apartment in Barrow-in-Furness in England's north-west, The Sun reported.

Police also used capsicum spray in a bid to subdue Mr Burns, who worked as a bouncer, before handcuffing him and arresting him for criminal damage.

He was rushed to hospital after going into cardiac arrest but died three hours later.

Mr Burns' former stepdad, Ian Lund, told the newspaper his stepson had become addicted to steroids and party drug mephedrone, causing him to suffer violent mood swings.

Nobody else was at the apartment at the time of his arrest.

A recent high school graduate dodged a jail sentence for six drug convictions Tuesday when he was represented by an attorney who serves on the school board.

The defense attorney, Carol Chellman, told the sentencing judge that a city police officer is “behind this young man.”

The “young man,” Ryan Ignaciuk, 18, of 44 Pearson St., pleaded guilty to the half-dozen charges alleging drug possession, possession of drugs in a motor vehicle and breach of bail conditions. The convictions are for his possession of marijuana or hashish on three occasions, once when he was on bail for drug charges.

Ignaciuk graduated from PHS in June and the convictions are for possessing pot or hash on Dec. 18, 2010, March 12 and May 26. Through a negotiated plea agreement, a felony count of criminal liability for the conduct of another was reduced to a misdemeanor conviction for drug possession.

Prosecutor Rena DiLando told the court she and Chellman agreed on sentencing terms for five of the charges, but disagreed about how Ignaciuk should be sentenced for breaching bail by getting rearrested. DiLando asked the court to sentence Ignaciuk to the county jail for 90 days, with 30 of them served and the rest suspended.

Ignaciuk was on bail for marijuana possession when he drove a codefendant to a hashish sale, had drugs in his possession and was present during the drug deal, DiLando told the court. After that, according to police, Ignaciuk was arrested for possession of pot while leaving the high school.

A 30-day jail sentence is “fair, reasonable and lenient,” DiLando told the court.

Chellman presented the judge “with several letters” of support which were not filed in Ignaciuk's District Court file. Following the hearing, Chellman declined to comment about who wrote the letters and what they said.

During the court hearing she said, “Everyone at Portsmouth High School, the coaches and a Portsmouth police officer, are all still behind this young man.”

Police Capt. Corey MacDonald said no Portsmouth officer wrote a letter in support of Ignaciuk. Lt. Russell Russo, who also serves as an athletic coach, did tell Chellman, “it breaks my heart whenever a kid I coached goes through our booking room,” according to MacDonald.

Chellman told the court Ignaciuk already served seven days in jail, started counseling at his own expense, would have jail time hanging over his head and needs help, not more time in jail.

“I can't think of a better case for treatment and a worse case for jail,” she said.

Further, if he were sentenced to jail, Ignaciuk would miss the first five days of college and lose his college housing, Chellman said.

Any consequences suffered by Ignaciuk are his “own doing,” DiLando countered.

“Thirty days for these charges are more than reasonable,” said the prosecutor.

The newly convicted teenager stood before Judge Stephen Morrison and made his own plea for leniency. He said while he served the seven days at the Rockingham County House of Corrections he was cell mates with a heroin addict who said his addiction began with pot.

“He lost his wife, his kids and his job,” the teenager told the judge. “I talked to him non-stop and it let me see I don't want that to be me.”

Ignaciuk's mother said her son has a full scholarship to college and worked all summer to pay his fines.

Judge Morrison imposed a series of fines and a year of suspended jail time. He also imposed a deferred one-year jail sentence for the breach of bail conviction.

The judge explained that the suspended and deferred jail time can be imposed if Ignaciuk gets rearrested.

“You mess up again and it's going to be a long time in jail,” the judge warned.

Police soon discovered that where there was smoke, there was marijuana and hashish being made ready for sale at the scene of a small house fire at 16 Springwood Drive.

Edward M. Phipps, 21, who lives in a basement room at the address, has been charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of Class THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, and possession of hashish after police and firefighters were called to the house for a reported fire on Sunday.

Phipps was arraigned Monday in Brockton District Court and posted $1,500 cash bail.

The date of his next court appearance was not available.

Abington Police Sgt. Kevin F. Sullivan, in his incident report, said he responded to a report of a possible house fire at 16 Springwood Drive at 8:51 p.m. Sunday and found several occupants standing on the front lawn when he arrived.

There was also a strong odor of smoke, he said. Abington firefighters used portable fans to ventilate the house.

Abington Fire Chief John Nuttall informed the officer that the fire was confined to a small room in the cellar.

The officer then went down into the cellar and in the room he saw a chair and an area of ceiling above damaged by fire. He then saw a butane lighter on the floor at the origin of the fire.

As he continued looking around the room, Sullivan saw a glass mason jar filled with a green “vegetable-like substance” that appeared to be marijuana.

He also saw small grinders embedded with the same leafy substance and a small glass jar with a “brown vegetable-like substance” that appeared to be hashish.

The officer also saw in plain view a small glass jar that contained hash oil.

Inside the room there were several other items “consistent” with the packaging and distribution of marijuana.

Sullivan also found a “very large” plastic bag filled with marijuana, he said in the report.

Charles Lansiquot, 42, of Bathurst House, White City, was convicted at the Old Bailey today for the murder of drug 'runner' Ibrahim Kledat in Lugard House, Bloemfontein Road, on October 20 last year.

Police were called to the flat at 8.10am after reports of a fire and when they entered the property 15 minutes later they found Mr Kledat, 54, face down on the floor having been stabbed to death.

At midday, crack-addict Lansiquot walked into Shepherd's Bush Police Station to say he had witnessed Mr Kledat's death.

He claimed he was in the flat when two men with balaclavas broke in and stabbed him to death while they held him at gunpoint.

Lansiquot said the attackers forced him to clean the evidence from the flat before making him take off his clothes but officers saw through his story and charged him with the murder three days later.

Detective Inspector Craig Jones, of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command, said: "Lansiquot not only dreamt up an elaborate sequence of events to explain the victim's death, he also put the lives of other residents in the block of flats at risk when setting fire to the premises to cover his tracks.

“Good detective work provided evidence that his account was nothing but lies and resulted in the conviction today."

Lansiquot will be sentenced at the Old Bailey tomorrow.

In the lively drugs debate following the tragic death of Amy Winehouse, it is important to keep a cool head for figures. A Datablog commentary by James Ball and Simon Rogers misunderstood some of the numbers it sought to explain (Drug deaths, misuse and overdose statistics in England, 24 July).

While correct that 206,000 people in England received an intervention for drug addiction at the last count, it was wrong that "around 62,600 completed some form of treatment". Not all who left the system in 2009-10 completed a course of treatment – many were referred to other agencies, sent to prison or dropped out.

That left about 143,400 remaining in the system, meaning they continued to derive real benefit from a course of structured treatment. They commit less crime, pose less of a risk to public health, and are in active therapy. This is an important milestone to recovery, given that four out of five patients are heroin addicts and experts acknowledge it takes several years to beat addiction.

Official statistics report "treatment completed" separately, and the latest number is 23,680, or 38% of all exits. This has doubled in four years and we anticipate the trend will continue. These clients were judged by their clinician to have overcome addiction for the substance for which they entered treatment and, in addition, were not using heroin or crack, the most problematic drugs. The definitions were tightened a few years ago to make clear all completions are "dependence free".

