Prescription drug deaths have skyrocketed in the past decade
Is your pain killing you? It may be if you’re relying on prescription drugs to deal with it.
A brand new report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week highlights a massive increase in prescription drug deaths over the past decade.
In just the past 10 years, sales of painkillers – and corresponding deaths from prescription drugs – have both quadrupled. By the CDC’s own admission, the problem has reached an epidemic level.
Here’s the ugly truth… the problem starts right at the doctor’s office.
According to this week’s CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, there were enough opioid pain relievers sold in the U.S. last year to medicate each and every adult in America with 5mg of hydrocodone every 4 hours around the clock for a month.
We’ve talked before about the pill mills that sell prescription painkillers like candy. Many illegitimate pain clinics are merely fronts set up to sell prescription drugs to addicts. But many “standard care” providers prescribe an enormous number of pain pills too.
For example, a study of California workers’ compensation claims found just 3% of doctors were responsible for writing a whopping 62% of narcotic prescriptions. And get this – half of them were for minor back pain.
We all know narcotics are highly addictive. Talk about a set up for prescription drug abuse. I’m sure the drug companies are crying all the way to the bank.
In the meanwhile, over 15,000 people will die from prescription painkiller overdoses this year. That means more will die this year from prescription drugs than from heroin and cocaine combined.
Listen to me. If you’re relying on prescription painkillers to keep you going, you’re taking a huge risk of addiction and possible overdose. And if you think you’re immune, let me share some of the surprising statistics straight out of the CDC’s own report:
- 12 Million Americans aged 12 or older reported abusing prescription painkillers in 2010
- 500,000 emergency room visits in 2009 were directly related to prescription painkiller misuse or abuse
- Both sales of prescription painkillers and overdose deaths from them have quadrupled since 1999
- Rural Americans are twice as likely to die from overdose on prescription painkillers than urban dwellers
- Middle-aged adults have the highest rate of prescription painkiller overdose rates, with men much more likely to die from them than women
If you thought that was all, you haven’t heard the half of it. That’s because the CDC’s report focused on just the opioid and narcotic drugs. But these aren’t even the worst of the bunch when it comes to dangerous pain pills.
To find out which pain pills top the most dangerous list, you’ll need to get my special report, The 5 Most Dangerous Pain Medications. In it I share which medicines you need to watch out for, why they’re so dangerous, and give my personal recommendation for a much safer, natural alternative for pain relief. And while supplies last, I’m offering it to you for free. You’ll find the link below.
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The 5 Most Dangerous Pain Medications
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Prescription Painkiller Overdoses in the US. 2011 Nov.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vital Signs: Overdoses of Prescription Opioid Pain Relievers — United States, 1999-2008. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 2011 Nov 1.
Swedlow A, Ireland J, Johnson G. Prescribing patterns of schedule II opioids in California Workers’ Compensation. California Workers’ Compensation Institute. 2011 Mar.
