Feature Channels: Alcohol and Alcoholism

• share
• favorite_border

Click here to go directly to Newswise's Obesity News Source

• share
• favorite_border

Alcohol use early in the pregnancy by the mother may be a risk factor for a condition in which an infant's intestines develop outside the abdomen, according to a study published in the Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine.

• share
• favorite_border

Opioid addicts and others battling compulsion around drugs or alcohol are using a new high-tech, low-risk method to practice saying no—through virtual reality.

• share
• favorite_border

"Has this patient been drinking?" It's a critical question for neurosurgical nurses and other professionals when evaluating patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). But some groups of TBI patients are less likely to be screened for alcohol use, including women and younger patients, reports a study in the March issue of the Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, official journal of the American Association of Neuroscience Nurses.

• share
• favorite_border

Each year in the U.S., more than 40,000 patients need a liver transplant because of complications associated with cirrhosis and liver failure. Alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) alone accounts for nearly 30 percent of all liver transplants, yet up to 50 percent of patients with alcoholism return to drinking within five years of undergoing a liver transplant. Many transplant centers now require a minimum of six months of alcohol abstinence prior to placing candidates on the United Organ Network Sharing waiting list. This pilot study examined the use of text messaging as an alcohol relapse-prevention intervention for patients with ALD scheduled to undergo a liver transplant.

• share
• favorite_border

Emerging adulthood (between ages 18-25) is a period of critical vulnerability for problematic alcohol use. A substantial amount of research has examined alcohol risks in college-student populations, while much less research has focused on emerging adults who are not attending college. This study investigated the effectiveness of a brief personalized feedback intervention (PFI) tailored for nonstudent at-risk drinkers, the influence of gender on intervention outcomes, and the acceptability of the intervention to participants.

• share
• favorite_border

New research from an American University professor finds that teen attitudes towards drinking can be changed with the help of a short public service announcement.

• share
• favorite_border

Alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment and recovery research typically focuses on outcomes such as 'days abstinent.' Yet the degree to which individuals may be functioning better physically, socially and psychologically, how happy they may be, and their levels of self-esteem may be equally important as measures of progress. Little is known about whether such changes occur, when they may occur, and for whom, as people progress in recovery. This study sought to improve understanding of recovery milestones and points of vulnerability and growth.

• share
• favorite_border

Parents who allow their young children to occasionally sip and taste alcohol may be contributing to an increased risk for alcohol use and related problems when those kids reach late adolescence, according to a new study by a University at Buffalo psychologist. The findings contradict the common belief that letting kids sip and taste alcoholic drinks is harmless, and might even help to promote responsible drinking later in life.

• share
• favorite_border

Cholesterol in muscular dystrophy; synergy between alcohol and hepatitis in cholesterol levels; bacterial lipids in healthy arteries.

• share
• favorite_border

Women have become increasingly involved in drunk driving and fatal crashes. However, much of the research on drunk driving has been conducted using predominantly male samples. Little is known about the life context, psychiatric histories, and family backgrounds of women arrested for drunk driving. This study was based on interviews with women arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI); the study also compared women with single DUIs with those who had multiple DUI convictions.

• share
• favorite_border

Although it has been known that alterations in the connections between neurons in the brain likely play a role in alcohol dependence and other addictions, the cause-and-effect between these brain alterations and behavior has been less clear.

• share
• favorite_border

Indiana University researchers scanned the brains of individuals with alcohol abuse disorder to find the neurotransmitter glutamate may play a role in some addition cravings.

• share
• favorite_border

There are medications available to help people who drink excessive amounts of alcohol reduce or stop their drinking. One such medication is the opioid antagonist naltrexone, which has been approved for treatment of alcohol dependence by the Food and Drug Administration. Although naltrexone can reduce alcohol craving and help promote recovery for some individuals, it does not work for everyone. Prior research suggested that nicotine use/smoking status and genetic differences were predictors of response to naltrexone. This study further investigated the impact of nicotine use/smoking status and variation in the mu opioid receptor gene (OPRM1), specifically, an A118G single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP, or DNA sequence variation), on the effects of naltrexone on a range of drinking outcomes.

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

A new study, led by researchers at RTI International, surveyed more than 1,900 adults in Oregon prior to the legalization of marijuana in the state and found that more than half (52.5%) consider alcohol to be more harmful than marijuana while few (7.5%) believe marijuana is more harmful to a person’s health.

• share
• favorite_border

Binge or heavy episodic drinking (HED) – defined as four or more drinks in a two-hour period – among U.S. university women has increased by 40 percent during the past 30 years. This dramatic development suggests that women are “closing the gender gap” by drinking at rates similar to those of men. Feminine norms – beliefs and expectations about what it means to be a woman – may play a role in altering drinking patterns among this group. This study examined trajectories of HED among young adult women and the gender-relevant factors that may predict these trajectories.

