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"I ran across a shocking statistic over the weekend: Prescription drug abuse in America is up a shocking 400 percent, according to new data. Do you know someone who abuses prescription drugs? I do. I&amp;#x27;ve known several people in my life who have had dependency issues on prescription medication--some have recovered, others have not. The point is: I know how incredibly difficult it can be for people to break these addictions--many of which started from surgical pain or an accident. A new White House study reports a 400 percent jump in prescription drug abuse between 1998 and 2008. The Christian Science Monitor reports the cause may be a mix of a problematic lack of monitoring programs as well as Americans&amp;#x27; increasing unwillingness to bear even small pains. &amp;amp;#8220;There has been a strong push among doctors in recent years to be more aggressive in addressing pain,&amp;amp;#8221; said Dr. Scott Glaser, president of Pain Specialists of Greater Chicago. &amp;quot;This has led to the dramatic increase in opiates such as morphine, but the problem is there hasn&amp;amp;#8217;t been a whole lot of science to go along with that.&amp;amp;#8221; Adds addiction specialist Clare Kavin: &amp;amp;#8220;We are in a culture of immediate gratification and nobody will put up with even the slightest discomfort anymore,&amp;amp;#8221; she says. This underlying attitude leads many patients to push for stronger painkillers when lower strength--but non-addictive--drugs would have sufficed in the past, she adds. We&amp;#x27;ve heard about too many celebrity deaths related to prescription drugs (hello Michael Jackson and Anna Nicole Smith), and I&amp;#x27;d bet you know, or have known, someone in your life who has an addiction to pain pills (I do). What are your thoughts on this rising problem in America? Have you ever had trouble with prescription drugs or known someone who has? More reading: *Don&amp;#x27;t wash your prescription meds down with this, say experts--it may lessen their effectiveness ... *Real women share their pill stories ... *One woman&amp;#x27;s story of sleeping pill addiction ... More Ways to Get Glamour Visit Shopglamour.com for cute stuff starting at just $10! Enter the latest Glamour sweepstakes! Follow us on Twitter Add us to your iGoogle homepage FREE Beauty Stuff! Enter for your Chance to Win a New Prize Every Day! Photo: Jens Mortensen"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/vitamin-g/2010/07/prescription-drug-abuse-the-ne>