A quarter of parents of young children who drink alcohol on special occasions do not think about limiting how much they drink or whether they’ll be able to take care of their child the next day, according to a new national poll.
Very shy people are more likely to suffer "hangxiety" - anxiety during a hangover - than their extrovert friends, new research shows. In a study of almost 100 social drinkers with either high or low levels of shyness, drinking about six units of alcohol slightly decreased anxiety in highly shy people.
A Sandia National Laboratories employee started a Family and Friends of Addicts Support Group to give the workforce a place to talk where others "get it."
Chicago adults identified drug abuse, obesity, and child abuse and neglect as the top three big health problems for children and adolescents in the city, according to results from a new survey developed by Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH).
A new study from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing) suggests that alcohol consumption may attenuate long-term weight loss in adults with Type 2 diabetes.
Parkinson's disease, osteoarthritis, rheumatic diseases, alcoholism and mental health disorders increase the risk of surgical complications after a hip fracture surgery, a new Finnish study analysing nationwide registers finds. 4.6% of all hip surgery patients and 10% of total hip replacement surgery patients experienced surgical complications within three months following their surgery.
In a study of 174 Army Reserve and National Guard soldiers who hadn’t been deployed, researchers found that more negative non-deployment emotions were associated with a range of alcohol use outcomes.
The #MeToo movement that began in 2017 has increased attention to bystander training programs that encourage third-party witnesses to intervene (i.e., become involved in stopping aggression) in high-risk sexual situations. With limited information available on the effects of alcohol on bystander intervention in these situations, bystander training programs rarely train bystanders to intervene to prevent sexual aggression when they are intoxicated. This study tested the impact of alcohol on the likelihood and speed of intervention in witnessed sexual aggression by men who self-reported an intent to help strangers.
Internalizing problems such as depression and anxiety, along with alcohol misuse, increase during adolescence. All three predict poor social, academic, and emotional outcomes – particularly for girls. However, it is unclear what relationships exist among these problems. Do depression and anxiety lead to more alcohol use or does drinking lead to increased depression and anxiety? This study aimed to answer these questions, exploring reciprocal associations between depression and alcohol use and anxiety and alcohol use in girls from ages 13 to 17.
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a common condition with a high economic impact in both children and adults, concludes an updated review in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.
Millions of Americans have no idea that they have fatty liver disease. This growing problem will soon be the number one reason for liver transplantation, overtaking hepatitis C. Holiday overindulgence in alcohol and food could make the problem dramatically worse.
An international team of researchers has identified a gene that regulates how quickly the body metabolizes alcohol as a key risk factor for alcohol dependence. The researchers, from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and several other institutions, also linked genetic factors associated with alcohol dependence to other psychiatric disorders.
Automobile crashes related to driving while intoxicated (DWI) account for approximately 30 percent of fatal crashes, and 10,000 deaths annually. Social support – defined as emotional, informational, or instrumental help from individuals' social networks – can be helpful to individuals recovering from alcohol use disorders (AUDs). However, it is unclear what impact social support may have on reducing the risk of recidivism of alcohol-impaired driving. This study examined the role of social support in motivating individuals with histories of DWI arrests to reduce their alcohol use.
People living in colder regions with less sunlight consume more alcohol and experience more alcoholic liver disease.
Just as the population of older adults is increasing worldwide, so too is the number of older adults who consume alcohol. Older adults are more sensitive to the adverse effects of alcohol due to age-related health impairment and physiological changes in metabolism and body composition. This study looked at how at-risk drinking among older adults changes over time.
Individuals who seek help for an alcohol use disorder (AUD) may be presented with either of two treatment goals: abstinence or no heavy-drinking days, which are approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in testing medications to treat AUD. However, these goals may fail to work for individuals who seek to reduce their drinking. An alternative approach uses the World Health Organization (WHO) drinking risk levels – very high, high, moderate, and low – which are defined in terms of average alcohol consumption in grams per day. A reduction in these levels may provide a useful third option in assessing the success of AUD treatment. This study examined the association between reductions in WHO drinking risk levels and improvements in physical health and quality of life among individuals with alcohol dependence.
Research shows that many soldiers who have never been deployed experience negative emotions such as feelings of guilt and decreased value, connectedness, and camaraderie within their unit. Additional research shows that US Army Reserve/National Guard (USAR/NG) soldiers are at high risk for alcohol misuse. This study examined whether emotions related to non-deployment among USAR/NG soldiers contributed to an increased risk of alcohol misuse.
