Linda Burlison

Linda Burlison began researching medications for alcoholism for a friend who was fighting a battle with alcoholism. "I started to come across hundreds of studies in the world's top medical and scientific journals showing their effectiveness. However, when we asked doctors about them, they had never heard of them. I realized there was a major disconnect between the medical research and what doctors were prescribing," says Burlison. "Because North American pharmaceutical companies are not...See more

Linda Burlison began researching medications for alcoholism for a friend who was fighting a battle with alcoholism. "I started to come across hundreds of studies in the world's top medical and scientific journals showing their effectiveness. However, when we asked doctors about them, they had never heard of them. I realized there was a major disconnect between the medical research and what doctors were prescribing," says Burlison. "Because North American pharmaceutical companies are not marketing them, and 12-step programs like AA don't talk about them, even though research proves these drugs are very effective, nobody knows about them." "It's a tragedy with massive proportions. I know people who have lost daughters, wives, husbands, friends to this disease, and never knew medication was a real treatment option," says Burlison. In the United States it is estimated that 18 million Americans suffer from alcoholism, and the World Health Organization has called it the "number one killer." "Most of the medications, like acamprosate, naltrexone, baclofen, topiramate, gabapentin and several others are generic, and three of those can only be prescribed off-label for alcoholism. These factors mean no pharmaceutical rep will even mention them to a doctor." "12-step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous look down on the use of medication. AA is an 80-year old religion-based program which strictly follows a structure developed in the thirties. They will not talk about medical options at meetings." "And 12-Step programs only support complete abstinence - whereas some of these medications help drinkers reduce and manage their drinking, and don't require complete abstinence." "There is an enormous gap in our system. There are thousands of top scientists working in this area right now, but there is a gap between their research findings and what the public knows about evidence-based medical care for alcoholics. This book bridges the gap. It provides a picture of the medications that exist, points you to the research behind them as well as additional resources, and gives you what you need to have an informed conversation with your doctor," says Burlison. See less