Featured Post

Drug overdose deaths among seniors have more than tripled in two decades - CNBC

Holly Francis, a volunteer with Boston Medical Center helped to plant some of the 20,000 purple flags in the Common that commemorate Overdose Awareness Day and kick off Recovery Month. Each purple flag represents one life lost to overdose in Massachusetts over the past 10 years.
Jessica Rinaldi | Boston Globe | Getty Images

Deaths from drug and alcohol use are rising among America's seniors.

Drug overdose deaths more than tripled among people age 65 and older during the past two decades while deaths from alcohol abuse increased more than 18% from 2019 to 2020, according to data published Wednesday by the National Center for Health Statistics.

More than 800,000 seniors suffered from drug addiction and 2.7 million suffered from alcohol addiction in 2020, according to separate data from the Health and Human Services Department.

In total, more than 5,000 seniors died of drug overdoses in 2020 and more than 11,600 succumbed to alcohol, according to the NCHS data. Though drug overdose death rates are lower for seniors than other age groups, they have increased substantially from 2.4 per 100,000 in 2000 to 8.8 per 100,000 in 2020.

"We've got a public health problem coming at our door — these trends have been increasing for a long time now," said Alexis Kuerbis, a professor at the Silberman School of Social Work and an expert on substance use among older adults.

Seniors today are baby boomers, a generation that had a much more open attitude toward drugs and alcohol than their parents, Kuerbis said. Some baby boomers have carried alcohol and drug habits from their youth and middle age into their later years when their bodies are no longer able to tolerate them, she said.

"Baby boomers obviously are very different generation than the silent generation or the World War II generation," Kuerbis said. "Baby boomers were far more open to using alcohol and drugs during their younger years but also through their middle-aged years and now they are older adults," she said.

Deaths from fentanyl and other synthetic opioids increased 53% among seniors from 2019 to 2020, according to the data. Kuerbis said there's some evidence to suggest people who were prescribed opioids in their middle age for an injury later switched to fentanyl once it became harder to get a prescription.

If you are having suicidal thoughts or are in distress, contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor.

While some drug deaths among seniors are from accidental misuse of drugs, many are suicides from overdosing on opioids, Kuerbis said. Although seniors tend to be happier than younger adults, they also have a higher prevalence of chronic pain, terminal illness and dementia, she said.

Some older adults also use drugs or alcohol to cope with major life changes such as retirement, grief and loss, or a change in their living situation, according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse.

Drug overdose deaths were highest among Black seniors. The death rate from drugs among Black men ages 65 to 74 was more than four times higher than Hispanic or white men in that age group, according to the data. Black women ages 65 to 74 died more often from drug overdoses than white and Hispanic women. White women older than 75 had a higher death rate from drugs than Black and Hispanic women.

Alcohol deaths were highest among American Indian seniors followed by Hispanics, white Americans, Black Americans and Asian Americans, according to the data.

CNBC Health & Science

Read CNBC's latest global health coverage:

  • Twitter stops policing Covid misinformation under CEO Elon Musk
  • Dr. Jha: The U.S. is ready to 'move on' from Covid if people 'keep their immunity up to date'
  • China's Covid infections drop for the first time in more than a week
  • China touts vaccination progress as it seeks reopening path; encourages booster shots for seniors
  • Flu hospitalizations increase nearly 30% as U.S. enters holiday season
  • U.S. criticizes China's zero Covid strategy, says Beijing needs to boost vaccination among elderly
  • Omicron BQ Covid variants that threaten people with compromised immune systems are now dominant in U.S.
  • Mainland China's total daily Covid cases soar above Shanghai lockdown highs
  • Measles poses growing threat to kids as vaccinations decline globally, CDC and WHO warn
  • Abortion pill is the most common method to end a pregnancy in the U.S., CDC says
  • Flu variant that hits kids and seniors harder than other strains is dominant in U.S. right now

-

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Preventing, controlling spread of animal diseases focus of forum at Penn State - Pennsylvania State University

Image
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — An outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in poultry in 2014-15 resulted in the destruction of more than 50 million chickens and turkeys in the U.S., causing billions of dollars in economic loss. This animal disease outbreak — the worst in U.S. history — is one example of how devastating a foreign animal disease can be to animal agriculture and the country's economy. The resurgence of avian influenza in multiple states, including Pennsylvania, is once again bringing the importance of preventing animal diseases to the forefront, noted Suresh Kuchipudi, clinical professor of microbiology in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. Exploring the emergence, spread and control of animal infectious diseases such as avian influenza was the focus of the inaugural Emerging Animal Infectious Disease Conference held Nov. 29-Dec.1, 2021, at Penn State. It was hosted by the College of Agricultural Sciences, the Pennsylvania Department of A
Read more

Model Monday's: Diana Moldovan

Image
dented can botulism :: Article Creator Three Canadians Sickened In France's Botulism Outbreak Are From Quebec: PHAC The Public Health Agency of Canada has confirmed that the three Canadians who fell ill in a botulism outbreak in France are from Quebec. They're among at least 12 people who have suspected botulism after eating sardines prepared and served at Tchin Tchin Wine Bar in Bordeaux, France. The food was eaten between Sept. 4 and Sept. 10. The Associated Press has reported that some patients have been released from hospital, but most of them are in intensive care or critical condition. Canada's public health agency says it cannot divulge the condition of the patients from Quebec because it is considered private health information. Other tourists from the U.S., Ireland, Germany and Spain were among those sickened. One patient, who was not from Canada, has died. France's public health agency is leading the investigation
Read more

“Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware - Krebs on Security” plus 1 more

Image
“Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware - Krebs on Security” plus 1 more Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware - Krebs on Security Posted: 12 Mar 2020 05:12 PM PDT Cybercriminals constantly latch on to news items that captivate the public's attention, but usually they do so by sensationalizing the topic or spreading misinformation about it. Recently, however, cybercrooks have started disseminating real-time, accurate information about global infection rates tied to the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic in a bid to infect computers with malicious software. A recent snapshot of the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus data map, available at coronavirus.jhu.edu. In one scheme, an interactive dashboard of Coronavirus infections and deaths produced by Johns Hopkins University is being used in malicious Web sites (and possibly spam emails) to spread password-stealing malware. Late last month, a member of several Russian language cybercr
Read more