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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – What image comes to mind when you hear the word “addict?” Some people may visualize a desperate person hiding in a dark alleyway and injecting drugs. But the face of addiction is changing. Addicts can be your friends, family members and co-workers. The prescription opioid crisis impacts society at every level, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that, in 2014, almost 2 million Americans abused or were dependent on prescription opioids. The CDC also reports that the opioid epidemic is getting worse. And a study in JAMA Pediatrics shows that babies are being born addicted to opioids, particularly in rural areas.
In this Mayo Clinic Minute, reporter Vivien Williams talks to pain management specialist Dr. Mike Hooten about opioid use, abuse and accidental overdose.