• share
• favorite_border

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine found a significant number of children across four regions in the United States were determined to have fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). The new findings may represent more accurate prevalence estimates of FASD among the general population than prior research.

• share
• favorite_border

The five-year grant will support five individual research projects and three core resources at the TSRI Alcohol Research Center.

• share
• favorite_border

Genetic epidemiology is the study of how genetic factors may influence health. Twin and adoption studies have shown that about half of the risk of alcohol use disorders (AUDs) is due to differences in the genotypes that people carry, yet few specific genes that play a causal role have been identified. Scientists believe AUDs are highly polygenic – involving many genes – likely thousands. However, genetic risk for AUD may differ among populations. This study evaluated whether the genetic risk for AUDs differed among four population samples.

• share
• favorite_border

American Indians who drink alcohol are often collectively characterized as having greater risks for alcohol problems, alcohol misuse, and alcohol-use disorders. Indeed, despite high abstinence rates, American Indians experience elevated rates of many alcohol and other drug problems. However, American Indians also predominantly reside in poor and rural areas. This study investigated whether geographic areas that included reservations or large American Indian populations had greater incidences of alcohol- and drug-related hospitalizations.

• share
• favorite_border

A new study shows that binge drinkers have increased levels of a biomarker molecule — microRNA-21 — that may contribute to poor vascular function. Researchers believe that measurements of microRNA-21 could help determine if a patient with a history of binge drinking is at risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

• share
• favorite_border

Alcohol, marijuana, and ecstasy each have very different sexual effects, from attraction and desire to sensitivity to sexual dysfunction, finds a study by the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) at NYU Meyers College of Nursing.

• share
• favorite_border

Belief that mental illness is biological has increased among both health experts and the public in recent years. But campaigns to treat it as a disease and remove stigma may be lacking because other factors, such as bad character and upbringing, still are viewed as playing a role, a Baylor University study has found.

• share
• favorite_border

The Wake Forest Translational Alcohol Research Center will employ preclinical animal models and clinical research to study behavioral and neurobiological factors associated with vulnerability and resilience to alcohol use disorder.

• share
• favorite_border

• share
• favorite_border

Puerto Ricans make up the second largest Hispanic group in the United States, comprising 9.5% of the population (Mexicans are the largest group). Puerto Ricans living on the U.S. continent have some of the highest rates of drinking, binge drinking, and alcohol use disorder (AUD) of any of the U.S. Hispanic national groups. This research investigated lifetime criteria and severity (mild, moderate, severe) of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) AUD in Puerto Rico.

• share
• favorite_border

While moderate drinking – up to one drink per day for women, two for men – can be part of a healthy lifestyle, excessive and chronic drinking can contribute to injury and disease. Each year, U.S. patients utilize emergency department (ED) services more than 130 million times, averaging nearly four visits per every 10 people. Alcohol-related injury and disease are commonly the cause of these visits. This study examined trends in ED visits that involved heavy and chronic drinking by age and gender between 2006 to 2014.

• share
• favorite_border

Deception by research participants is a problem that needs to be recognized and addressed, according to a recent review. Research participants who conceal or fabricate information to gain admission to and participate in clinical research – for example, when financial compensation is provided – can undermine the reliability and reproducibility of study findings, and may contribute to false conclusions about medication efficacy and safety. The authors of the review suggested ways to identify and thus minimize the enrollment of rule-breaking study subjects who aim to participate in alcohol research.

• share
• favorite_border

In many western countries, public concern about violence and other problems at sporting events has increased. Alcohol is often involved. Research shows that approximately 40 percent of the spectators drink alcohol while attending U.S. baseball and football games, especially when alcohol is served within the arenas themselves. Alcohol-related problems can be compounded at large sport stadiums that hold tens of thousands of spectators. This study examined occurrences of overserving at licensed premises both inside and outside the arenas, and allowing entry of obviously intoxicated spectators into the arenas.

• share
• favorite_border

A single dose of lithium chloride, a drug used to treat bipolar disease and aggression, blocks the sleep disturbances, memory loss, and learning problems tied to fetal alcohol syndrome, new experiments in mice show.

• share
• favorite_border

Early adolescence is a high-risk period for alcohol experimentation and initiation. Adolescent drinking is linked to exposure to alcohol use in the media. This study examined the influence that movie portrayals of drinking may have on the onset of drinking among 6th, 7th and 8th graders, and the impact that viewing the movie with a friend or parent might have. Researchers also examined movie influence across a spectrum of early-drinking milestones: sipping alcohol (but not consuming a full drink), consuming a full drink of alcohol, and engaging in heavy episodic drinking.

