| Summary of a Presentation Made to the American Academy of Environmental Medicine Presented by David R. Root, MD., 1989 |
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| Dr. David Root is a physician specializing in occupational medicine with a private practice in Sacramento. California. He has treated numerous patients who had accumulated lipophilic chemicals through occupational exposure, using the method of detoxification developed by L. Ron Hubbard. In the course of his work, he has also treated approximately 75 drug abusers with this detoxification program. He recently reported the results of a follow-up study of these drug abuse patients at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine. The long-term success rate for drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs is not extremely high. Abstinence from drugs for 2 years after undergoing rehabilitation treatment by 30% of the patients is considered quite acceptable. This means that 70% of the patients are not succeeding in staying off of drugs. Such a recidivism rate is cause for deep concern. One hypothesis is that a hidden cause of recidivism amongst drug abusers is the presence in their bodies of residual levels of drugs and their metabolites. This led to the proposition that removing these compounds from the body would assist in the recovery of the drug abuser.One program documented to reduce levels of fat-stored xenobiotics is the detoxification program developed by Hubbard. This program was originally developed to assist in the recovery of drug abusers. The program aims to mobilize and eliminate fat-stored xenobiotics. We have treated drug abusers using this detoxification procedure as the chief component of a drug rehabilitation program. This program consists of the following components: 1. Initial interview. In the initial interview, the particular needs of the patient are assessed. We refer patients who are addicted to either crack cocaine or to heroin to facilities better able to meet their needs. We actively follow up each patient to make sure that he or she is able to stay off of drugs. We have been delivering this program for 5 years. Recently, we conducted a follow-up interview of all available patients to assess the long-term efficacy of this program. 1. PATIENT POPULATION 29 men and 15 women were contacted. Their average age is now 34.2 ± 9.7 years (Range 17 – 73 years.). The average number of years in school was 14.1 ± 2.4 (range 10 – 22) years with an average income of about $30,000/year. DRUG USE Drug use had started in these patients at an average age of 16.6 ± 5.1 (range 8-30) years. 27 of those interviewed had used drugs greater than 10 years at the time of treatment. None had used drugs less than one year, three had used drugs I to 3 years and the balance from 4 to 10 years. At this follow-up interview, 41 of the 45 interviewed (91%) report that they are currently off of drugs. Alcohol was used socially by 22 of those interviewed but none of these reported heavy or uncontrolled drinking. The individual who had undertaken the program specifically for alcohol abuse reported that he no longer used alcohol.
POLYDRUG USE 2. FAMILY RELATIONS EMPLOYMENT PROFILES Work situations had also undergone change in some cases. 31 were already holding steady jobs prior to treatment. Following treatment, this number increased to 38. The number working inconsistently dropped from 6 to 3. The number who did nothing went from 5 to 1. The number of students remained the same. Of note, the one individual who supported himself through criminal activities prior to treatment now worked a steady job. PATIENT’S OPINIONS These patients’ opinions of the program were quite encouraging. 29 rated the program as very positive with another 13 rating it positively. 3 were indifferent and none were negative. Of the 45 surveyed, 39 have recommended this program to others. SUMMARY In sum, over the last five years, patients with drug abuse problems have been treated with Hubbard’s detoxification program, aimed at removing fat-stored xenobiotics. These patients have been assessed by personal follow-up interviews for ongoing drug abuse and social parameters. The reported rates of recovery from these patients are quite high, with 91% of those interviewed reporting no ongoing drug abuse. These data support the hypothesis that a hidden cause of recidivism amongst drug abusers is the presence in their bodies of residual levels of drugs and their metabolites. |