The Datablog claimed "only 8,112 left entirely drug-free. However, a further 15,568 left still using drugs, but defined as 'dependence free'." It was the other way round: the 15,568 were not using any drugs at all, whereas the 8,112 may have been occasional users (but not of heroin, crack, or their drug of dependence if it was different). In practice those few "still using drugs" were no longer addicted to any substance, but the clinician couldn't rule out the possibility they might be occasional users of cannabis or stimulants.

Since treatment exists to tackle dependence, and waiting times are low (90% of clients wait less than three weeks), the number in treatment is a proxy measure of problematic use. As this number has fallen from a peak of 210,000 in 2008-09 and will almost certainly fall further in the next annual statistics, the Datablog assertion that "problem drug use, and the harms that accompany it, remains on the rise" is wrong.

In addition, independent research by Glasgow University confirms the number of heroin and crack addicts in England is falling from an initial aggregate estimate of 330,000, and shortly we will publish figures showing a further and significant fall.

We therefore refute the Datablog claim that "the prognosis for the 320,000 problem drug users, the majority of whom take both heroin and crack, is grim". The number of heroin and crack addicts is falling; treatment is widely available; those in treatment are getting better and pose less harm to society; and more people are overcoming their addiction. This is a positive platform on which the government is building with its strategy to get more of those in treatment into full recovery and off drugs for good.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued a national insurance company, contending the firm violated federal law by refusing to hire a North Carolina man after he disclosed he was participating in a methadone treatment program for a drug addiction.

The suit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Raleigh against United Insurance Co. of America, said EEOC attorney Lynette Barnes.

The complaint argues the firm violated federal disability discrimination law by refusing to hire Craig Burns, 30, who applied for a job in the firm's Raleigh office in December of 2009. The firm made a conditional offer of employment to Burns the following month, depending upon his passing a drug test, the complaint said.

The test showed the presence of methadone in his system, so Burns submitted a letter to the firm from his treatment provider saying he was participating in a supervised methadone treatment program and taking legally prescribed medication as part of the treatment, the complaint said.

Upon receiving this information, United Insurance notified Barnes he was not eligible to be hired and withdrew the employment offer, the complaint said.

Barnes said the action violates the Americans With Disabilities Act, which protects employees and applicants from discrimination based on their disabilities. A recovering drug addict is covered under the act, the attorney said in an interview.

"It is unfortunate that many employers still deny the opportunity for work to people who are ready and able to simply because of inaccurate perceptions of disabilities," said Barnes. "Employers' decisions are often based on irrational fears or stereotypes about individuals with a record of past substance abuse."

The suit seeks back pay, compensation for financial loss, as well as punitive damages to be determined at trial.

A call to United Insurance Co. of America was not immediately returned. The firm sells life, accident and health insurance policies and has about 2,300 employees across the country.

Barnes said Burns declined to comment about the case.

Addiction will no longer be considered a behavior disorder, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) announced Monday. Instead, addicts will be considered to have a chronic brain disorder, and one not necessarily related to problematic substance abuse, Live Science reported.

ASAM has been contemplating updating the definition of addiction for four years, implementing a review process that involved more than 80 experts. The new switch is a result of that work.

Former president of ASAM Michael Miller outlined the new definition.

“At its core, addiction isn’t just a social problem or a moral problem or a criminal problem,” he said. “It’s a brain problem whose behaviors manifest in all these other areas. Many behaviors driven by addiction are real problems and sometimes criminal acts. But the disease is about brains, not drugs. It’s about underlying neurology, not outward actions.”

The updated definition also involves classifying addiction as a primary disease. That means addiction is not the result of other causes, like emotional or psychiatric problems, Live Science explained. Addiction is chronic as well, meaning it must be treated and monitored over a person’s lifetime.

Shannon Flynn, 27, last year publicly confessed to being a sex addict who was prone to violence if her boyfriend did not satisfy her in the bedroom.

Now she has admitted attacking bouncer Bulen Aksoy outside Edinburgh nightspot, Garibaldis on October 28.

The former beautician spat on her victim and kicked him on his body just after midnight Edinburgh Sheriff Court heard.

Mr Aksoy was injured as a result of the attack but declined medical attention.

The sex addict who claims to have slept with 70 men said owning up to her battle with sex and alcohol has helped her turn her life around.

Defence agent James Stewart said Flynn was currently living with her mother.

He said: 'Alcohol was involved in provoking the attack.'

Sheriff Isabella McColl called for background reports and deferred sentence until next month.

Speaking outside court Flynn said the attack on the bouncer was not related to her sex addiction, but her problems with alcohol.

She added: 'I had a sex addiction. It's related to alcohol. The sex addiction only came out when I was drunk. But I've calmed down now.'

 

Flynn said she was now takes tablets three times a week, which make her sick when she has a drink.

She said that speaking out about her addiction has helped her battle her demons.

She said: 'I go to counseling once a week now. And I've not got a boyfriend.


Attack: Sharon Flynn admitted attacking a bouncer outside Edinburgh nightspot, Garibaldis

'When we were together I think he was more the girl and I was more the guy. I'm staying away from men. This year's my year.'

Flynn spoke out about her sex addiction after revelations about Tiger Woods' sex life emerged last year.

She confessed that even after she had sex with ex-partner, banker Jamie Thexton, in the morning, she was still hungry for love when he came home at night.

If she was not satisfied, she became moody, and even violent, and said she demanded sex at least four times a day.

She claimed to have slept with 70 men over the last 10 years, including several one-night stands and casual affairs.

During an interview last year she admitted throwing a mobile phone at one lover after he denied her sex

'I'm not usually violent, but my desire for sex takes over all my senses,'

She said if she was unable to satisfy her sexual desires the withdrawal symptoms were horrendous.

She said: 'Hardly anyone can understand what I am going through on a daily basis. Every hour of every day, all I can think about is sex.'

Elsie Campbell, 59-year-old mother-of-three, woke up one day with an unusual craving. She couldn't stop eating lettuce.
But after her cravings escalated to eating four whole lettuces a day, her husband Jim, who is a research scientist, suspected the addiction was her body signalling something was wrong.
"I woke up one day and suddenly fancied some lettuce," she told the Daily Mail.
"I’d always eaten it in salads, but suddenly, I just couldn’t get enough of it. I could eat three or four whole lettuces a day. I’d eat a whole iceberg lettuce at work, and sit on the bus on the way home thinking about eating more and more."
Mr Campbell looked at what his wife's body could be lacking and found that lettuce contains a nutrient that is often lacking in breast cancer sufferers.
He insisted she see a doctor, and after a small dimple appeared on her breast, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Following the early diagnosis, she had the lump removed and had months of treatment but has now been given the all-clear.
She said: "Strangely, since the lump was removed, I haven’t wanted to eat a single lettuce leaf – the craving’s completely vanished.
"I was so lucky Jim spotted the signs when he did – my lettuce addiction probably saved my life."
The couple have now set up information website questionmyhealth.com to help others who may be suffering from similar health oddities.

When rock giants Kings of Leon abruptly cancelled their tour yesterday millions of fans were left devastated.

