Substance Abuse News and Research

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30 percent of Americans report having some form of alcohol use disorder

About 30 percent of Americans report having some form of alcohol use disorder at some point in their lifetimes, including 17.8 percent with alcohol abuse and 12.5 percent with alcohol dependence, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

4 Jul 2007

Therapeutic value of meditation unproven

There is an enormous amount of interest in using meditation as a form of therapy to cope with a variety of modern-day health problems, especially hypertension, stress and chronic pain, but the majority of evidence that seems to support this notion is anecdotal, or it comes from poor quality studies, say Maria Ospina and Kenneth Bond, researchers at the University of Alberta/Capital Health Evidence-based Practice Center in Edmonton, Canada.

29 Jun 2007

Five distinct subtypes of alcoholism identified

Analyses of a national sample of individuals with alcohol dependence (alcoholism) reveal five distinct subtypes of the disease, according to a new study by scientists at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

29 Jun 2007

Dangers of permitting smoking in the workplace

Offering alarming new evidence on the dangers of permitting smoking in the workplace, scientists have found that nonsmoking restaurant and bar employees absorb a potent carcinogennot considered safe at any levelwhile working in places where they had to breathe tobacco smoke from customers and co-workers.

29 Jun 2007

Smoking may interfere with alcoholics neurocognitive recovery from abstinence

Alcoholics frequently smoke. Anywhere from 50 to 90 percent of individuals in North America who seek alcoholism treatment are also chronic smokers.

26 Jun 2007

Urgent need for countries to provide a network of community mental health services

For the first time, WHO invited people living with mental disorders to attend the Forum, sending a message to countries that it is important to give a voice to this excluded group to claim their rights and secure their participation in society.

3 Jun 2007

In utero exposure to smoking associated with ADHD problems in genetically susceptible children

Women smokers who become pregnant have long been encouraged to reduce or eliminate their nicotine intake.

24 May 2007

Veterans with extreme mixed handedness and high combat exposure five times more likely to have PTSD

A recent study conducted by investigators with the Geisinger Center for Health Research shows a clear link between combat veterans' use of both hands for common tasks and the likelihood that they will experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

24 May 2007

People with HIV who drop out of care do not live as long as those who remain under a doctor's treatment

While HIV is now a chronic or lifelong disease, it is one that typically strikes at a relatively young age. That makes the population different from those who have high blood pressure or adult-onset diabetes.

15 May 2007

Ritalin abuse is on the rise among teens

College is hard enough. But throw in end-of-semester exams, term papers and standardized tests, and there just aren't enough hours in the day. Enter Ritalin, the latest drug of choice among sleep-deprived students struggling to make the grade.

11 May 2007

Amount of pocket money directly liked to risky drinking in teenagers

Youths who receive more than 10 pounds a week in spending money and who buy alcohol for themselves are more likely to become 'problem drinkers', a survey of over 10,000 teenagers reveals.

11 May 2007

Bipolar all too often misdiagnosed

According to researchers from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) there are twice as many Americans with bipolar disorder as previously thought, and many are untreated.

9 May 2007

Bipolar disorder may be more accurately characterized as a spectrum disorder

A new study supports earlier estimates of the prevalence of bipolar disorder in the U.S. population, and suggests the illness may be more accurately characterized as a spectrum disorder.

8 May 2007

Doctors say too many Brits addicted to OTC drugs

Doctors in Britain are warning about the dangers of becoming addicted to over-the-counter (OTC) medicines; they say more research is needed on how many misuse OTC drugs.

7 May 2007

Childhood-onset bipolar disorder is more common than believed

In bipolar disorder, also called manic-depressive disorder, a person experiences mood changes that fluctuate between periods of abnormally high energy and extreme depression.

2 May 2007

Drama can be an effective mechanism to educate and motivate

Drama certainly has the power to entertain, but can it also change behavior? A play about substance abuse was successful at prompting audience members to participate in substance abuse prevention activities, according to Allyn Howlett, Ph.D., from Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

1 May 2007

First large-scale study to assess treatment for prescription drug addiction

UCSF is launching a new study to evaluate treatments for addiction to prescription painkillers and has openings for patients to enroll.

19 Apr 2007

New perspectives on risk taking in adolescence

While the government spends billions of dollars on educational and prevention programs to persuade teens not to do things like smoke, drink or do drugs, a Temple University psychologist suggests that competing systems within the brain make adolescents more susceptible to engaging in risky or dangerous behavior, and that educational interventions alone are unlikely to be effective.

15 Apr 2007

Aftermath of suicide attempts - helping families cope

When a child attempts suicide, these emotions hit families like a Mack truck. Some family members bury their feelings deep inside and refuse to accept the stark reality.

15 Apr 2007

Full impact of mental health and substance abuse disorders on U.S. community hospitals

Almost one-fourth of all stays in U.S. community hospitals for patients age 18 and older – 7.6 million of nearly 32 million stays – involved depressive, bipolar, schizophrenia and other mental health disorders or substance use related disorders in 2004, according to a new report by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

11 Apr 2007