New twin study out of the US suggests that the same gene that leads to drinking alcohol may also lead to marijuana use.

Twin studies are used to better understand the genetic influence of behaviours. In such studies, scientists compare the results from identical twin sets, who have identical genetics, with the results from fraternal twin sets, who only share some genes.

The new study looked at 2,761 sets of identical and fraternal twins, as well as 736 non-twin individuals, from 24 to 36 years of age. All subjects were interviewed about their alcohol and marijuana use.

Although researchers found little overlap between the environmental factors that influence use, they found significant overlap in the genetic factors that influence.

In previous twin studies, about 50 to 60 percent of the variance in alcohol dependence could be explained by genetic factors. Studies also previously suggested that genetics played a major role in marijuana and other drug addictions.

However, this new study found that over 60 percent of the variance in alcohol and marijuana use, and marijuana dependence, was linked to genetic factors, supporting the theory that common genes play a role in all addiction & substance abuse.

The results are to be published in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research March 2010.

Source: WebMD

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University released their annual National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XIV: Teens and Parents.

This years survey reveals scary statistics for parents. CASA researchers surveyed American teens, aged 12-to-17 years old, about their drinking habits and attitudes, and found that, overwhelmingly, teens who have seen their parent(s) drunk are more likely to drink, and smoke marijuana and cigarettes themselves than those who don’t see their parents drunk.

About 51% of 17 year olds, and 34% of 12-17 year olds, have witnessed one or both parents drunk.

Drinking in teens is strongly linked to their perception of how their father feels about alcohol use–teens who believe their father is accepting of drinking are two-and-a-half times more likely to get drunk in a typical month than those teens whose fathers are not accepting. This is about 5% of 12-14 year old girls, 9% of 12-15 year old boys, 13% of 16 and 17 year old girls, and 20% of 16 and 17 year old boys.

Teen decisions are inextricably linked to parental expectations, behaviours, and messaging about alcohol use.

Furthermore, 65% of 12-17 year olds, and 85% of 17 year olds surveyed, who drink monthly, get drunk at least once per month; and a third of teen drinkers drink to get drunk, 85% of whom do so monthly. Of the teen drinkers who do not set out to get drunk, about 35% find themselves drunk at least once a month anyways.

Teens who get drunk on a monthly basis face a multitude of repercussions, including an increase likelihood of smoking pot and having friends who smoke pot; of being able to find marijuana in under an hour; to know someone who abuses prescription medication; and to know someone who uses other illicit drugs such as methamphetamine, ecstasy, cocaine, etc. Lastly, teens who get drunk regularly are more likely to know a girl who has been forced to something sexually, and to know a guy who uses drugs and alcohol to “hook up”.

Researchers at CASA strongly recommend to parents to reconsider their teens behaviour. Chances are if your teen is drinking, they are getting drunk; and if your teen is getting drunk, chances are they are using illicit drugs and engaging in other dangerous behaviours.

Over the last few days, we’ve been discussing Interventions quite a bit. Truth be told, we are in the process of completely revamping the website; the results of which you should be seeing very soon. As part of this process, we’ve been going over all of our existing web pages, assessing and updating content, which always leads us to wider conversations.

Conversations this week always lead back to Interventions.

And as with many topics in our field as of late, the sudden and inexplicable death of Michael Jackson has pushed many issues to center stage. Today, The New York Times published an article looking at the world of interventions–from the world of reality television to the reality of tough love.

Michael Jackson is an interesting case. Despite his unparalleled fame, his story is similar to many others. According to those from within his inner-sanctum, he was surrounded by enablers. And like most addicts, conversations about his alleged prescription drug addiction ended in denial, as recently confessed by his close friend Deepak Chopra.

An addict’s denial is their last coping mechanism–it is the security blanket shielding them from the immensity of their addiction and the fear of having to give it up. An addict will fight with every last ounce of energy they have to keep their addiction. “This is what keeps me company now. It doesn’t demand anything of me. It doesn’t promise me anything, nothing at all,” confessed one addict in a story we shared last week.

The death of Michael Jackson, say many in the field, is a classic case of missed opportunity–the opportunity to save a loved one, that is. An individual’s Unit–the inner circle of family members, loved ones, and those closest to us in this world–must break through an addict’s denial. This is possibly the hardest job you will ever have.

There are many varied school of interventionist thought. At Heritage Home, we recognize the many approaches to all of the stages of addiction and recovery, and believe in custom-designing a plan that incorporates varied approaches to fit the specifics of the individual.

However, no matter the approach, we believe that an intervention should always involve the Unit. Our team of interventionists work closely with the Unit to design a successful treatment plan, which can include the intervention, rehabilitation, individual and family counseling, and post-treatment care. The goal is to heal not just the individual but the Unit.

Before, during, and after the intervention, everyone involved is supported and guided through the process by a highly-experienced, trained professional who will come to you. Interventions can be easily derailed by an addicts denial, spawning feelings of anger, blame, guilt, and hurt. An interventionist is there to support all participants, including the addict, helping you to break through the wall of denial and, ultimately, put everyone on the path to healing and recovery.

In the end, the family members, friends, significant others, loved ones of all forms, and the addict are all in the cycle of addiction together. Dynamics between individuals and the group need to heal and evolve in order for all to carry forward. All, therefore, need to heal both individually and as a group.

Recently, we’ve been speaking a lot about the criminal justice system and drug use. With the Obama Administration’s new Drug Czar, Gil Kerlikowske, change certainly seems to be in the air and the North American stance on illicit drugs is coming under scrutiny. After twenty-some-odd years, the ‘War on Drugs’ may finally be coming to a close.

Consider this: the US has the harshest, most punitive, drug laws in the world. The US also has the highest rates of cocaine and marijuana use in the world. This is no coincidence.

Portugal, as recently reported by Time Magazine, re-focused their drug laws in 2001 to treatment over punishment. Working with the hypothesis that a punitive system does nothing more than drive drug addicts underground and is unnecessarily expensive, Portugal abolished all criminal penalties for drug possession across all drugs. Instead of jail time, treatment is offered.

Those found guilty of possession of small amounts of drugs stand before a panel (consisting of a social worker, psychologist, and legal adviser) who determine the best treatment option for the individual.

Studies shows, across all metrics, that this treatment-centric approach is far more successful:

Before:

• Portugal had some of the highest levels of hard drug use in Europe

Now:

• drug use among teens decreased significantly
• rates of new HIV cases from intravenous drug use decreased significantly
• rate of people seeking treatment more than doubled
• Portugal has the lowest rate of lifetime marijuana use of people over 15 in the EU
• the number of deaths due to overdose decreased by more than half
• the number of people in methadone and buprenorphine treatment increased to over 14,000
• funding to treatment programs increased, stemming from money saved
• law enforcement able to zero-in on high-level drug dealers and activities surrounding large amounts of drugs

“Judging by every metric, decriminalization in Portugal has been a resounding success. It has enabled the Portuguese government to manage and control the drug problem far better than virtually every other Western country does.” says Glenn Greenwald, an attorney, author and fluent Portuguese speaker, who conducted the research (as reported by Time Magazine).

As history has shown us time and time again, prohibition is not a successful approach. Creating deviant behavior merely divides groups, pushing illicit behavior further underground and impeding pathways with which to seek out help and treatment. Addicts are made to be criminals; addiction is falsely defined as a crime, not a condition.