But problems within the four-piece’s camp run far deeper than their management is letting on according to an American magazine.

Although the band said that lead singer Caleb Followill was ‘suffering from vocal issues and exhaustion,’ an insider close to the Grammy winners told the magazine he has an alcohol problem.


No more for the road? It has been claimed today Kings of Leon star Caleb Followill's bandmates want him to check into rehab before they tour again

The source told US Weekly: ‘They are trying to get Caleb to go to rehab. It is mostly for alcohol.

‘[That's why] they ended up cancelling the whole tour. He drinks like a fish.’

If the revelations are true it would make the singer’s rant on Friday night when he stormed off stage in Dallas, Texas, claiming it was 'too hot' even more shocking


Charmer: Lucky Caleb recently married to Victoria's Secret model Lily Aldridge

He said: ‘I'm gonna go backstage and I'm gonna vomit, I'm gonna drink a beer,’ before walking off for the night.

Another source close to the group said Caleb, who recently married Victoria's Secret model Lily Aldridge, has been battling a problem for a long time.

He said: ‘It's true. Caleb's drinking is out of control and they are trying to get him into rehab.

‘It's a dark demon he has been fighting for awhile.’

However a representative of the band has denied the accusations,  and reaffirmed claims the singer just needed some rest.

He said: "The reason for the cancellation of the tour is Caleb is under doctor's orders for vocal rest.

‘They feel terrible about cancelling. They look forward to getting back on the road at the end of September.’

However Caleb's bandmate and brother Jared has hinted the problems are bigger than is being officially let on through Twitter.

On Saturday he wrote: ‘There are internal sicknesses and problems that have needed to be addressed.

‘I know you guys aren't stupid. I can't lie. There are problems in our band bigger than not drinking enough Gatorade.’

On Monday, when the tour was cancelled, he added: "Utterly depressed. It's completely out of my hands. Family has to come first.’


Band of brothers: Caleb's family filled band are concerned for the singers well-being and are urging him to seek help according to claims

A third source all the members of the Nashville, Tennessee band, which also features two of Caleb's brothers and a cousin, love to party hard.

He said: ‘They all drink, all the [bandmates]. Anyone in a band usually likes to have a few beers on the road.

‘They have never discussed [Caleb's drinking] as a problem before.’

ANC national spokesman Jackson Mthembu has broken his silence about his son’s devastating drug addiction – and has called on all of South Africa to unite to cut the drug supply to the nation’s young people.

Mthembu spoke out yesterday on Primedia’s Talk Radio 702 and 567 Cape Talk, and told the Cape Argus later: “We used to speak about a ‘lost generation’ ”– a reference to the country’s youth in the wake of the youth’s involvement in the Struggle against apartheid.

“My son is a total wreck, a lost person. If we don’t address this crisis, then what will become of the next generation? What will happen to this country once we are gone?” he asked.

Mthembu said his son had been treated at least six times at addiction centres, and through counselling they had learned that his son had become an addict while in Grade 7, some years after his parents’ divorce. But this had been unknown to Mthembu for at least the next five years.

“The divorce may have been a trigger,” he said.

Over the next few years, household items like television sets and sound systems had begun “disappearing” from his home in Witbank and Mthembu had believed it had been theft.

On once occasion, thousands of rands saved for another of his children’s school fees had been stolen.

“I never suspected my son for a minute,” he said. “I thought it was thieves.”

Similarly, in later years, even items such as blankets and groceries had disappeared from his ex-wife’s home – all, it later transpired, to be sold for drugs.

Mthembu said alarm bells had first rung loudly when his son had failed matric, “despite his being a bright kid”. His son had repeated his final year, but had again “failed dismally”.

In the years since, his son had been admitted to various centres and institutions half a dozen times, but had consistently relapsed.

“He has told me: ‘There is no drug I have not touched.’ ” Mthembu said.

There had been times when he had picked his son up off the city’s streets – “as filthy as a dog”. His son had even arrived in this state of disrepair at ANC headquarters at Luthuli House, seeking his father’s help.

Speaking about solutions to the scourge affecting so many across the country, Mthembu said: “We have to break the supply chain, and to do that we have to stop the drug suppliers.”

He said this effort had to be a collaboration between police, the government and society.

He said parents also needed to ask themselves whether they were “absent”, or “part-time” parents – and needed to ensure they knew what was going on in their children’s lives.

“I am speaking out because we as parents also need help,” he said.

“Maybe there are others who have been through what I have gone through, others who can help.

“This affects all of us, black and white. My son has turned into a vagabond and (his addiction) has threatened to drag us into his terrible world.

“Our young people need our support to tackle this – and so do we, as parents,” he urged.

More than a million people in the UK are estimated to be addicted to prescription drugs known as benzodiazepines. But with withdrawal symptoms similar to those experienced by heroin addicts, those who find themselves addicted are calling for more help and a change in the way the drugs are prescribed.


Josh says he gets sweats and a sense of going mad if he stops taking his prescription drugs
"Being addicted is hellish. When I get up in the morning I need to take my meds so I can function, so I can be a whole person."

Josh, 50, was first prescribed a benzodiazepine, a tranquiliser, as a hyperactive eight-year-old and has been addicted ever since.

He is among the 1.5m people across the UK the All Party Parliamentary Group on Involuntary Tranquilliser Addiction (APPGITA) estimates are addicted to this group of drugs, which are also known as 'benzos'.

Benzos include diazepam and temazepam, and are commonly prescribed by GPs for a range of conditions such as anxiety and insomnia.

They act by enhancing the effect of a brain chemical transmitter called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which depresses or calms the central nervous system, slowing down mental activity to cause relaxation and sedation.

But some experts say that coming off benzos can be harder than stopping taking heroin.

"I estimate about 20-30% (of people) who are on benzos have problems coming off, and about a third have very distressing symptoms," says Professor Malcolm Lader of the Institute of Psychiatry.

"The anxiety comes back or sleeplessness comes back and they feel physically ill.

"Then they get bizarre symptoms.

"Essentially, the brain wakes up and then over-wakes, sounds appear louder, lights appear brighter, and they feel unsteady. It's then they're in a bad withdrawal state."

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

It's an issue that's fallen through the cracks, it's a silent addiction”

Anne Milton
Public health minister for England
Josh has tried to stop taking the drug many times.

"You sweat, hot and cold sweats, you get diarrhoea and a sense of going mad," he says.

"It's horrendous. I've never found a cut-off point where I've said, 'It's better', because the symptoms persist.

"The longest time I've been off benzos was eight weeks.

"I know that sounds like a short time but I can assure you that eight weeks is a really long time to be experiencing those symptoms every day, and they don't get better.

"And without the support, in the end my body said, enough, I must take a tablet, I can bear this no longer."

Lack of services
The support Josh longs for is the kind that is already provided in drug addiction centres for users of heroin and cocaine.

"We didn't wake up and say, 'Lets get addicted'," says Josh.

"We got addicted involuntarily and those who have been brave enough to try and address our addiction and have failed, we're still as stuck in that cycle.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

We're volunteers in all this. Where are the services to help these people?”

Barry Haslam
Tranx addiction support group
"Please help us. Give us some support. Don't abandon us now."

