Talbot Partnership for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Prevention advise that there are numerous new forms of substance abuse that have been devised, that parents should be aware of. Kids and addicts alike have spent years inventing new methods. Some of these are totally harmless; however, most are very dangerous.
While many Talbot County community members are now familiar with synthetic drugs, including K2/Spice and Bath Salts, there are new trends surfacing nearly every day.
Alcohol continues to be the number one drug abused by our youth. While traditional binge-drinking is still the best bet to get drunk, there are now many other ways people are getting drunk without actually drinking. Alcohol on your eyeballs, up your nose, in your tampons, in your cupcakes, in your gummy bears, and on your pizzas are some of the ways alcohol is being ingested.
Afraid to be caught with the smell of alcohol on their breath, many kids have taken up the vodka eyeballing trend as one such means. Instead of throwing back a shot, teens hold the bottle to their eye and pour the liquid directly into the eye, which is laden with blood vessels. Here, the alcohol is quickly absorbed through the mucous membrane and enters the bloodstream immediately through the veins at the back of the eye. Eyeballing may yield a quick buzz without the bad breath but there can be extreme consequences: Because most vodkas are between 40 and 50 percent alcohol, it can scar and burn the cornea, and even cause blindness.
While not directly involving drugs or alcohol, a potentially lethal “game” involves the use of restraints or the assistance of a friend to choke another in order to cut off the flow of blood to the brain. The purpose is to obtain the high that comes when the restraint is released and the blood rushes back into the brain. In actuality, the “high” feeling comes from thousands of brain cells dying because of lack of oxygen, causing long term brain damage, comas, strokes, and bleeding in the brain
Studies indicate that as many as 40 percent of all young athletes take protein enhancements, which are available in forms ranging from bars to shakes to powders. While teens may take the supplement in order to improve muscle growth, muscle recovery, and overall athletic performance, there is no evidence that supplements are any more “enhancing” than a nutritious diet. Overuse can actually cause blood acidity, which then draws calcium from the bones to counteract the higher acidity of pH in the blood, leading to declining bone strength and kidney stones formed by excess calcium.
For further information on alcohol and other drugs, contact Talbot Partnership at 410-819-8067 or [email protected]. Please also visit our website at www.talbotpartnership.org or find us on Facebook.
Elizabeth M. S. Hill says
As the co-chair, I would like to invite anyone interested in adolescent drug and alcohol prevention here in Kent County, to join the Adolsecent Substance Abuse Colalition. This is a group of agency personnel, volunteers and interested citizens who want to help prevent drug and alcohol abuse by our young people. The group meets the 3rd Monday of each month at the Public Works Complex. For more information, contacts and how to join ASAC, go to http://www.kentasac.org/. There is a role for everyone interested in helping and being a part!