This is National Addictions Awareness Week

Susan Madore is the Regional Addiction Consultant with NL Health Services. She says alcohol is directly linked to seven types of cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Everyday activities, like driving a car, can include some amount of risk. Harm reduction is defined as any step taken to improve the health and wellness of an individual in their community. Paula Shepperd of the Corner Brook Status of Women Council says it’s the policies, programs, and practices that aim to reduce the health, social, and economic consequences of a behaviour. Jessica Rex is the safe work access program coordinator for the AIDS Committee of NL. She says policy experts, researchers, and clinicians all agree that addiction is a chronic condition. Rex says  and have all agreed about it and the contraction of disease and overdose are symptomatic but are preventable, and accessing hard reduction help will  bring back some control. Susan Madore is the Regional Addiction Consultant with NL Health Services. She says when people think of harm reduction and drug use, they think about injection drug use or cocaine and unregulated substances. She says alcohol is our most commonly used drug and is causing the most costs to our healthcare system. She says alcohol is directly linked to seven types of cancer and cardiovascular disease. This is National Addictions Awareness Week.