Cough Medicine Abuse On The Rise
09/15/10 - 04:44 PM
 RSS Feed

A panel of medical experts says cough syrup medicine should still be sold over-the-counter despite increasing abuse among teenagers.

Abuse of the cough syrup products, dubbed “robo-tripping” is on the rise.

There were more than 8,000 emergency room visits linked to robo-tripping in 2008.

But the Food and Drug Administration recently voted against a proposal that would require a doctor’s note to buy that medicine.

Other health experts believe that making the products prescription only would not take away the problem.

Mesa County substance abuse officials say teens would still find a way to get the cough syrup.

“The unfortunate thing about making big steps toward eliminating the availability of substance is that there’s always going to be something else.  If it’s not Robitussin because it’s behind the counter, teenagers are most likely going to find something else that will give them a similar or equal high,” Family and Adolescent Partnership Spokeswoman, Angie Wickersham said.

If you know a teen using or abusing a substance you can contact the Family and Adolescent Partnership at 244-3845.

This entry has been viewed 671 times.

KREXTV.com requires that you be a registered site member to post comments and content.

login | register

Why Register?
First, we are not being sneaky and gathering your email or other information to sell to telemarketers or e-mail spam companies.

Registration on this site is required simply to allow us to keep people who would post discriminatory, threatening and harassing messages and comments from doing it again.

By having user registration, we hope to provide you with a better user experience. Please view KREXTV.com's full Terms & Conditions