Encyclopedia of Drugs, Alcohol & Addictive Behavior, 4 Volume Set

Information on various drugs and addictive behaviors traces the evolution of drug use, changes in state and federal laws regarding drug use, and new discoveries on the composition and addictive elements of certain drugs.

First published in 1995 as the Encyclopedia of Drugs and Alcohol, this encyclopedia has been revised and updated to include the latest information about substance abuse and addiction. The second edition reflects the addition of material on addictive behaviors not associated with substance abuse, such as gambling and eating disorders. It also includes articles in the area of addiction studies based on the new brain-imaging techniques and human genome research.

The encyclopedia is still a multidisciplinary work with signed articles by respected scholars from international research centers. Volume one has a list of the editors and contributors and a table of contents for the entire set. The alphabetically arranged articles are two to four pages long and cover psychology, pharmacology, countries, organizations, and legal issues. Entries include specific substances (Alcohol, Cannabis sativa), diseases and conditions (Accidents and injuries from drugs, Fetal alcohol syndrome), associations (Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Students Against Destructive Decisions), countries (Bolivia, drug use in), treatments (Methadone maintenance programs), and pharmacology (Drug metabolism). Miscellaneous topics such as the history of drinking, the causes of drug abuse, employee assistance programs, crop control policies, and religion and drug use show the wide range of coverage. Bibliographies, illustrations, tables, and charts augment the text. A series of appendixes offers directories of poison control centers, state and federal government drug resources, and state-by-state treatment and prevention programs. Bureau of Justice statistics on drug-related topics and a schedule of controlled substances round out the work.

The encyclopedia is a technical work that is accessible to lay readers. It provides a wealth of information about the diverse area of drug use and addiction. Libraries that own the earlier edition will want to update because a great deal of new material has been added. An excellent resource for public, academic, and health sciences libraries. RBB
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