Tranx, a support group based in Oldham, Manchester, run by ex and partially-withdrawn addicts, is unique in bringing together two charities - one with NHS funding - to provide two nurses.

"In Oldham I've seen six suicides and 50 attempted suicides," says Barry Haslam, who runs the support group, and is himself a former benzo addict.

"One weekend there were people wanting to commit suicide on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday night. It's just so sad there's nothing out there.

"We're volunteers in all this. Where are the services to help these people?" he says.

But as Professor Malcolm Lader, of the Institute of Psychiatry says: "The facilities are simply not available."

He adds: "The great scandal is addicts are referred to illegal drug addiction centres, and they're sat next to an illegal drug user who's been injecting heroin, and of course a housewife who's been prescribed by her doctor will be very upset by this."

Anne Milton, England's public health minister, admitted to BBC Radio 4's Face the Facts that there there had been some denial of the problem, but added the Department of Health is trying to "get a grip" of it and provide help for those who want to withdraw.

"I'm taking this very seriously, it's an issue that's fallen through the cracks, it's a silent addiction. Not many people know about it.

"We want to make sure training and awareness is raised so GPs can prescribe well, and then we've got to make sure we've got the right services in place to help them enjoy lives as they should be able to."

Rise in prescriptions
The potential dangers of withdrawing from benzos have long been known.


The number of benzo prescriptions rose by 8% last year
The recommended maximum time benzos should be prescribed is four weeks, according to government guidance.

Yet in England, the number of prescriptions issued last year rose by 8% to almost 11.5 million.

A recent report by the National Addiction Centre, Kings College London, which looked at prescribing in England for the 19 years up to 2009, found over a third of prescriptions during this period were for more than eight weeks.

But the Royal College of General Practitioners defends the prescription of these drugs, saying the way GPs have been dealing with patients in recent years is a "prescribing success" story.

Dr Clare Gerada, the organisation's chair, says that benzodiazepines are effective drugs, adding that most patients can withdraw easily, but that for others, staying on the drug may be a better option.

"Patients that I see, on the whole, do not have problems coming off. Some patients may be on them for life.

"It's not a good thing, but if you balance the risks and benefits then sometimes the benefits of staying on them far outweigh the risks."

The study, by the Family Doctor Association, said prescriptions for antidepressants, sleeping tablets and pain medication were all increasing.

Over half the 197 doctors who took part in the study said they were concerned about the issue and said more studies into the problem were needed.

The study showed 52.7% were "quite or very worried" about prescription drug abuse in their area.

Half of GPs said they knew that prescription drugs may be being sold for money to other addicts.

More than 40% said their practice had "minimal/no support" from addiction services. 

Dr Peter Swinyard, chairman of the FDA, said: "Our simple main concern is the patient - nothing else matters. But sometimes, somewhat misguidedly, we don't do the right thing.

"We need the research to back up and to prove to GPs as well that there's a problem here we need to address."

Ever find yourself logging on to a favourite web site before you realize hours have passed? You’re not alone.

And it’s not easy to quit.

A new study from U.S. group Interspierience finds it is as hard to give up the internet as it is to quit drinking or smoking.

The study found when online users are deprived of the internet, 53 per cent felt upset and 40 per cent felt lonely, even if they were denied access for only a short time.

Internet rehab programs have sprung up to help those who feel anxious when disconnected cope with online withdrawal.

Next year’s manual for the American Psychiatric Association will even include “internet addiction” as a diagnosis.

This was not a great year to be the mother of any of Charlie Sheen's children.

Sheen's most recent ex-wife, Brooke Mueller, will get a few years to plan her "talk" with Bob and Max -- you know, the one where she explains what their friends mean when they ask if dad still "pounds seven gram rocks."

But Denise Richards' little girls are 7 and 6, and they probably wanted to know why their dad was on TV all day every day in March, if they have Adonis DNA and tiger's blood and what a "warlock" is.

Not easy questions for any mother to answer.

Richards found herself conflicted about what to do, and initially handled it differently.

She told the "Today" show, "I was just lying to them about so much, and covering up things and totally lying. It was just getting too confusing that I had to sit down with them."

Eventually, she had to concede.

"[I decided to] have a conversation with them about addiction," she continued. "It's too early (for them to understand). I told them enough for them to make sense of things that were going on."

She says she also found a book written to explain addiction to children and read it to them.

Interestingly, Richards released a memoir on Tuesday, "The Real Girl Next Door," which speaks rather nicely of her ex. At least, it maintains that the beginning of their relationship was magical and she still cares about him.

Across the region, 2,512 people are on prescriptions for methadone and other drugs designed to help people beat opiate dependency.

The estimated annual cost of supplying the drugs and running the treatment plans – which often have lengthy waiting lists – runs to nearly £4m.

Abertawe Bro Morgannwg health board, covering Bridgend, has the highest number of patients on opiate replacements in Wales, with 903.


In Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, where there is understood to be a four-week waiting list for treatment, 818 people are being treated at a potential annual cost of more than £2m, including all associated expenses.

Steve Lyons, project coordinator at Inroads Street Drugs Project in Cardiff, said methadone treatment was cost-effective and overall led to huge savings in spending by cutting crime.

He said: “Heroin use is widespread and it’s not just Cardiff. It’s the same sort of scenario in most communities in the UK today.”

Mr Lyons said methadone was “just a small part” of the treatment of heroin addicts.

He told the Echo: “I’ve worked in the field for 25 years and methadone is potentially a life-saving treatment for a lot of people.

“It does away with general issues about offending behaviour and means people can use something that is not street drugs but something which is a treatment, designed for the individual, with individual needs at the core.”

There are 221 registered methadone users in the Aneurin Bevan health board area, which covers Caerphilly, and a further 570 in the Cwm Taf catchment, including Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf.

Janet Roberts, manager of the Wales Drug and Alcohol Network, said: “Based on the people we speak to, there is quite a high demand to get on these programmes, especially in some of the highly-populated areas where there is probably a waiting list.

“This is probably difficult for [heroin users] if they have reached the stage where they are ready to make some changes.”

An Abertawe Bro Morgannwg spokeswoman said there was currently a 32-week waiting list for drug dependence treatment in Bridgend.

She said: “For the past 20 years, the majority of the referrals received by specialised prescribing services were for heroin or other drug addictions.

“However, in the past four years, the trend has changed and now 75% of the referrals are for alcohol-related dependencies.

“Once a referral is received, a patient is usually seen within 10 days for assessment and a basic care plan is put together.

“Substitute prescribing in the treatment of opiate dependencies is often necessary for prolonged periods.”

Cardiff and Vale deputy chief executive Paul Hollard said: “The board prescribes methadone against very strict clinical guidelines which determine which clients will benefit from this medication and under what circumstances it should be dispensed.

“Research has demonstrated that the prescription of methadone and other substitute medication has a significant positive effect on improved health and well-being, reduction in crime and anti-social behaviour, and supports clients to continue to play an important role within the family and sustain their contribution within education and employment.”

Latest research from the Home Office suggests an estimated £2.50 was saved elsewhere for every £1 spent in replacement drug treatment, and it was cost-beneficial in 80% of cases.

The figures on methadone users were released under the Freedom of Information Act.

Amy Winehouse's father, Mitch, has spoken out about his plans to set up the Amy Winehouse Foundation, in order to help people with problems with addiction.

