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Cannabis use spiked, but methamphetamine use plunged in Australia during COVID-19 lockdown

Wastewater samples taken during 2020 show that methamphetamine (ice) use plunged in Australia during the first COVID-19 lockdown while cannabis use spiked, according to a new study led by the University of South Australia.

18 Aug 2021

Study: COVID-19 pandemic resulted in increased rates of intimate partner aggression

Rates of physical and psychological aggression among couples increased significantly after the implementation of shelter-in-place restrictions at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study led by Georgia State University researchers.

17 Aug 2021

AIHW report: Modifiable risk factors cause one-third of disease burden

The overall health of Australians continues to improve, however, a new report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for 2018 show that further gains could be achieved by reducing leading risk factors such as tobacco use, overweight, and high blood pressure.

17 Aug 2021

Widowhood associated with greater risk of advanced prostate cancer

Social environment is a key factor in the risk of developing prostate cancer. PhD student Charlotte Salmon and Professor Marie-Élise Parent of Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) have shown that widowers are more likely to be diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer.

12 Aug 2021

Researchers aim to identify gene-lifestyle interactions that contribute to cardiometabolic disease risk

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have received a four-year, $8.8 million grant to ramp up research aimed at unraveling how an individual's risks of cardiometabolic diseases, such as heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, are influenced by the interaction of specific genes with demographic and lifestyle factors.

11 Aug 2021

Alcohol consumption increases risk of several cancers while coffee protects against liver, skin cancer

Alcohol consumption is a major risk factor for several cancers including head & neck, oesophageal and bowel cancer – as well as the more widely known links to breast and liver cancer – according to a new study funded by World Cancer Research Fund, and published this week in Nature Communications.

11 Aug 2021

High alcohol consumption increases risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, finds US student study

A new study finds that heavy alcohol drinking is associated with an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases among American college students.

10 Aug 2021

New research investigates the effects of California’s tobacco 21 minimum sales age law

New Research from the Prevention Research Center of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation investigated the effects of California's 2016 law that raised the minimum tobacco sales age to from 18 to 21 (T21) and found evidence that the new law has had positive public health effects on 7th, 9th, and 11th grade students from across California.

9 Aug 2021

Surfactant-coated nanoparticle applications in nanomedicine and food

A group of researchers critically review the use of surfactant-coated nanoparticles in the fields of nanomedicine and food nanotechnology.

8 Aug 2021

Children of heavy drinkers have elevated risk of several adverse experiences

The children of parents who drink alcohol heavily have an elevated risk of a number of adverse experiences, including mental health disorders, hospitalizations and criminal behavior, according to a new review in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

5 Aug 2021

Non-invasive brain stimulation may reduce smoking frequency in nicotine-dependent smokers

A new systematic review of randomized controlled trials has found evidence that non-invasive brain stimulation may reduce smoking frequency (number of cigarettes per day) in nicotine-dependent smokers.

4 Aug 2021

Research: Only 26% of areas in the UK have an effective pathway in place for early liver disease detection

New research published today in a peer review journal shows only 26% of areas in the UK have an effective pathway in place for the early detection of liver disease.

4 Aug 2021

Study shows increased risk of overdose and mental health crisis following opioid dose tapering

Opioid therapy is complex. In recent years, a rise in opioid-related deaths and changing prescribing guidelines and regulatory policies have led many physicians to reduce daily doses for patients prescribed stable opioid therapy for chronic pain.

3 Aug 2021

New breath test to tailor the dosage of drugs administered to epileptic patients

Epilepsy affects some 50 million people worldwide and pharmaceutical treatment of the disease is a tightrope walk, as the dose must be tailored precisely to the individual patient: "Slightly too little and it isn't effective. Slightly too much and it becomes toxic," explains Professor Pablo Sinues.

3 Aug 2021

Researchers test a library of lipid-based compounds to enable safe delivery of RNA drugs to the lungs

Hokkaido University researchers in Japan created and tested a library of lipid-based compounds to find a way to safely and effectively deliver RNA drugs to the lungs.

30 Jul 2021

Study explores why COVID-19 lockdown does not work in Africa as first pandemic response

In an African pandemic it is more productive to consider lockdowns, after using other non-medical measures first, Especially in countries with high levels of poverty and corruption, says Prof Nicholas Ngepah, a Professor of Economics at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa.

28 Jul 2021

Researchers use AI to identify main predictors of suicidal behaviors in students

How can we predict suicide risk in students, especially at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected many people's mental health? According to researchers from Montreal and France, self-esteem represents an important predictive marker of suicidal risk.

28 Jul 2021

Moderate drinking may be linked with decreased risk of heart attack and death in adults with CVD

Drinking up to 105 grams of alcohol per week - equivalent to 13 UK units of alcohol, less than six pints of medium-strength beer or just over a bottle of wine - may be associated with a decreased risk of heart attack, stroke, angina or death among those with cardiovascular disease (CVD).

27 Jul 2021

Physical pain induces relapse of alcohol consumption, research shows

The study has also shown changes in an area of the brain related to motivation for drug intake, and in a second experiment they have shown that the kappa-type opioid receptor (a protein) is key to causing these animals to relapse.