Our CEO, Brittany Ringersen, sat down with Kate Snow in NBC’s Nightly News. Talking about the dangers of addiction following a routine doctor appointment among young people. “Hooked” is about the deadly risks that can arise from a simple dentist visit.
Brittany draws shares how a dentist’s visit was the beginning of her dark and long path of addiction. Their discussion reveals the pitfalls that come with pain medications. Not only do we need more warnings in labels, but doctors need to explain the dark side better.
“There was no dialogue with my family or me about the potential harm that it could cause or the potential for abuse,” says Brittany Ringersen. “There was not any conversation that I could remember that was ever had in regards to how to or not to take the pills.”
Like many others, Brittany followed her doctor’s prescription orders, without knowing the side effects. Opioids, even the ones given out with a valid prescription, can be increasingly dangerous. The way they attach to the opioid receptors in our brains and provide long-lasting effects is highly addictive. For young people, like Brittany, who’re looking to feel good, experiment, and try new things, an opioid recipe can be one for disaster.
“Maybe 50 percent of the patients will need a prescription,” says Dr. Moore. “We just don’t know which 50 percent, and we have to provide a prescription for people who may or may not need it.”
Dr. Paul Moore, professor of pharmacology and anesthesiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine.
You can read the entire story here.
