http://www.newser.com/2008 - Newseren-usNewser Feed GeneratorThu, 20 Nov 2008 1:37:31 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/42284/coke-addicts-can-blame-it-on-dna.html?refid=rss_all_defaultA newly discovered gene can improve your chances of getting hooked on cocaine, scientists said today. A study of 670 cocaine addicts and 700 non-users found that addicts were 25% more likely to have the gene variant. The discovery could lead to DNA screenings for those likely to try the drug, scientists say. "You can certainly use this as a vulnerability marker for cocaine addiction," an author of the study told the Guardian .http://www.newser.com/story/42284/coke-addicts-can-blame-it-on-dna.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMon, 10 Nov 2008 20:31:25 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/36327/cocaines-nazi-ties-moved-mirren-to-quit.html?refid=rss_all_defaultHelen Mirren stopped using cocaine because of a Nazi war criminal. “I loved coke," says the Academy Award-winning actress. "I never did a lot, just a little bit at parties.” And she gave it up after learning that Klaus Barbie was living off cocaine proceeds while hiding out in South America in the 1980s, the Guardian reports.http://www.newser.com/story/36327/cocaines-nazi-ties-moved-mirren-to-quit.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMon, 01 Sep 2008 8:47:41 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/34045/lets-legalize-drug-use-argentine-prez.html?refid=rss_all_defaultArgentina's president is seeking to legalize drug use and a crack down on dealing and trafficking, CNN reports. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's plan follows similar moves by European and Latin American nations, where decriminalization has not increased drug use, one expert said. Mexico proposed such a law several years ago, but backed down when Washington reacted harshly.http://www.newser.com/story/34045/lets-legalize-drug-use-argentine-prez.html?refid=rss_all_defaultSun, 03 Aug 2008 14:52:24 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/32821/junkie-turned-reporter-writes-his-own-story.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThe junkie's tale of redemption is nearly a cliché by now, and David Carr acknowledges as much as he writes his own. But Carr, now a reporter for the New York Times , takes pains not to sugar-coat the years he spent as a "fat thug who beat up women and sold bad coke." His salvation turned out to be his coke-addicted girlfriend and the twin girls they had—the same twins he once left alone as infants in a frigid car as he visited a dope house .http://www.newser.com/story/32821/junkie-turned-reporter-writes-his-own-story.html?refid=rss_all_defaultSat, 19 Jul 2008 9:12:29 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/30709/stronger-weed-ignites-controversy.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMarijuana is getting stronger, but what exactly that means is open to interpretation. The Boston Globe looks at a dispute with clearly drawn sides but fuzzier facts. Is pot addictive and highly hazardous, or no more harmful than caffeine and perhaps medically beneficial? With minimal research to draw on, experts say, opponents and proponents of weed are cherry-picking their data.http://www.newser.com/story/30709/stronger-weed-ignites-controversy.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMon, 23 Jun 2008 11:12:50 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/29834/weed-potency-hits-30-year-high.html?refid=rss_all_defaultToday's marijuana is the strongest crop since the heyday of Cheech and Chong, a new study finds. University researchers who analyzed seized samples dating back to the '70s found the level of active ingredient THC hit an average of 9.6% last year, up almost 1% from the year before and more than double the 4% recorded for 1983, the AP reports.http://www.newser.com/story/29834/weed-potency-hits-30-year-high.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 12 Jun 2008 2:12:56 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/29123/dude-harsh-weed-shrinks-your-brain.html?refid=rss_all_defaultHeavy marijuana use over a number of years can cause significant brain abnormalities, damage memory and emotional processing, and even shrink parts of the brain, the Age reports. All cannabis smokers—not just high-risk groups such as the young and those susceptible to mental illness—can experience effects equivalent to those of a mild brain injury, Australian researchers found.http://www.newser.com/story/29123/dude-harsh-weed-shrinks-your-brain.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 03 Jun 2008 14:33:30 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/28997/tatum-oneal-nabbed-in-crack-bust.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTroubled actress Tatum O'Neal, who wrote a book on her addiction to drugs and alcohol, was arrested last night for buying crack cocaine down the block from her Manhattan luxury condo, the New York Post reports. O'Neal, who at 10 was the youngest person to win an Oscar, for Paper Moon , was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance.http://www.newser.com/story/28997/tatum-oneal-nabbed-in-crack-bust.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMon, 02 Jun 2008 9:15:36 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/28682/hamilton-beats-drugs-odds-in-comeback.html?refid=rss_all_defaultJosh Hamilton can appreciate the high he's riding now, because his personal lows have been pretty rough. The first pick of baseball's 1999 draft was booted in 2004 for failing drug tests after picking up a cocaine habit. But now the Rangers outfielder has traded a bottle of Crown Royal a day for a swing at the triple crown, Sports Illustrated reports.http://www.newser.com/story/28682/hamilton-beats-drugs-odds-in-comeback.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThu, 29 May 2008 8:04:26 CDT