What would you think if your doctor had just gotten back from a vacation in the tropics? What would you think when he told you that he spent his days golfing, getting massages, and lounging by the pool? A little jealous - maybe. Thinking you may have gotten in the wrong profession - maybe. Now what would you think if you found out that his tropical vacation was funded by the very makers of the drug your doctor was currently writing you a prescription for?
Most people never second guess their doctors. Often times a personal bond is formed; after all this is the person that helps you, makes you better when you are ill, and counsels you when you have questions. But by pharmaceutical companies and their representatives, the person you view as a savior is also viewed as a target.
This week Pfizer, one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in America was found guilty of lavishing doctors with expensive gifts, fancy vacations, and expensive dinners, in an attempt to persuade them to prescribe new medications distributed by their company. Bextra, a medication approved by the FDA to treat arthritis as well as menstrual pain in very limited doses, was being marketed by Pfizer in much larger doses that far exceeded what the FDA had originally approved. In addition to marketing the medication improperly, it was also indicated that Pfizer was paying kickbacks to doctors, in an effort to increase prescriptions of the medication.
In a time where prescription drug abuse is becoming more popular than heroin and cocaine Pfizer is proving to be the biggest drug pusher of them all.
Prescription drug abuse is categorized as being mentally and physically addicted to prescription medications. Some examples of the most commonly abused prescription drugs include Xanax, Vicodan, OxyContin, and Bextra. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse an estimated 48 million people (ages 12 and older) have used prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons in their lifetimes. This represents approximately 20 percent of the U.S. population.
And because of the recent increase in accessibility because of the marketing and promotion of these drugs by pharmaceutical companies more and more people will continue to become addicted. In fact, the focus on prescription drug abuse has become so heavy that abusers of prescription medication are seeking out rehabilitation facilities.
Once such rehabilitation facility is Narconon Louisiana. Narconon Louisiana is a non-profit drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, located just outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Since opening its doors three years ago they have maintained an unheard of 76% success rate for permanent sobriety. A number that far exceeds the industry norm.
The Narconon Louisiana program attacks prescription drug abuse with a concept that is gaining more and more popularity; addiction is not a disease. Instead, Narconon Louisiana isolates and handles the underlying problems that caused the individual to use drugs in the first place. The program also focuses on the physical aspect of addiction by using a sauna detoxification program to rid their body of the harmful toxins left behind by drugs. Unhandled, these harmful toxins can dislodge in the bloodstream and cause physical drug cravings, so often the downfall of sobriety. Narconon Louisiana is also a drug-free program and does not utilize replacement drugs and other narcotics to get a person to stop using.
Prescription drug abuse does not have to go unhandled. If you or anyone you know is in need of help please call contact Narconon Louisiana today at 866-422-4650.
