Abstinence News and Research

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Abstinence is a voluntary restraint from indulging a desire or appetite for certain bodily activities that are widely experienced as giving pleasure. Most frequently, the term refers to abstention from sexual intercourse, alcohol or food. The practice can arise from religious prohibitions or practical considerations.

Longer looks: Perry's personal health policies; 5 state Medicaid strategies; medical illiteracy

When defending his 2007 attempt to make human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations mandatory for young girls in Texas, pointed out that both of his parents were cancer survivors and proclaimed, "I hate cancer." When asked to justify continued spending on abstinence-only education, despite the fact that it didn't seem to be budging Texas' high rates of teen pregnancy, he said, "I can tell you from my own life that abstinence works."

2 Sep 2011

Money now preferred to cocaine later

When a research team asked cocaine addicts to choose, hypothetically, between money now or cocaine of greater value later, "preference was almost exclusively for the money now," said Warren K., Bickel, professor in the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, director of the Advanced Recovery Research Center, and professor of psychology in the College of Science at Virginia Tech.

12 Aug 2011

22nd Century initiates enrollment in Phase II-B clinical trial of X-22 for smoking cessation

22nd Century Group, Inc., a company focused on smoking cessation and tobacco harm reduction products, today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, 22nd Century Limited, LLC, enrolled the first patients in its Phase II-B clinical trial for X-22, a prescription smoking cessation aid in development.

8 Aug 2011

Research roundup: Hospitalists & health costs; treating substance abuse

This study looks at the effects hospitalists -- or physicians who specialize in hospital medicine and health care -- have on patient care, costs and use of medical services.

6 Aug 2011

Centenarians have good genes rather than good lifestyles: Study

The team of researchers interviewed 477 people who were living independently and were 95 and older who were participating in a longevity research project that is trying to understand why centenarians live as long as they do.

4 Aug 2011

Smokers are misinformed about safety and efficacy of nicotine replacement therapy

Nearly half of all smokers in the United States attempt to quit at least once per year, yet the majority of these efforts fail. One factor contributing to the low annual rate of successful cessation is that the majority of quit attempts are made without evidence-based treatment such as nicotine replacement therapy.

28 Jul 2011

22nd Century receives FDA approval for X-22 IND to conduct Phase II-B smoking cessation trial

22nd Century Group, Inc., a company focused on smoking cessation and tobacco harm reduction products, today announced that the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared an Investigational New Drug (IND) Application to conduct a Phase II-B clinical trial using X-22, a prescription smoking cessation aid in development.

22 Jul 2011

New vaccine formulation may help heroin addicts maintain abstinence

Scientists are reporting development and successful initial laboratory tests on the key ingredient for a much-needed vaccine to help individuals addicted to heroin abstain from the illicit drug. Their study appears in ACS' Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.

21 Jul 2011

Two new studies support use of PrEP for HIV prevention among heterosexual men and women

"Two new studies done in three African countries have shown for the first time that AIDS drugs taken daily can cut by more than half a person's chance of becoming infected with HIV through heterosexual intercourse," the Washington Post reports.

14 Jul 2011

Researchers find clear changes in how emotions are processed in smokers

A team of researchers led by the University of Bonn found clear changes in how emotions are processed in smokers. After an abstinence period of 12 hours, the brain's fear center was mostly out of commission in addicts.

12 Jul 2011

Study: Threatened miscarriages complicate 20% of all pregnancies

Dr Kaltum Adam, an honorary clinical research fellow at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester (UK), told the annual meeting of the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology that around 20% of all pregnancies were complicated by threatened miscarriage, and up to 20% of these would miscarry.

5 Jul 2011

Varenicline may increase risk of adverse cardiovascular events among smokers

The use of varenicline to stop smoking is associated with a 72% increased risk of a serious adverse cardiovascular event, states an article in CMAJ.

5 Jul 2011

Text messages help smokers quit: Study

A behavioral study has found that motivational text messages sent to smokers' mobile phones can double their chances of giving up tobacco. The “txt2stop” trial at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and funded by the Medical Research Council tested the effects of inspirational text messages designed to encourage quitting on almost 3,000 smokers. Participants were twice as likely to banish their habit as another group sent texts unrelated to smoking.

30 Jun 2011

Mobile phone text messages help smokers to beat addiction

Mobile phones could hold the key to people giving up smoking after a programme involving sending motivational and supportive text messages to smokers doubled quit rates at six months.

30 Jun 2011

Study shows how binge drinking could cause serious brain damage in young adults

It's considered a rite of passage among young people - acting out their independence through heavy, episodic drinking. But a new University of Cincinnati study, the first of its kind nationally, is showing how binge drinking among adolescents and young adults could be causing serious damage to a brain that's still under development at this age.

28 Jun 2011

22nd Century submits IND to FDA for VLN cigarettes

22nd Century Group, Inc., a company focused on smoking cessation and tobacco harm reduction, announced today that 22nd Century Limited, LLC submitted an Investigational New Drug Application (IND) to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for X-22, a prescription smoking cessation aid in development.

22 Jun 2011

Drug addiction management costs UK £3.6bn a year: Report

According to a latest report from the think tank the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS), drug addiction costs £3.6bn a year for both treating problem drug users and keeping them on benefits. The study by has criticised government plans to change the way authorities tackle drug addiction. It claims the plans for payment-by-results schemes are “doomed to failure, not least because they are being run by the very organizations responsible for the current failure of policy”.

19 Jun 2011