Alcohol News and Research

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Are all heart palpitations dangerous?

Palpitations - the sensation that the heart has started to race or pound, or feels like it has skipped a beat - are usually caused by a harmless hiccup in the heart's rhythm.

29 Aug 2007

Blood HDL cholesterol levels influence association of alcohol intake with blood pressure in young men

A large new Japanese study suggests that middle-aged men who drink heavily could see their blood pressure rise, regardless of whether their levels of "good" cholesterol also go up.

28 Aug 2007

Alcoholism has a negative effect on where someone lives

Living in neighborhoods characterized by unemployment, poverty, poor family integration and high residential mobility is known to contribute to a greater risk for alcohol problems.

28 Aug 2007

Brain function is even more impaired in cirrhotic than non-cirrhotic alcoholics

Sustained exposure to alcohol can cause scarring and dysfunction of the liver, referred to as cirrhosis.

28 Aug 2007

Alcoholics tend to be deficient in both cognitive and emotional processes

Alcoholics tend to be deficient in both cognitive and emotional processes.

28 Aug 2007

Alcoholics carry untold liability for brain damage

Researchers know that heavy alcohol intake can lead to structural and functional changes in the brain, but have not been able to establish direct links between these changes and specific cognitive functions.

28 Aug 2007

Oral sex the culprit in rising numbers of throat cancers

According to the latest figures on head and neck cancer, even though the rates for such cancers have dropped in recent years, throat cancer rates in the United States have not dropped.

28 Aug 2007

Moderate drinkers less likely to get kidney cancer

The researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm suggest that people who drink 22 ounces of alcohol a week are 40 percent less likely to develop kidney cancer.

28 Aug 2007

Brits drinking themselves to obesity

According to the insurance company Standard Life, Brits are drinking themselves to obesity.

27 Aug 2007

Good cholesterol may be a bad guy after all!

Scientists are warning that the good cholesterol (HDL) known for it's ability to protect against heart disease, can turn nasty.

22 Aug 2007

Geographical variation in the prevalence of problematic substance use in Canada

If you think the big cities of Toronto and Montreal have the highest rate of alcohol and drug use problems, think again.

22 Aug 2007

Who's still smoking?

Quitting smoking is not easy, but thousands of New Yorkers succeed at it every year. Who's trying to kick the habit, and who's succeeding? In a new report titled Who's Still Smoking?, the Health Department sheds light on both questions.

22 Aug 2007

Granny was right - nothing is better than good old fashioned soap and water!

When it comes to germs scientists have found that granny was right and nothing is better than good old fashioned soap and water.

20 Aug 2007

Antibacterial soaps show no health benefits over plain soaps

Antibacterial soaps show no health benefits over plain soaps and, in fact, may render some common antibiotics less effective, says a University of Michigan public health professor.

17 Aug 2007

Study looks at how children's anxiety and depression may be associated with substance abuse throughout adulthood

Research underway at Rutgers University Camden seeks to examine links between children's mental health problems and alcohol, nicotine, and illegal drug use over time.

17 Aug 2007

Caution urged on use of drugs to raise "good" cholesterol

With 40 percent of all heart attacks and related cardiovascular problems occurring in people who have low levels of so-called "good" cholesterol, researchers have long sought medications to increase the amount of this type of cholesterol in the body's circulation.

16 Aug 2007

Healthy eating for type 2 diabetes

Myths abound when it comes to diabetes and food - one of the most common being that there is a "diabetes diet" that prohibits sugar and other items.

16 Aug 2007

New ways to prevent bowel cancer

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre have been given a cash boost from Cancer Research UK to help them investigate new ways to prevent bowel cancer.

13 Aug 2007

Genomic factors may play a role in alcohol and tobacco use

Alcohol and smoking can be harmful, if not deadly. While the desire for these substances can be due to environmental cues, genomic factors also play an important role.

13 Aug 2007

Adverse housing conditions are associated with the risk of developing diabetes

Fair or poor housing conditions are associated with the risk of developing diabetes in urban, middle-aged African-Americans according to a study published in the Aug. 15 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology by a team of investigators from Indiana University School of Medicine, the Regenstrief Institute, Washington University in St. Louis and other institutions.

13 Aug 2007