Study: More Older Americans Abusing Drugs

A new government study shows that more older Americans are abusing drugs. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that the proportion of people aged 50 or over who admitted to treatment for drug abuse nearly doubled between 1992 and 2008.

Tom Ghena, of the Henry Ford Maplegrove Center, told WWJ Newsradio 950 that it's important for people to understand how their drug abuse has progressed.

"When people start, they start for a reason, most of it is recreational," Ghena said.

"But then over time it changes and it begins to be more compulsive and problematic," Ghena said.

Helping people to take a close look at how that's progressed is really critical for them to make a committment to making changes, he said.

The study shows that alcohol is still the leading cause of admissions in this age group, but sharp increases were noted in those needing treatment for heroin, cocaine and marijuana.

"This is a group that grew up in their adolescence with a fair amount of experimentation around substance abuse," Ghena said.

When you begin to feel uncomfortable with what you see somebody doing as it relates to their substances it's usually a really good indication of substance abuse, he said.

"Secondly, you begin to look for problems in relationships, problems in finance, problems with managing day to day affairs... Those things begin to become second as the use becomes more compulsive," Ghena said.
 

© MMX WWJ Radio, All Rights Reserved.