Heath ‘ Science: briefs

CHICAGO (MCT) – If you’re hoarding leftover or expired prescription drugs, the kind that… CHICAGO (MCT) – If you’re hoarding leftover or expired prescription drugs, the kind that someone might want to chew or snort to get high, the federal government has some advice.

-Remove the pills from their original containers.

-Mix them with an unappetizing substance, such as kitty litter or coffee grounds, and put them in empty cans or sealed bags so they aren’t eaten by children, pets or Dumpster divers.

-Then, throw them in the trash.

-If the drugs are particularly powerful and addictive painkillers or stimulants, flush them down the toilet instead of disguising them in waste, if the label says the drugs are flushable.

This may sound like a lot of trouble, but it’s for a good reason. Accidental poisonings and prescription drug abuse are on the rise, and the misuse is increasingly prevalent among teens and young adults.

It’s now the second most common illegal drug problem in the nation behind marijuana, mostly because meds are so easy to get. More than 70 percent of the drug abusers say they get the pills from a friend or relative for free, said Jennifer de Vallance, spokeswoman for the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. -By Julie Deardorff, Chicago Tribune

SEATTLE (MCT) – Suicide. The word’s a killer at the ballot box.

You won’t hear it mentioned by the people who filed an initiative to the people in Washington state yesterday that would legalize what many people call “physician-assisted suicide.”

Instead, they’re calling it “The Death with Dignity Act.” The initiative backers know voters recoil at the word suicide, with its overtones of depression and irrationality. Opponents know it, too. They call themselves the “Coalition Against Assisted Suicide.” Duane French, who heads that group, says: “If someone takes their life, it’s suicide.”

So as the advocates gear up to try for 224,880 valid signatures by July 3 to make the fall ballot, they want people to think about an initiative meant to give people choice and control at life’s end. Not about “suicide.” And the fine print in the initiative even says so.

Still, advocates haven’t settled on what it should be called as they start their conversations with voters. No one goes for “medicide.” That was coined by convicted euthanizer Jack Kevorkian. -By Carol M. Ostrom, The Seattle Times