Drugs and the Media
Drugs and the Media
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‘Sizzurp Is Definitely Posing A Big Problem With American Youth,’ Says Expert
‘Sizzurp Is Definitely Posing A Big Problem With American Youth,’ Says Expert
We’ll be frank — Sizzurp wasn’t really on our radars until Lil Wayne’s recent hospitalization.
Given that the rapper is a somewhat of a poster boy for the concoction, with the Los Angeles Times recently running a story about the recreational drug, which is a fruit punch that is mixed with a prescription grade cough syrup with codeine and promethazine, there are fears that fans will follow in his footsteps.
And in a story that is making its way around the tabloids, Lil Wayne’s mother, Jacida Carter is quoted as saying this: “Why you always gotta pick on my boy? Sure he’s had a couple of seizures but that’s because he works so hard. You can’t blame my son for wanting to unwind a bit after a hard day, would you be picking on him if he drank cognac and smoked cigars like George Clooney? No you wouldn’t would you. I think the media is making it a racial thing – like they are stereotyping my son. My Lil Wayne prefers weed and Sizzurp and that’s HIS choice, don’t judge a man for his medicine.”
Now this drug, which is highly addictive and technically legal, is trickling down from the rappers to their audience who look up to them and learn from them.
Dr. Damon Raskin, a double board certified internist and addiction specialist with Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center has seen an uptick in Sizzurp users in the last year.
“Yes I have treated patients with addictions to codeine cough syrup. The use of codeine cough syrup is a serious problem, just as bad as any other opiate like OxyContin or heroin. The fact that these rappers are role models for our youth is tragic, and sends a terrible message to our young people that this stuff is ok to do. It is also attractive to teens due to its pastel color and sweet taste when mixed with fruit juice. Most users don’t realize just how addicting codeine can be, and the dangers of overdose, accidents and death are real.”
And worryingly, he adds: “Sizzurp is definitely posing a big problem with American youth, especially in the African-American communities where Lil’ Wayne is very popular.”
‘Weezy’ Lil Wayne and ‘Sizzurp’ not a laughing matter to medical experts
‘Weezy’ Lil Wayne and ‘Sizzurp’ not a laughing matter to medical experts
Rapper Lil Wayne has become the poster boy for “Sizzurp,” a codeine laced cough syrup given a street name.
Wayne’s seizures and ICU hospitalization reveal a schism in American culture. A drug of choice for rappers and lower classes because of its low cost, “Sizzurp” can be just as dangerous as pill abuse.
The Los Angeles Times recently rana story about “sizzurp”, a fruit punch that is mixed with a prescription grade cough syrup with codeine and promethazine. This is highly addictive and technically legal, and it is a drug of choice for rappers like Lil’ Wayne.
Fans of “Weezy” know of his professed love for the drug “sizzurp,” a prescription cough syrup mixed with soda and sometimes hard candy.
And in a story that is making its way around the tabloids, Lil Wayne’s mother, Jacida Carter is quoted as saying, “Why you always gotta pick on my boy? Sure he’s had a couple of seizures but that’s because he works so hard. You can’t blame my son for wanting to unwind a bit after a hard day, would you be picking on him if he drank cognac and smoked cigars like George Clooney? No you wouldn’t would you. I think the media is making it a racial thing – like they are stereotyping my son. My Lil Wayne prefers weed and Sizzurp and that’s HIS choice, don’t judge a man for his medicine.”
Now, this drug is trickling down from the rappers to their audience who look up to them and learn from them.
Dr. Damon Raskin, a double board certified internist and addiction specialist with Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center has seen an uptick in Sizzurp users in the last year.
“Yes I have treated patients with addictions to codeine cough syrup. The use of codeine cough syrup is a serious problem, just as bad as any other opiate like OxyContin or heroin. The fact that these rappers are role models for our youth is tragic, and sends a terrible message to our young people that this stuff is okay to do. It is also attractive to teens due to its pastel color and sweet taste when mixed with fruit juice. Most users don’t realize just how addicting codeine can be, and the dangers of overdose, accidents and death are real.”
FOX 11 30-Minute Special: Drugs, Kids and the Media
FOX 11 30-Minute Special: Drugs, Kids and the Media
You see it in some of TV’s highest rated sitcoms. Jokes about casual drug use. It’s happening on shows that are popular with many teenagers, like “Family Guy” and “Two Broke Girls.” Now some experts on drug addiction are speaking out.
Our Fox 11 Special “Drugs and the Media” takes a look at the impact these shows may be having on our kids.
Phil Shuman takes a look at some of the overt drug references in highly-rated TV shows. We’ll also look at the very public behavior of some of the most popular TV and music stars, like Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus. Phil talks to addiction specialist Dr. Damon Raskin – who was himself a former child star – and Richard Taite of the Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center about how the media may be affecting America’s children.
Phil Shuman examines some of the statistics on drug abuse among 12 to 17 year old kids. We’ll hear from Dr. Damon Raskin and Richard Taite, co-author of the Amazon best-selling book, “Ending Addiction for Good.”
Lindsay Lohan was ordered by a judge to attend a “lock down” drug and alcohol treatment center for 90 days – a much longer stretch than has been mandated in the past. But will it be enough?
We’ll examine some of the root causes of drug addiction and what parents can do to help navigate their kids away from drugs and alcohol.