Speaking at his daughter's funeral in London yesterday (July 26), Mitch explained that access to NHS affiliated rehab takes two years.

"If you cannot afford a private rehabilitation clinic, there is a two-year waiting list for help," he said.

MP Keith Vaz followed up the comment by offering his support to the foundation, as Mitch helped a home affairs select committee with information about cocaine and addiction in 2009, during a drugs inquiry. He said: "I am very happy to help Mitch in any way I can with his important campaign to help rehabilitate those most vulnerable in our society," reports BBC News.

Despite Mitch's comments, he said that the singer had overcome her addition to drugs and was "trying hard" to conquer her problems with alcohol, saying that she had "just completed three weeks of abstinence" and that she was keen to get sober, telling him: "Dad I've had enough, I can't stand the look on your and the family's faces any more."

Mitch talked about when he was told his daughter had died on Saturday (July 23):
I was in New York with my cousin Michael when I heard and straight away I said I wanted an Amy Winehouse Foundation, something to help the things she loved – children, horses, but also to help those struggling with substance abuse.
The inquest into Winehouse's death has been adjourned until October 26. No cause of death has been given and results of toxicology tests could take anything from two to four weeks.

The death of Amy Winehouse has once again highlighted the danger of drink and drug addiction. Mitch and Janis Winehouse's battles to cure their daughter of her addiction are shared by thousands of parents up and down the country.

Many parents reading of the death at the weekend of singer Amy Winehouse will have thought to themselves: "What would I do if my son or daughter was an addict?"

Some people, like Tom Methven, know only too well what they would do and whether it would work.

His son, Jason, 29, is an alcoholic.

Mr Methven, from Surrey, said: "When I heard about Amy Winehouse I thought, 'It's finally got her'.

'Slave to the addiction'
"Drugs and alcohol damage a receptor in the brain. You become a slave. Why else would she have kept taking it? She was a very similar age to my son."

Hannah Meredith was 17 when she died of a heroin overdose in October 2009.


Teenager Hannah Meredith wrote a "letter to heroin" a month before her death in 2009
A month before she died, she wrote a "letter to heroin". Her aunt, Lisa Moore, read out excerpts from the letter on BBC Radio Five Live last year.

Ms Moore told the BBC: "It takes years to recover but it only takes seconds to relapse."

She said: "We heard about Amy Winehouse's death on Saturday and it brought back feelings of what happened to Hannah. It was two years ago, but it's still raw."

Ms Moore said: "I've read stuff on Facebook about Amy like 'one less junkie', and it is so ignorant and insensitive. Families feel helpless, they feel like failures, they think, 'How can we fix it when that person is choosing to do it'?"

"What people don't realise is that no matter how badly someone is on drugs nothing ever prepares you for the knock on the door or the phone call, nothing prepares you for their death."

She said Hannah had been given an ecstasy tablet on her 14th birthday, "liked the feeling" and by the age of 15 was on heroin.

Two years later she was "clean" but then had her fatal relapse.

"She had been in recovery for four months and was sure she was in control of heroin. She might have thought she would try it one more time," said Ms Moore.

Both Ms Moore and Mr Methven said there was a lot of ignorance about substance abuse.

Tough love
They said many people thought they could just lock their son or daughter in a room and make them go "cold turkey" - completely denying them drink or drugs - to exorcise their demons.

The cold turkey scene has cropped up in films like Trainspotting and soap operas like EastEnders, where a parent uses so-called "tough love".

But Mr Methven says the reality is that it very rarely works.

He has tried almost everything to rescue his son from his alcoholism:

Rehab - two sessions in a £500-a-day private clinic.
Medication - Antabuse, or disulfiram, a tablet which makes the taker sick if he or she drinks alcohol.
Sectioning - a week in a mental health unit.
Psychiatry - several sessions with a top specialist.

Mitch and Janis Winehouse had to deal with their daughter's addiction amid the public's gaze
At his worst point Jason, who weighs 19 stone (120kg), was drinking huge quantities of vodka and would become violent and aggressive.

"One time he smashed a piece of glass at his girlfriend's house and cut an artery. I had to follow the trail of blood to find him. They broke up about a month later. She couldn't cope with it," said Mr Methven.

He said: "Another time he was self-harming. He burned himself with an iron and was then banging his head against a table.

"He tried to cut his wrists once with a knife. The police were called and he was taken to hospital.

"He was so drunk he was fighting with the security guards and he got one of them, a big guy, on the floor. Eventually he was given a very strong tranquilliser."

Mr Methven said his son, who is an only child, had a normal childhood and was very intelligent.

He went to university and got a first with honours before embarking on a PhD.

Out of control
But his drinking, which had started as a teenager, got out of control and he never completed it.

Jason is now unemployed and gets £20 a week in Disability Living Allowance.

"That is supposed to be given to his mum for laundry and shopping but it is in many respects money for alcohol," said his father.

Mr Methven said: "He was about 24 when we realised he had a real problem. We went to the doctor and got a referral.

"We wanted to get him into rehab but it took so long on the NHS that we panicked and went private."

Jason has been into rehab twice.



There is no alcohol in the house now. I used to have some good quality wine. It was very well hid. I was going to give it to a friend as a present but it was gone. He had drunk it”

John Methven
Father of an alcoholic
On one occasion Mr Methven spent £18,000 and he said: "Before the cheque was even dry he was back on the drink."

He said: "There is no alcohol in the house now. I used to have some good-quality wine. It was very well hid. I was going to give it to a friend as a present but it was gone. He had drunk it."

Mr Methven said his son had stolen money from him and his wife and had also taken DVDs and other property and sold it at cash converter shops to provide drinking money.

'Secretive' drinking
"It's always secretive drinking. He doesn't go to the pub. He just drinks in his room. He hid it in rucksacks or under the hedge in the garden," he said.

Jason has now joined Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and has a sponsor, but he is still drinking.

"He is trying to take it down. Yesterday he had six cans (of beer) and today it's four. He is still drinking but it's far less," said Mr Methven.

But he said the crucial thing was that Jason has now said he wants to stop.


Nicholas Mills hanged himself after a drug-fuelled argument but his twin brother survived and is now clean
"If they are going to get well they have got to go to AA or NA (Narcotics Anonymous). The individual is powerless, but collectively they can do it. It's a spiritual thing. AA is about giving it up altogether.

"Once you are an alcoholic or an addict one is too many and 100 is not enough."

Asked how he feels about his son now, he said: "It's not so much shame as disappointment about what he could have done with his life."

While Mr Methven can understand the addiction, Elizabeth Burton-Phillips knows the heartbreak of what she calls the "double whammy" of addiction and death.

Her twin sons, Nicholas and Simon, both became heroin addicts.

Nicholas died in 2004 but Simon survived and has kicked the habit.

Mrs Burton-Phillips, from Buckinghamshire, has since set up a charity, DrugFam, and she told the BBC: "We are trying to help families who are struggling to cope with the addiction of their loved ones, like Amy and my son."

She said she met Amy's mother in 2008 and added: "I have been in text contact with her since Amy passed and they are obviously going to be terribly badly affected."

