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He soon convinced the medical boards and those who followed that he could offer relief for chronic pain sufferers, which would improve their quality of life, including their relationships with their families who were affected 2nd hand by their pain. And who wouldn’t want to see people thrive with the ones they loved right?

Well, by the 1990’s, the drug disrupted the lives they were supposed to help and destroyed families. The first wave of mass opiate overdoses wiped across the United States. 86% percent of opioid prescriptions were for non-cancer pain treatment, according the poison control. Since there was limited data regarding the risks and benefits, it was handed out like candy in doctor’s offices across the country. And sadly, the rate of abuse, addiction, and overdoses steadily inclined.

At the present, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates a $78.5 billion a year "economic burden" of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States, which accounts for healthcare, lost productivity, addiction treatment, and criminal justice involvement.”

Thus, the CDC has attempted to redress the problem by issuing strict guidelines for prescription. Doctors were advised to recommend non-opioid treatments at the first attempt to combat chronic pain.

For many, that first step became natural remedies and over-the-counter treatments.