As I climbed 15-feet on a wooden ladder to the top of an old platform, next to this wall of leathery gray flesh, I caught a good whiff of fresh animal dung that immediately cleared my sinuses. Attempting to hide my fear from my wife with a poker face, and already feeling a little queasy, we were then advised by an old man who held a hammer in his right hand, to step into a shaky bamboo cradle seat atop of this seemingly gentle 8000 lb mammoth giant. As the sweat dripped off my forehead, I knew there was no turning back from the plunge into the humid jungle while perched on an elephants back that we had so enthusiastically planned. At last, we were elephant trekking in Thailand. Apart from the slow bumpy ride, and my thighs being chafed on the course sides of this enormous peaceful beast, the serene walk through the forest with its beautiful and unique flora on top of one of the strongest ancient animals alive, was an unforgettably pleasant experience for both of us.
Pathological Gambling and Poly-Behavioral Addiction
What Happens in Vegas (losing) Stays in Vegas (your money)
Recently, I visited Atlantic City for a family reunion and while driving on the Atlantic City Express Way I noticed a flashing neon road sign that read, You drive you speed you lose. After spending a week there, I told my relatives that the sign should read, You drive – to Atlantic City You lose, as speeding is optional. Whether it is in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, or even at home on your own computer with some online gambling website, what eventually happens is that approximately 20 million Americans develop gambling problems wagering and eventually losing approximately $0.5 trillion dollars annually (Feigelman, 1998). Someone has to pay those 24-hour electric bills. Approximately 2 million Americans are pathologic gamblers, 3 million adults can be considered problem gamblers and an additional 15 million are considered at-risk for problem gambling (NGISC, 1999). But who are the real losers? Findings from the 1999 Gambling Impact and Behavior Study reported that direct and indirect costs to American society from problem and pathologic gambling (e.g., health care, bankruptcy, criminal costs, etc.) are approximately $5 billion per year. That means that we the taxpayers are the real losers. The only Winners, are the Casino owners, stockholders, and others invested in the Gaming industry.
Pathological Eating Disorders and Poly-Behavioral Addiction
When considering that pathological eating disorders and their related diseases now afflict more people globally than malnutrition, some experts in the medical field are presently purporting that the worlds number one health problem is no longer heart disease or cancer, but obesity. According to the World Health Organization (June, 2005), obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally, with more than 1 billion adults overweight – at least 300 million of them clinically obese – and is a major contributor to the global burden of chronic disease and disability. Often coexisting in developing countries with under-nutrition, obesity is a complex condition, with serious social and psychological dimensions, affecting virtually all ages and socioeconomic groups. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (June, 2005), reports that during the past 20 years, obesity among adults has risen significantly in the United States. The latest data from the National Center for Health Statistics show that 30 percent of U.S. adults 20 years of age and older – over 60 million people – are obese. This increase is not limited to adults. The percentage of young people who are overweight has more than tripled since 1980. Among children and teens aged 6-19 years, 16 percent (over 9 million young people) are considered overweight.
Addiction; Desperate Maladies Require Desperate Remedies
An addiction is an uncontrollable strong craving for something, or to be abnormally dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming. There are many types of addiction, the most common are alcohol addiction, narcotic addiction, and drug addiction; also known as substance dependence.
Drug Addiction And Withdrawal Symptoms
An addict is a person who has an uncontrollable compulsion to repeat a behavior regardless of its negative consequence. There are many drugs that can lead to a condition recognized as addiction. The common symptoms are a craving for more of the drug, increased psychological tolerance to exposure, and withdrawal symptoms in the absence of the stimulus. A risk of dependency exists in most drugs that directly provide pleasure or relief.
There are two types of dependency phy…
Drug Rehabilitation – No easy options
The addict has to be the person who decides to have treatment. If relatives put their loved one in a rehab center without the addict’s cooperation he or she will go back to drugs within weeks of coming out. It is an expensive option, but really the only one. The money is going to be wasted though, unless the addict is a willing patient.
Alcohol Addiction and Cirrhosis of the Liver
Article discusses alcohol addiction and cirrhosis of the liver.
Addiction in Any Form is Abnormal
Addiction is in fact a hydra-headed concept having different facets. Medical researches and studies have divulged that every individual to some extent has an addiction. People who have an uncanny pining or obsession for anything, are indeed addicted.
Smokers, Death Benefit Arguments, and Poly-behavioral Addiction
Do Governments Save Money by Watching Smokers Die Prematurely?
This was the conclusion of a report, commissioned by Philip Morris, who looked at the cost of smoking in the Czech Republic in 1999. They concluded that tobacco can save a government millions of dollars in health care and pensions because many smokers die earlier. They reported that the government had benefited from savings on health care, pensions and housing for the elderly that totaled $30 million – the “indirect positive effects” of early deaths (Arthur D. Little International, 2000).
I was shocked to hear this death benefit argument for the first time, after making a presentation to a group of professionals informing them that tobacco use is the chief avoidable cause of illness and premature death for over 430,000 Americans each year. It reminded me of the dialog in the movie, Traffic, when Michael Douglas playing a congressman/ drug czar asked a Mexican general (played by Tomas Milian), How do you treat your drug addicts? And the general responded by saying, We let our drug addicts treat themselves. They overdose and die, and then there is one less drug addict to worry about.