Mrs Burton-Phillips travelled to Llanelli on Monday to give her moral support to the Hannah Meredith Foundation, which launched a support group for the families of those in the Carmarthenshire area coping with substance abuse.

Anyone wanting to contact the foundation should do so through their Facebook page.

The details of Amy Winehouse's final hours emerged today, with claims that she bought a cocktail of narcotics including cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine.

Although the exact cause of death has not yet been released by police, Sunday tabloids have claimed she was seen buying drugs from a dealer in Camden just after 10:30pm on Friday.

A source told The People that she was seen buying substances, believed to be cocaine, heroin, ecstasy and ketamine leading up to the hours before her death.

She is also thought to have been drinking heavily, which may have been the trigger of a lethal concoction of drugs and alcohol.

Her father Mitch once said that he was so concerned about his daughter he wrote a eulogy he expected to deliver at her funeral.

With her huge signature beehive hairdo, smoky eye make-up and extraordinary voice, Winehouse stood out from the crowd.

Her vocal style as well as her vulnerability led to comparisons with greats such as Billie Holiday.

Winehouse’s distinctive style led to the tattooed singer being hailed a style icon, becoming the muse for Karl Lagerfeld and once being voted the “ultimate heroine” among UK youngsters.

In February 2008, Winehouse was on a career high when she won five prizes at the Grammy awards, despite being absent from the ceremony.

The clutch of awards made her the first British female artist to win five Grammys in one night.

But with the highs came the lows and trouble was never far away from Winehouse, who had a talent for pouring her raw emotions into her work.

She cancelled a tour this year after a disastrous appearance in Serbia when she was booed by the angry crowd.

Despite her wild girl image Amy Jade Winehouse was from a stage school background.

Born on September 14, 1983, she attended the Sylvia Young Theatre School, where classmates included Billie Piper.

Brought up with a love for jazz, she grew up in a Jewish household in North Finchley, north London, with father Mitch and mother Janis, who were later divorced.

Winehouse claimed she was asked to leave the Sylvia Young Theatre School and from there she went to a private school in Mill Hill.

Intent on a music career after leaving school, she performed in pubs while working as a fledgling journalist for a showbiz news agency.

She was discovered while performing with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra and signed to a division of 19 Management, the media empire of Pop Idol creator Simon Fuller.

Frank was a jazz-tinged debut which showcased her powerful voice.

The double-platinum selling album was nominated for two Brits and the Mercury Music Prize, and won her an Ivor Novello songwriting award.

But it was the soulful and honest Back To Black which propelled Winehouse into superstardom.

It entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number seven, making Winehouse the highest-debuting British female artist in the history of the US album chart.

With Back To Black, Winehouse moved away from jazz and took inspiration from 60s girl groups such as The Supremes.

She was crowned Queen of the Brits after picking up the coveted gong for best solo female.

Winehouse may have been a huge hit with the listeners – but she hasn’t always seemed to be her own greatest fan.

Winehouse should have been enjoying the fruits of her success following her second album.

But instead the singer, whose tiny frame looked increasingly skeletal, spoke about her problems with self-harm, bulimia and alcohol abuse.

Rehab, the first single from Back To Black, is about her refusal to seek help at a clinic for people with alcohol problems.

After winning a Vodafone Live Music Award, Winehouse sent the landlord of her local pub in her beloved Camden, the Hawley Arms, to collect the gong.

And the outspoken star guaranteed herself acres of publicity by criticising her rivals, from Madonna (“an old lady”) to Dido (“bland”) and Katie Melua (“s***”).

Married life for Winehouse did not get off to a great start, with husband Blake Fielder-Civil – whom she married in 2007 – spending time in jail.

Fielder-Civil had pleaded guilty in 2008 to inflicting grievous bodily harm on pub landlord James King, 36, and also to perverting the course of justice.

Throughout the court proceedings, Winehouse showed her loyalty to her husband by attending hearings and mouthing words of support.

Paparazzi pictures of Winehouse’s increasingly bizarre nocturnal activities shocked the nation and provided regular tabloid fodder.

The star has been pictured walking through central London in blood-soaked shoes, with a bruised neck and bandaged arms. Fielder-Civil was seen with blood streaming out of cuts on his face.

Winehouse claimed later she attacked Fielder-Civil after he caught her self-harming before attempting to take drugs with a prostitute.

In August 2007, Winehouse was admitted to a London hospital following an overdose. The star was said to have come close to death after taking cocaine, ecstasy, ketamine and marijuana.

The singer pulled out of a string of tour dates, then quit rehab yet again, to the dismay of her parents. In June 2008 Winehouse was taken to hospital after a fainting episode.

There were hopes that she could be returning to full health after she spent eight months on the Caribbean island of St Lucia. Her mother Janis said in 2009 that her daughter had “done so well getting healthy again”.

She had been granted a quickie divorce from Fielder-Civil on the grounds of her adultery the same year. Mrs Winehouse expressed her fears at the time that the pair could be reconciled, saying: “We all hope it’s not true they’re back in touch, but Amy is like a child.

“She says, ’I love Blake, I love him’, and it’s hard to talk her out of it.”

Fielder-Civil is currently in jail, having been sentenced to 32 months in prison in June for burglary and possession of an imitation firearm.

As well as critical plaudits, Winehouse’s lyrics even merited academic study.

In 2008, students at Cambridge University were asked to analyse her lyrics in a final-year English exam.

Undergraduates were invited to compare Winehouse’s songwriting to ballads by Bob Dylan and Holiday, as well as the more scholarly Sir Walter Raleigh in an examination question.

One critic said her song Love Is A Losing Game evoked “images of fag smoke, empty vodka bottles and smudged mascara” and was “perhaps the most heartbreaking thing she’s ever recorded”.

Gambling has proliferated in America in recent years, and it's not about to stop. The Illinois Legislature has approved a bill authorizing more casinos as well as slot machines at racetracks. Ohio has four new casinos in the pipeline. Maine voters approved a new one last year. Massachusetts lawmakers plan to consider a gambling expansion this fall.

To critics, this spells trouble: more gambling, more problem gamblers and more of the calamitous social ills that follow. But the fear stems from the assumption that demand inexorably rises to match supply — that each new gambling site increases the number of people who gamble and the amount of money they bet. That, we have learned, is not quite how human beings respond.




The latest news comes from Howard Shaffer, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. His recent article, co-written by Harvard colleague Ryan Martin in the Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, offers reassuring evidence.

"The current available evidence," they found, "suggests that the rate of PG (pathological gambling) has remained relatively stable during the past 35 years despite an unprecedented increase in opportunities and access to gambling."

I called Shaffer, one of the country's leading experts on this and other addictions, to ask what citizens should expect when gambling expands in their states. He does not sound alarmed.

"When gambling becomes newly available in an area, you'll see some increase in gambling," he says. "Some people who would not have gambled become willing to try." That's especially true in places that (unlike Illinois) had no legal gambling before. But the effect, contrary to myth, soon subsides.

"I was so wrong about this when I started this work," Shaffer admits. He expected it would take generations for people to adjust their behavior in response to greater availability. In fact, "people gambling on the Internet change from gambling more to less in weeks. We never would have predicted that."

