In US, Prescription Drug Overdoses More Deadly Than Car Crashes
February 23, 2012
A government health agency says the United States is in the grip of an epidemic of prescription drug overdoses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that more people die from such overdoses than from all illegal drugs combined. And accidental prescription drug deaths in the United States each year outnumber highway traffic fatalities. Recent celebrity deaths from apparent prescription drug overdoses have helped to put this public health problem into the spotlight.
The death of American singer and actress Whitney Houston has sparked discussion about accidental overdosing on prescription drugs.
The official cause of Houston's death is still pending, but authorities found a small amount of prescription drugs in her hotel room, and people reported seeing her drinking champagne in the days before her death. Some of these medicines slow down the central nervous system. Alcohol does the same. The combination could be deadly.
Jennifer Brand is a doctor of pharmacology at Medstar Washington Hospital Center.
"Something that we’re seeing more and more of, particularly in the news, is combinations of pain killers, things like oxycontin, percoset, vicodin, and anti-anxiety medications," Brand said.
Millions of Americans take anti-depressants, sleep aids and pain killers. The pharmacy's label on the bottle can provide a false sense of security. This young man, known as "Greg," used medicines prescribed to his parents.
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