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Fruit fly study shows role of unexplored neural circuit in modulating memory strength

Learning to avoid negative experiences requires an interplay of two distinct brain circuits, one to interpret "Yikes!" and drive learning, and the other, unexpectedly, to dial in the strength of that memory, a new fruit fly study shows.

15 May 2019

Lifestyle risk factors account for 27% of all cancer cases in Brazil

Lifestyle risk factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, overweight and obesity, unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity are associated with a third of all deaths caused by 20 types of cancer in Brazil, according to a new epidemiological study.

15 May 2019

Coffee addicts are more sensitive to the smell of coffee

Regular coffee drinkers can sniff out even tiny amounts of coffee and are faster at recognizing the aroma, compared to non-coffee drinkers, new research has found.

14 May 2019

Risk of children taking up smoking has reduced following tobacco display ban

The risk of 11 to 16-year-olds taking up smoking has reduced following the introduction of a ban on the open display of tobacco products in the UK, according to a new University of Stirling study.

14 May 2019

New program focuses on preventing alcohol, e-cigarette use by children

The bottom line is to help children grow up safer and healthier and to increase parents' ability to help them do that, says the investigator leading a $1.4 million state-funded alcohol and substance abuse prevention program.

13 May 2019

SLU researchers reveal how to turn off neuropathic pain in a laboratory setting

Facing an urgent need for safer and more effective therapies for those suffering from debilitating pain in the midst of an opioid crisis, Saint Louis University researchers are on a mission to find a non-narcotic off-switch for pain.

10 May 2019

Could deep brain stimulation help resolve the opioid epidemic?

Researchers have developed an implant that has shown promise for reducing addiction rates. However, there are major ethical and financial concerns, which we have tried to cover in this news story.

9 May 2019

Opioid overdose found to be most common cause of pregnancy-associated death in new moms

As the opioid epidemic rages on, one vulnerable group--new moms--have often been overlooked.

9 May 2019

Addiction medicine mostly prescribed to whites, even as opioid deaths rose among blacks

White drug users addicted to heroin, fentanyl and other opioids have had near-exclusive access to buprenorphine, a drug that curbs the craving for opioids and reduces the chance of a fatal overdose.

8 May 2019

New research says the ill effects of social media on teenagers is overstated

A new study has shown that social media has a “trivial” effect on teenagers in terms of life satisfaction. The study titled, “Social media’s enduring effect on adolescent life satisfaction” was published in the latest issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

7 May 2019

Electroconvulsive therapy appears to fight depression by 'rebooting' certain brain networks

Electroconvulsive therapy helps people with severe depression by "pushing the reset button" on brain networks involved in creating a mental picture, according to recent Baycrest findings.

7 May 2019

Meth vs. opioids: America has two drug epidemics, but focuses on one

Kim had been wine tasting with a friend in Sonoma, Calif. They got into an argument in the car that night and Kim thought someone was following them. She was utterly convinced. And she had to get away.

7 May 2019

Research on Reddit identifies risks associated with unproven treatments for opioid addiction

Using advanced machine-learning techniques, Georgia Tech researchers have examined nearly 1.5 million Reddit posts to identify risks associated with several of the most common alternative - and unproven - "treatments" for opioid addiction.

2 May 2019

Study of teens with eating disorders explores how substance users differ from non-substance users

Adolescence can be a minefield for those going through it. Along with natural bodily changes, teens also have to grapple with social pressures emphasizing thinness and other arbitrary standards of desirability.

1 May 2019

UH College of Pharmacy PREMIER Center aims to tackle prescription drug misuse

For the first time in American history, a person is more likely to die from an accidental opioid overdose than from a car accident.

1 May 2019

Diabetes drug could help with smoking cessation

Phillip Robinson has gone from 10 cigarettes a day to one or two every other day after enrolling in a smoking cessation clinical trial launched by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

30 Apr 2019

Study identifies how brain abnormalities associated with alcoholism differ for men and women

Compared to alcoholic women, alcoholic men have more diminished brain activity in areas responsible for emotional processing (limbic regions including the amygdala and hippocampus), as well as memory and social processing (cortical regions including the superior frontal and supramarginal regions) among other functions.

30 Apr 2019