Online access is a good test of the alleged hazards of allowing people to wager on games of chance. It is said to be particularly dangerous because it is anonymous, immune to supervision and accessible anytime, anywhere. "With virtual casinos entering the homes of millions every day, the chances for addiction are only going to increase," warns CRC Health Group, which offers treatment for problem gambling.

"We expected it to be the Wild West of gambling," Shaffer recalls.

"People could sit in front of a computer with a credit card and just go."

Online gambling is illegal in the United States. But in the countries where it's allowed, most people take a pass. "People discover it isn't that much fun to gamble alone," he notes, except for those with social problems. "The extent of Internet gambling for most is astoundingly moderate."

Another surprise for Shaffer was that in most cases, problem gambling is not "a relentless progressive disorder." If you smoke a few cigarettes, you'll probably soon be smoking every day. If you shoot heroin a couple of times, pretty soon you won't be able to live without it. But for the vast majority of those who gamble, control comes easy.

"It's a problem people react to," Shaffer reports. In fact, he says, "Problem gamblers are more likely to get better than worse."

Some problem gamblers, of course, do get worse, with harmful and even disastrous consequences for themselves and those around them. But Shaffer suggests that excessive gambling is not a highly contagious malady that can infect anyone who enters a casino. It's usually a symptom of some underlying disorder.

In a case of life imitating art, actor David Duchovny, who plays a sex-addicted writer on the hit Showtime series “Californication,” entered rehab for real-life sex addiction three years ago.

“I have voluntarily entered a facility for the treatment of sex addiction,” Duchovny said in a statement released at the time. “I ask for respect and privacy for my wife and children as we deal with this situation as a family.” 

Although wife Tea Leoni stood by his side then, earlier this month the couple announced they were separating for the second time in their 14-year marriage.


But Duchovny is not alone.

Russell Brand’s obsession with sex was once so raging that he hired “a team of experts” to seek out women to fulfill his insatiable need for random sex, before heading to rehab. 

In his recent memoir “Stories I Only Tell My Friends,” teen heartthrob Rob Lowe, who entered rehab in 1998 for drug and sex addiction, recalled the scandal that erupted after a videotape of him having sex with two girls (one of them underage) leaked, and admitted at one point he couldn’t go without sex for more than 30 hours. 

“AKA” director/writer Duncan Roy turned to Dr. Drew’s “Celebrity Rehab” to treat his obsession with straight men and addiction to Internet porn.

Addicted in Hollywood: Scary Lengths Stars Go to Stay Scary Skinny.

And not all sex addicts are guys.

Former beauty queen Kari Ann Peniche, who became a household name after appearing in a sex tape with Eric Dane and Rebecca Gayheart, entered Dr. Drew’s reality television treatment program to quash her addiction to love and sex. Model Amber Smith sought help for "stalking" men like her father. And author Kerry Cohan even divulged details of her litany of hookups and carnal cravings in the 2008 book “Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity.”

So what makes someone a a sex addict?

A sex addict has an intense drive and preoccupation with sex, is unable to sustain healthy personal relationships, attempts to justify or blame others for their behavior, and engages in risk-taking – despite the dangerous and negative consequences, they just can’t stop. Sex addiction can also evolve to involve illegal activities, including picking up prostitutes, exhibitionism, peeping and sexual assault. 

And experts say Hollywood is a sex addict magnet.

“The Hollywood and celebrity circuit is filled with narcissism. Most people are very self-indulgent and once the thrill of public accolades gets dull, they need to stay in the spotlight,” explained addiction specialist and author of “Younger (Sexier) You,” Dr. Eric Braverman. “Drama kings and queens tend to need attention, which dries up in their brain. By having sex with many people the thrill of still being in the spotlight is met. However, this is not a meaningful thrill; it is very phony and only lasts temporarily, so they need the next partner.”

What’s the difference between an addict and someone who just has a lot of sex?

“Not every man or woman who cheats on their partner is a sex addict, but there is both behavioral evidence and neurochemistry to support the idea that compulsive sexual behavior can be a form of addiction,” CEO of the star-studded Malibu Rehab Facility Promises, Dr. David Sack, told FOX411’s Pop Tarts. “Compulsive sexual behaviors seem to be regulated by the brain chemical dopamine which also governs our reward experience. People that we would call sexual addicts exhibit the same kind of craving, compulsion and withdrawal that we see with addicting drugs.”

The clinical diagnosis of a sex addict is still a controversial one, however. The term is not recognized in the Psychiatric Diagnosis Manual, and last year the American Psychiatric Association announced that their upcoming 2013 manual will include a "behavioral addictions" category that includes gambling, but not sex. So is it possible that copping to so-called sex addiction is simply an excuse for one to justify their philandering?

"Sex addiction is one of those pop psychology diagnoses that has scant scientific support," Scott Lilienfeld, Associate Professor of Psychology at Emory University and co-author of "50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology," told LiveScience. “It's not at all clear whether the term explains, rather than merely describes, people's sexual behaviors. When we hear that someone has a 'diagnosis' of sex addiction, we haven't really learned anything new. We've merely applied a label summarizing what we already knew—basically that the person has serious trouble containing his or her sexual impulses."

Whether it is defined as a clinical addiction or an inability to contain sexual impulses, its consequences can be dire.

“Recently I spoke with a wife who found out her husband was bisexual because of highly promiscuous activities with men. She was coping with it through individual and couples therapy until she found out that her husband was having unprotected sex with gay men,” Sacks said. “He subsequently became HIV positive and she was about to be tested. The betrayal she felt first because he lied to her, then because his behavior became more extreme and finally because he put her health and life in jeopardy was heartbreaking.” 

Furthermore, Jaffe said he has treated sex addicts who literally masturbate until they bleed, have had multiple extramarital partners, and despite losing several marriages over it, still find themselves compulsively drawn to online porn and anonymous sex and dating websites.

“Some of the most difficult stories I’ve heard involve individuals who were abused at an early age and have learned to associate that abuse with love/intimacy especially in young children,” Angeles-based addiction specialist Dr. Adi Jaffe said. “That sort of early learning can lead to pretty distorted behavior later in life, and that can then get people locked away for life.”

So how does one spot a sex addict?

“The signs are often difficult for someone from the outside to perceive, especially because of just how taboo sex issues are in society. You’re not going to know if someone is spending eight hours a day masturbating to porn unless you live with them, and addicts are good at hiding it,” Jaffe explained. “Signs start to become obvious when the addiction goes into full-swing, at this point people are losing sleep, missing out on important commitments, and if their sexual acting out involves illegal activities, then they might start getting into legal trouble.”

The Internet, phone technology, and social networking have made sexual compulsion a whole lot easier to act out. According to Sacks, people are now exposed to graphic sexual imagery at a much younger age, and pornography is available at the touch of a keystroke.

“Websites that encourage hookups and cheating have proliferated," Sacks said. "And now geolocator apps that run off of your cell phone GPS signal allow you to find people to hook up near where you are, any time, day or night.”

The inmates shiver at the medical screening station, sweat coating clammy skin. Then the dizziness and nausea hits.

That's when nurse Jessica McCray knows the person just booked into Orient Road Jail is in the early stages of withdrawal from prescription painkillers.

"Usually, they've taken it in the last eight hours," McCray said. "A lot of them are concerned about withdrawal. They're going to be hurting."

