A new effort to help drug addicts in the UAE get on the road to recovery has been launched in line with the upcoming Year of Tolerance.
Dubai's Erada Rehabilitation and Treatment Centre will spearhead the Masmooh campaign, which aims to educate people about the nature of drug addiction and bolster support networks - including families and the wider community - for those trying to beat their demons.
Dr Abdulqader Al Khayyat, chairman of Erada, said it was vital that drug addiction was treated as a disease not a crime - and that rehabilitation not punishment remains key.
In 2016, amendments to the anti-narcotics law downgraded the use of illegal drugs from a felony to a misdemeanour and allowed a drug user, handed in by their family to police or a rehab centre, to be admitted for treatment rather than face jail and fines.
“The initiative aims to spread positive energy among the families and communities that the recovering addicts belong to by educating them about the best ways to engage with and assist victims of this disease,” said Dr Al Khayyat.
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Read more:
UAE and US to join forces in combating drug addiction in Middle East
Change in UAE drug law prompts influx of patients at Abu Dhabi rehab centre
Drug rehabilitation centre for women to be built in Dubai
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The campaign has a three-pronged strategy to support the recovery of addicts and reintegrate them into society.
The first focuses on changing the family's perception of addiction so that they recognise it as a disease, with the help of specialists in the field
The second strategy focuses on helping the recovering addict become a productive member of society by opening up potential job opportunities.
The third part of the initiative aims to educate the community about drug addiction and promote forgiveness and understanding.
While the Masmooh campaign seeks to reach out to everyone in the UAE, it is particularly targeted at the families of recovering addicts and those who play a significant role in supporting the recovering addict’s rehabilitation, reintegration into society and acceptance in the workplace and other areas of life.
Last September, US officials requested the help of the UAE in combating the rise of drug addiction across the Middle East by sending trained UAE drug addiction counsellors to Sudan, Egypt and Jordan to pass on their skills.
The scheme aims to boost the number of qualified therapists in the wider Gulf region, who can then help to counter the growing issue of substance abuse.
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- Don’t do it more than once in three days
- Don’t go under 700 calories on fasting days
- Ensure there is sufficient water intake, as the body can go in dehydration mode
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Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
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