methampethatmine

Newly published U.S. data finds overdose deaths from methamphetamine use more than doubled in recent years. Use of the stimulant among Black Americans surged nearly tenfold.

Methamphetamine addiction is growing fast, but there's no approved medication to treat it. Now, some clinicians and researchers are experimenting with a drug used for opioid and alcohol addiction.

Many users now mix opioids with stimulants such as meth and cocaine. Researchers say efforts to get doctors to reduce opioid prescriptions may have driven some users to buy meth on the street instead.

"These sobering statistics are a wakeup call that we are losing too many Americans, too early and too often, to conditions that are preventable," says CDC Director Robert Redfield.

Dr. Gregory Gooden of Winter Haven was arrested Thursday on charges he wrote prescriptions for pain pills in exchange for methamphetamine and cash, the…