Jail cells are no barriers against the prescription pill problem plaguing society.

Thirty-one percent of inmates in Hillsborough County jails said they took pills within a week of their latest arrest. Fifty-three percent of inmates said oxycodone, Oxycontin or Roxicodone was their drug of choice.

The data is based on an informal survey of 438 inmates conducted last month at the behest of Sheriff David Gee, who wanted to know how prevalent the problem is, said Col. Jim Previtera, the director of county jails.

The jail population is about 3,000.

"The jail is a microcosm of the community," Previtera said. "Until it's controlled in the community, we have to deal with the aftermath."

The number of inmates addicted to opiate-based medication such as oxycodone or hydrocodone has risen over the last five years, said Beth Weaver, medical adviser for the sheriff's office.

The rise mirrors what's happening in the outside world, with Florida gaining a reputation as the epicenter of prescription pill abuse, Previtera said.

About 36 percent of inmates are arrested for the possession or abuse of painkillers, according to the survey. Fifty-one percent have gone through withdrawal during their current sentence or their previous one.

"This is starting to have a serious impact on the jail and the inmate population," Previtera said.

Taxpayers are also affected. Detoxification and treatment programs for inmates adds to medical costs, Previtera said, and detention deputies have to get additional training to learn how to recognize and handle pill addicts.

Prescription pill abuse has caught the attention of state lawmakers who say Tampa and parts of South Florida are hubs for so-called "pill mills," illicit pain management clinics that dole out massive prescriptions. Gov. Rick Scott said that 98 of the nation's top 100 oxycodone-purchasing physicians are in Florida.

Visitors from other states were known to travel here to buy pills because of lax regulations then return to their home states to sell them at higher prices.

Tougher laws regarding the ownership and operation of pain management clinics were approved by the Legislature earlier this year.

The new laws establish standards of care for doctors who prescribe narcotic-grade pills, requiring them to register with the state Department of Health and bans doctors from dispensing the most abused narcotics. Penalties against doctors who overprescribe pills have been toughened, with a minimum $10,000 fine and six-month suspensions.

The legislation, signed by Scott on June 3, also establishes the creation of a prescription-drug monitoring database. The system, expected to go online by Oct. 1, will track where and how often opiate-based medication is prescribed.

Previtera said it's too early to tell if these measures will curb the jails' prescription pill problem. Another survey of inmates will be conducted in the fall to see if the new laws have had any effect.

"The jail can't bear the weight of this problem on our own," he said. "It wasn't designed to handle this epidemic. The best we can do is manage it."

The first step usually involves inmates going through a detoxification program. Weaver, the sheriff's medical adviser, said withdrawal symptoms can arise between eight to 72 hours, depending on the type of prescription medication.

McCray, the nurse, said it can be difficult seeing people go through the pain.

"It's my job, but sometimes it kind of pulls out your heartstrings," she said.

Symptoms include profuse sweating, nausea, vomiting, tremors and a decrease in appetite.

"It makes you feel you're going to die," said John Maslanka, a drug abuse counselor for the county's jails. "You can't think of anything except using that drug again."

Inmates are given medical kits that target the symptoms of withdrawal to ease the pain and discomfort, Weaver said.

There is only one long-term treatment option in jail, an eight-week counseling program primarily for addicts ordered by the court to get their substance abuse under control. There are few spots available for inmates who want to voluntarily sign up for the program, Previtera said.

About a dozen inmates participate in each eight-week session. Not all can be helped.

"Some people are just so broken," drug counselor Gretchen Sanchez said. "It takes a lot to put them together."

At least one person in each group is a success story, the counselors said.

Shannon Collins is one of them. She completed the jail's counseling program in January, after she violated probation for possession of a controlled substance. Collins, 39, said she became hooked on painkillers after she injured her back in a car crash about eight years ago.

The addiction caused her to lose her job and her family. Collins said she was high when she signed documents allowing her ex-husband to have custody of their son.

"I allowed it to ruin my life," she said. "The addiction to pills led to heroin. You get to the point when 200 pills a month aren't enough."

Counseling from Sanchez has helped Collins learn how to keep temptation in check. She's out of jail and enrolled in a long-term treatment program. She's interviewing for jobs and trying to get her life on track.

"I want to stay sober," Collins said. "I want a different life."

Bernalillo County Sheriff's detectives said it is a new trend, but many viewers responded with skepticism. KOB decided to take a closer look at this drug called Suboxone.

One addiction expert claims that while Suboxone, like any other drug, can be abused, it is not the prescription drug of choice for those addicted to heroin.

Dr. John Vigil practices addiction medicine. He said Suboxone is not the same euphoria or high as heroin.

Vigil explained that if it is being sold on the streets or in jail it may be used as a way to stem withdrawal until a user can get their next heroin fix or get into a recovery program.

Vigil also points out that these treatments have heavy oversight.

"It is a federal regulation that any doctor that prescribes Suboxone or Suboxone treatment must either provide counseling therapy or make referrals for those patients to go for appropriate treatment," Vigil explained.

Methadone came about in the 1960's and Suboxone in the 2000's.

Vigil claims the use of Methadone or Suboxone combined with a program of therapy can have a 90 percent chance of success for heroin addicts.

Vigil said heroin addiction is neurobiological disease and treating it with opiate replacement therapy is the best chance of getting addicts help.

Mueller is heading to a treatment facility in Cancun for an intensive seven-day stint in a bid to finally overcome her addiction, reports TMZ.

The 33-year-old, who has endured a long drug and alcohol abuse battle, finished her 45-day treatment program at a rehab centre in May this year.

Mueller and Sheen married in 2008, but split in April 2010 after the couple's drugs and lifestyle problems got in their way.

Actress Bai Ling said she is confronting a dark chapter from her past: sexual abuse she suffered as a teenager at the hands of Chinese army officers.

Bai, 44, who was a soldier in a People’s Liberation Army performance troupe from age 14 to 17, told The Associated Press in a recent interview that she was “opening a wound that was very secret to myself, that even my parents don’t know.”

Therapy she received during Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew helped her understand what she endured.

The actress ( The Crow, Red Corner, TV’s Entourage) said she was pressed to have sex with her superiors, with one encounter leading to pregnancy and an abortion under an assumed name.

Bai, who is writing a book, Naked in Tibet, stressed that she blames individual officers and not the Chinese government. A Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman in Beijing said the government had “not heard of this report. This is not within our scope to comment.”

The actress’ career and life have suffered because of the unaddressed torment of her army experience, she said. She has become a paparazzi target for eyebrow-raising remarks (she claims she is from the moon), a 2008 shoplifting allegation and wild, alcohol-fueled behavior, including flashes of nudity.

Anyone who has a drug or alcohol problem “was abused in some way and trying to hide,” said Bai, who doesn’t consider herself an alcoholic but is allergic to even small amounts of alcohol.

“The media bring me out as this crazy slut showing her nipples everywhere,” Bai said. “I become this character the pop culture Hollywood machine created. Somehow, I become a victim to that image.”

Others featured in the latest edition of Rehab include former baseball player Dwight Gooden and actress Sean Young.

Within a three-month period this year, onetime participants Grease star Jeff Conaway and ex-Alice in Chains bassist Mike Starr died, putting the show under a cloud.