• share
• favorite_border

A research team from the National University of Singapore has successfully turned tofu whey, a liquid that is generated from the production of tofu and is often discarded, into a tasty alcoholic beverage.

• share
• favorite_border

The holidays generate both positive and negative emotions, and drinking is one of the methods that people often use to cope.

• share
• favorite_border

Early-age drinking is common in many western nations; for example, 54 percent of Australian 14- to 19-year olds have reported past-year alcohol use. Although early-age drinking has been associated with developing later alcohol problems, findings have been inconsistent. This study used data from the Australian Parental Supply of Alcohol Longitudinal Study to examine age at first drink, age of first drunkenness, and associations with subsequent drinking during adolescence.

• share
• favorite_border

In a study of adolescent boys and girls, neuroscientists have found a sex difference in a gene linked to substance use disorders.

• share
• favorite_border

An anti-inflammatory drug may have the potential to stall the damaging effects of alcohol on the fetal brain, a new study suggests. Ibuprofen reduced neuroinflammation and behavioral signs of alcohol exposure in a rat model of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD).

• share
• favorite_border

Although estimates vary, scientists believe that 50 to 64 percent of the risk of alcohol use disorders (AUDs) is inherited. One way to identify this risk is through a person’s subjective response to alcohol. This study investigated the effects of two single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) or changes in DNA sequence called rs279858 (in the GABRA2 gene) and rs2832407 (in the GRIK1 gene) – previously linked to AUD risk – on individuals’ subjective responses to intravenously administered alcohol.

• share
• favorite_border

A simple blood test for a compound called PEth can accurately identify critically ill hospital patients who misuse alcohol, a study has found. The finding is important because patients who misuse alcohol tend to have worse outcomes.

• share
• favorite_border

Rural counties continue to rank lowest among counties across the U.S., in terms of health outcomes. A group of national organizations including the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the National 4-H Council are leading the way to close the rural health gap.

• share
• favorite_border

Heavy drinking impairs balance and motor coordination, which is why increased body sway is a useful indicator to both police and bartenders that a person may be intoxicated. People often drink alcohol at the same time that they ingest stimulant drugs such as caffeine or nicotine, yet it is unclear how these stimulants affect alcohol-induced balance impairment. This study examined whether combining a high-caffeine energy drink with alcohol can influence expected alcohol-induced increases in body sway.

• share
• favorite_border

The reward center of the brain is much more attuned to the pleasurable effects of alcohol when estrogen levels are elevated, an effect that may underlie the development of addiction in women, according to a study on mice at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

• share
• favorite_border

Afterschool programs with positive, responsive, and organized environments can have academic benefits for students, finds a new study by NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development.

• share
• favorite_border

New research presented today at APHA’s 2017 Annual Meeting and Expo examined the effect of marijuana use and dependence on life achievement in young adults.

• share
• favorite_border

Compared to controls, patients with psoriasis (PsO) are at higher risk for serious liver disease than patients with rheumatoid arthritis – two autoimmune diseases often treated with similar drugs that can cause liver damage.

• share
• favorite_border

Alcohol-fueled parties might be seen as a rite of passage for many high school students, but they have an unexpected impact: binge-drinking behavior as teenagers can lead to problems with alcohol and other drug dependence later on in life.

• share
• favorite_border

Although drinking by U.S. adolescents has decreased during the last decade, more than 20 percent of U.S. high-school students continue to drink alcohol before the age of 14 years. This can have adverse effects on their neurodevelopment. For example, youth who initiate drinking before 14 years of age are four times more likely to develop psychosocial, psychiatric, and substance-use difficulties than those who begin drinking after turning 20 years of age. Little is known about how the age of alcohol-use onset influences brain development. This is the first study to assess the association between age of adolescent drinking onset and neurocognitive performance, taking into account pre-existing cognitive function.

• share
• favorite_border

The etiology (i.e., underlying causes) of a behavior, such as alcohol drinking, can change during adolescence and young adulthood. Prior alcohol research has shown that, in general: shared/common environment influences are strongest in early adolescence, declining in strength until young adulthood; unique environmental influences are moderate, but stable, during adolescence and young adulthood; and genetic influences are weakest during early adolescence, steadily increasing in strength until young adulthood. This study examined the relations between genetic and environmental etiologies of alcohol use and the influence of peer use, parental autonomy granting, and maternal closeness on this behavior.

• share
• favorite_border

Hackensack Meridian Health, New Jersey’s most comprehensive health care network, hosted a symposium to update providers and the community on the network’s strategies to help those suffering from substance use disorders, an event that drew 450 people and featured a compelling personal story of recovery and call to action from former Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy.