American Society of Addiction Medicine
American Society of Addiction Medicine
Lead: Spirituality and Harmful or Hazardous Alcohol and Other Drug Use
Lead: Spirituality and Harmful or Hazardous Alcohol and Other Drug Use
Lead: Spirituality and Harmful or Hazardous Alcohol and Other Drug Use
Tuesday 3rd March 2026
Explore spirituality's protective role in addiction recovery and the latest findings in addiction medicine.
7 minutes
Informative
Inspiring
Educational
Hopeful
Eye-opening
About this podcast
Author:
American Society of Addiction Medicine
Overview:
Categories:
Innovative Treatments & Recovery Paths
Navigating Alcohol Dependency
Family Recovery from Addiction
Nutritional Pathways to Recovery
Navigating Intimate Relationships
Links:
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Episodes:
200 (View all)
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Get the buttons here!Spirituality's Role in Reducing Harmful Alcohol and Drug Use
Episode Overview
- Spiritual involvement can reduce harmful drug use by up to 18%.
- Significant racial disparities exist in opioid treatment access for adolescents.
- Higher fentanyl concentrations are linked to increased overdose mortality.
- Medicaid expansion improves access to buprenorphine treatment.
- Synaptogyrin-3 shows promise as a therapeutic agent for cocaine addiction.
"Spiritual practices can be a powerful ally in reducing harmful alcohol and drug use."
Get ready to be moved by real-life accounts of the role spirituality plays in addiction recovery. This episode of 'This Week in Addiction Medicine' from ASAM dives into the fascinating relationship between spiritual practices and the reduction of harmful or hazardous alcohol and drug use. Through a meta-analysis of 55 studies, researchers found that spiritual involvement, like attending religious services more than once a week, is associated with a significant 18% reduction in drug use across various substances.
Imagine the implications this could have for clinicians and communities seeking new strategies to combat addiction. The episode doesn't stop there. It also tackles statewide trends in opioid use disorder treatments among adolescents in Indiana, revealing stark racial disparities and highlighting the urgent need for equitable access to medication-assisted treatments. The podcast further explores the alarming rise of fentanyl concentrations in British Columbia's unregulated drug supply and its direct impact on overdose mortality rates.
With a keen focus on the intersection of public health policy and addiction treatment, the episode sheds light on how Medicaid expansion has influenced buprenorphine dispensing, emphasising the importance of policy changes in improving treatment accessibility. Listeners are also introduced to groundbreaking research on synaptogyrin-3, a protein with potential therapeutic benefits for cocaine addiction, and the complex epigenetic links between substance use and depression.
Whether you're interested in spirituality's protective role against addiction or curious about the latest findings in addiction medicine, this episode is packed with insights that could shape future recovery strategies. What role do you think spirituality could play in transforming addiction treatment?