David Larson, M.D., president of the National Institute of Health-Car Research,and researchers Mary Milanc Corstance Barry have analyzed scientific data on the effects of religion in a number of areas,including substance abuse,heart disease,surgery,marital relations and suicide Encouraging religious commitment, then say,could offer a multifaceted way of reducing expenditures for treatment of addictions and mental disorders,leading to shortened hospitalizations through faster recovery rates and decreased need for expensive prescription drugs.