History/Background Opioids have been used for thousands of years for pain treatment. Papyrus records from the ancient Egyptians report the use of opium, within the opioid family for pain relief. The opium poppy was grown as early as 3400 BC in Mesopotamia. “Opium” refers to a combination of alkaloids from...

Narcan, commonly known as naloxone, is a medical prescription administered to revive opioids overdose (Kleber et al., 2012). According to studies by the Centers for Disease Control, Narcan has been used to revive more than ten thousand overdoses between 1996 and 2010 (Stranf et al., 2008). However, while the medics...

For decades, since the dangers of tobacco use have become widely accepted, people who have been addicted to smoking tobacco have tried an assortment of methods to quit. Like any addiction, giving up nicotine, especially after using it for long periods of time, can be extremely challenging and often requires...

Introduction In “Television Addiction,” author Marie Winn unequivocally identifies TV watching as a literally addictive habit, and one with many of the harmful effects of physical addictions to drugs and alcohol. Her intent is so serious, she takes the time to first carefully define and list the characteristics of genuine...

There has been a long-term debate regarding the association of addiction as a brain disease. Most scientists acknowledge that addiction is a brain disease; however, there are many studies still taking place to disprove this belief. There is no arguing that addictive drugs directly changes the brain, but it can...