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Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Big spike recorded in older drug, alcohol addicts



They go around this room at the Hanley Center telling of their struggles with alcohol and drugs. They tell of low points and lapses, brushes with death and pain caused to families. And silently, through the simple fact that each is in their 60s or beyond, they share one more secret: Addiction knows no age.

"I retired, I started drinking more," one man said. "I lost my father, my mother, my dog, and it gave me a good excuse," said another.

A remarkable shift in the number of older adults reporting substance abuse problems is making this scene more common. Between 1992 and 2008, treatment admissions for those 50 and older more than doubled in the U.S. That number will continue to grow, experts say, as the massive baby boom generation ages.   > > > >  Read More