FOX reporter takes entertainment industry on with trivialized TV drug use
FOX reporter takes entertainment industry on with trivialized TV drug use
When you live and work in Hollywood, a town that depends on film and TV production for its mainstay bread and butter, it’s a head turner when you hold a big, fat mirror up to the 800 pound gorilla sitting in the sound stage.
That’s exactly what local Los Angeles FOX 11 reporter Phil Shuman did when he dared to pose questions about sliding standards to a large viewing audience on March 22, 2013. At what point does network television draw the line when it comes to trivializing pot, pills and alcohol use on prime time TV when children are most likely to be watching?
Last night, Shuman hosted Dr. Damon Raskin, an internist and addiction specialist and Richard Taite (CEO of Cliffside Malibu, and author of “Ending Addiction for Good” www.cliffsidemalibu.com), both of Cliffside Malibu residential rehabilitation, a prestigious center where the average stay for patients in recovery is closer to six to nine months than the common 28 days.
What did Shuman, Raskin and Taite have in common?
Fox News Anchor Phil Shuman, Dr. Damon Raskin and CEO & Founder of Cliffside Malibu Richard Taite
Fox News Anchor Phil Shuman, Dr. Damon Raskin and CEO & Founder of Cliffside Malibu Richard Taite
Lindsay Lohan’s Sentence: What a “Locked” Facility Really Means
Lindsay Lohan’s Sentence: What a “Locked” Facility Really Means
Is there any real difference between a locked rehab and regular rehab, besides, you know, lockdown? Are the facilities like the one Lindsay Lohan has been ordered to really locked for a star like her?
—Isaac, via Twitter
Oh yeah. Locked means locked, even for someone privileged as the star of Mean Girls. When Lohan reports to her agreed sentence, which includes 90 days in a no-leave rehab, she won’t be able to get out.
Unless…
Well, OK. Locked rehab isn’t exactly as harsh as jail.
“The death of a family member, or a medical necessity—those would constitute exceptions,” says star criminal defense attorney David Diamond. “And if she reports to certain privately run facilities such as Promises, she wouldn’t be totally locked down.
“You can walk from your suite to pool and from the pool to omelette bar and back to your room.”
What were you expecting, bars on windows? Not at most of these places. Even the ones considered to be “locked down.”
If that offends your reasonable sense of justice, know this: Lohan will likely be responsible for financing her own stay. And unless she chooses a county-run facility (which is pretty close to jail in its amenities) we’re looking at quite a cost.
“The cost varies so much, but I would say that they start at $30,000 per month and go up from there,” says Dr. Damon Raskin, a consultant at the Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center. “If she were going to jail it would be the taxpayer’s paying for it. So, being out of jail will cost her at least $100,000 in rehab fees.”
So. She’ll be paying for people to tell her she can’t leave.
Still annoyed? OK, how about this: Privacy will be hard to come by, even for a star.
“What she can expect is a schedule of intensive psychotherapy, individual therapy and group activities that support healing and reinforce her therapies combined,” Raskin tells me. “She may need a detox, but of this I am not certain, not knowing her medical records. She will be drug tested regularly.”
At least that’s something.
Preventive Screening for Seniors: Is That Test Really Necessary?
Preventive Screening for Seniors: Is That Test Really Necessary?
Caregivers and seniors often find themselves inundated with messages touting the benefits of this cancer detection test, or that diagnostic exam.
And, for those over 65, Medicare offers about a dozen free screenings—from bone density measurements to mammograms.
But, are all those tests really necessary?
The honest answer to this vital question is, regrettably, very complex.
Age is really just a number
Many health organizations, including, the American Cancer Society (ACS), and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), use age-based cut-offs to determine recommendations for certain screenings.
While age is an easy metric to measure, too much reliance on these often arbitrary numbers can lead to confusing interactions between seniors and their doctors. “Screening tests are often done in elderly patients as a knee-jerk reaction,” says Damon Raskin, M.D., a board-certified internist and medical director for two skilled nursing facilities.
However, especially for an aging individual, there are several, more significant, factors to consider than the number of candles on their birthday cake. “What is more important than age is what’s going on with the patient,” Raskin argues.
Lindsay Lohan’s ‘do or die’ time, addiction experts hope starlet wakes up
Lindsay Lohan’s ‘do or die’ time, addiction experts hope starlet wakes up
Lindsay Lohan’s Monday (March 18) was a stress fest of hurry and wait, as the actress arrived 45 minutes late to court navigating Los Angeles rush hour traffic and diverted flights.
Lohan agreed to a plea deal to avoid 6 months in jail, instead opting for a locked down rehab facility for 90 days, and to undergo psychotherapy and do 180 hours of community service.
Dr. Damon Raskin, who works as a consultant in Personalized Detox/Internal and Addiction Medicine with Cliffside Malibu Treatment Center, commented on what Linsday Lohan has in store for the next three months:
In the case of Lindsay Lohan, she has gone through the residential rehab more than once, so the difference here is that she has a mandatory stay order for three months (90 days) which will be a more daunting achievement considering the time. What she can expect is a schedule of intensive psychotherapy, individual therapy and group activities that support healing and reinforce her therapies combined. She may need a detox, but of this I am not certain, not knowing her medical records. She will be drug tested regularly.
By the way, a locked down facility doesn’t necessarily mean jailed in dark and dingy treatment center with bars on the windows, she can still have all the amenities that are available at any five star facility, however, she will not be allowed to leave for the mandated 90 days.