Researchers at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine have discovered that targeting a specific signaling pathway could potentially provide a new therapeutic avenue for treating Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, the most severe fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
People who were exposed to the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center (WTC) have elevated rates of alcohol- or drug-related death, reports a study in the October Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
When alcohol enters the brain, it causes neurons in a specialized region called the ventral tegmental area, or VTA — also known as the “pleasure center” — to release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that produces those feel-good sensations, and tells the brain that whatever it just experienced is worth getting more of.
It is estimated that only 20 to 24 percent of individuals with an alcohol use disorder (AUD) ever receive treatment of any kind for their disease. Most of the reasons given for not seeking treatment relate to the person’s inability or unwillingness to attend traditional in-person treatment. One alternative may be “contingency management.” This is a method in which a reward is given – for example, money, privileges, or prizes – once abstinence from alcohol or the drug in question is verified. This study examined the effectiveness of providing a financial reward for alcohol abstinence.
People who undergo Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery, a common type of bariatric surgery, are at an increased risk for alcohol-related problems. However, common screening tools that help physicians identify patients at high risk for alcohol use disorder fail to work well in this population.
Using machine learning techniques, American University Computer Science Professor Nathalie Japkowicz and her colleagues designed a way to detect unusual activity in a car’s computer system. Unusual activity could signal a cyberattack.
Analyzing data from more than 400,000 people, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that consuming one to two drinks four or more times per week — an amount deemed healthy by current guidelines — increases the risk of premature death by 20 percent.
Both the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the Centers for Disease Control have concluded that up to one drink daily for women, and up to two drinks daily for men, fall within U.S. dietary guidelines. Several studies have reported that consuming one to two drinks on occasion – called low-level drinking – is protective against cardiovascular disease. However, other research has shown that any alcohol use appears to increase the risk of some types of cancer. This study used large-scale databases to analyze the association between alcohol use and risk of death.
A new study from researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) found that alcohol outlets in Baltimore that sell alcohol for off-premise consumption (such as liquor stores and beer and wine stores) have a stronger association with incidences of violent crimes, including homicides, aggravated assaults, sexual assaults, and robbery, than alcohol outlets in Baltimore where alcohol is bought and consumed on-site, such as bars and restaurants.
Previous research has shown that violent crimes are associated with greater access to alcohol outlets. It is unclear, however, whether on-premise outlets such as bars, or off-premise outlets such as liquor stores, have a stronger association with violent crimes. This study used more precise measurement of outlet locations to examine associations between violent crimes and access to different types of alcohol outlets in Baltimore, Maryland.
“Would you rather have $14 today or $25 in 19 days?” Researchers studied adults aged 18-25 from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and found that self-regulation may hold the key to helping young adults overcome their risk for developing alcohol and drug problems
The risks of alcohol consumption differ by the presence or absence of simultaneous use of other substances, the most common one being marijuana. Simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use may increase alcohol-related risks and societal costs. This paper examined historical changes in simultaneous alcohol/marijuana use among young adult alcohol users from 1977 – 2016.
Prior research has shown that alcohol use disorders and eating disorders such as bulimia nervosa – binge eating often followed by self-induced vomiting – may have a shared genetic risk. It is unclear, however, whether this risk extends to eating-disorder symptoms other than those associated with bulimia nervosa. This study examined several measures of alcohol use and drive for thinness and body dissatisfaction, which are core eating-disorder symptoms, in adolescent female and male twins.
The latest research, features and announcements in healthcare in the Healthcare News Source
Teens are more prone to addiction because it’s a form of learning. Just as it’s easier for a younger brain to pick up new languages, athletic techniques, or musical instruments, it’s easier for them to pick up addictions.
Young adults who report mistreatment (‘maltreatment’ by the authors) during childhood often demonstrate poor decision-making skills and are at risk for developing alcohol or other drug (AOD) problems, in particular when around peers. Research suggests that decision-making depends on a person’s ability to regulate him/herself during socially stressful situations. This study examined relationships between child mistreatment and AOD problems, with a focus on lack of self-regulation by the young adults as a key risk factor.
Blackouts refer to partial or complete memory loss of events that occur while individuals are drinking. These individuals maintain consciousness during the event and may even be able to engage in complex behaviors such as conversing or driving. This study examined young adults’ perceptions of complete memory loss (“en bloc”) blackouts, and off-and-on memory loss (fragmentary) blackouts.
Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are known to adversely impact brain structure and function. Although recovery of brain morphology and function has been reported following abstinence from long-term alcohol use, some structural (e.g., brain area volumes and connections) and functional (e.g., cognitive) abnormalities due to long-term effects of AUDs may persist even after abstinence from alcohol. To further our understanding, scientists assessed the consequences of long-term alcohol use on brain circuitry, structural impairment patterns, and the impact of these impairments on cognitive function among individuals with AUDs who were abstinent.
A key ingredient of energy drinks could be exacerbating some of the negative effects of binge drinking according to a new study.
Pedestrian injuries and fatalities in the U.S. have steadily increased during recent years. In 2015, 5,376 pedestrians were killed and 70,000 injured. Prior research showed an association between the number of neighborhood alcohol stores and risk of pedestrian injury. However, it is unclear whether this was because alcohol stores were located in dense retail areas with already-heavy pedestrian traffic, or whether alcohol stores pose a unique neighborhood risk. This study compared the number of pedestrian injuries that occur near alcohol stores to those that occur near similar retail stores that do not sell alcohol.
You might want to think before you go out drinking again tonight. Research by Mariann Piano, senior associate dean of research at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, has found that young adults who frequently binge drink were more likely to have specific cardiovascular risk factors such as higher blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar at a younger age than non-binge drinkers.
With obesity continuing to rise in America, researchers decided to look at a sample of college students to better understand how drinking affects what they eat, both that night and for their first meal the next day.
While many people consider drinking to be a pleasurable activity at home or in social venues with friends, it can result in harm to the user and to others who are affected by the user’s drinking. These harms can include inter-personal violence, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs), emotional neglect, and social embarrassment, which can adversely affect close relationships, such as with family, and extended relationships, such as with friends, co-workers, and more distant relatives. This study analyzed the impact of having close- and extended-proximity relationships with a harmful drinker among men and women in 10 countries.
When a mutation for mitochondrial dysfunction is induced in a mouse model, the mouse develops wrinkled skin and extensive hair loss in a matter of weeks. This is reversed to normal appearance when mitochondrial function is restored by turning off the gene responsible for mitochondrial dysfunction.
Using a mouse model to simulate binge drinking, researchers at Columbia University showed that heavy alcohol use during adolescence damages neurons in the part of the brain involved in working memory.
Federal data shows a 65 percent increase in liver deaths over a seven-year period, according to a study by Michigan Medicine. Alcohol was a major cause but obesity plays a major role in troubling trends in liver mortality.
College students entering adulthood often drink too much. Negative consequences can include missed classes, poor grades, a wide array of injuries, and even assault. Many academic institutions have addressed this problem by offering computer-delivered interventions (CDIs) for rapid and wide dissemination to students. Although effective in the short term, CDIs are not as helpful longer-term as face-to-face interventions. However, face-to-face interventions are typically only used with students who receive alcohol sanctions, whereas CDIs can be used with large groups (such as student athletes, or all incoming students) and are more cost-effective. This study examined the usefulness of “boosters” – personalized emails sent to post-CDI participants– for maintaining decreased drinking.
An important part of communication is non-verbal. Most people who engage in social interactions recognize a range of emotional states reflected in other people’s facial expressions, body postures, and/or tone of voice. Alcoholism has been linked to difficulties in perceiving and processing emotions expressed in these non-verbal cues. This study examined whether these difficulties persist after long-term abstinence from alcohol.
Patients who suffer from Aspirin Exacerbated Respiratory Disease (AERD) often experience an additional allergic reaction when drinking alcohol, including nasal congestion, wheezing, and a runny nose. Now a new study led by researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania finds a common treatment for AERD – aspirin desensitization – can also help alleviate the alcohol-induced symptoms of the condition.
Millennials living more dangerously and settling down later could be creating a new generation of addicted smokers and e-cigarette users, according to the surprising results of research by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).
Young adults who had parents incarcerated during childhood do not receive timely healthcare and have more unhealthy behaviors, Lurie Children’s researchers find
Alcohol-related problems often begin in the late teens to early twenties, then decrease as drinkers grow older. However, recent reports indicate greater-than-expected problematic drinking by older populations. There are limited ways to predict which older individuals may develop alcohol-related problems, including those with earlier-onset alcohol use disorders (AUDs). This analysis evaluated predictors of alcohol outcomes among individuals who earlier reported AUDs while participating in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA).
The ability to recognize emotion in others’ facial expressions is an important social skill for interpersonal relationships, work interactions, and family life. Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are linked to a number of deficits in reasoning and emotional functions, including difficulty in identifying emotional facial expressions. This study examined the emotion-recognition abilities of individuals with an AUD and whether the expected deficits were associated with drinking or anxious and depressive symptoms.
RSS
Medicine keyboard_arrow_right
Sciencekeyboard_arrow_right
Life keyboard_arrow_right
Business keyboard_arrow_right
Journal News keyboard_arrow_right
By Location keyboard_arrow_right
Meetings, Grants, and Events keyboard_arrow_right