Addiction News and Research

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Cocaine-addicted individuals show heightened response to drug-related images

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University (SBU) have conducted the most comprehensive study to date of how cocaine users respond to drug-related and other emotional stimuli, making use of comparisons with a matched control group and exploring the effects of recent cocaine use and abstinence. The findings appear in a paper published online in the European Journal of Neuroscience.

5 Apr 2011

Neuropeptide ghrelin impacts alcoholism, binge-eating and sugar consumption

The substance ghrelin plays an important role in various addictions, such as alcoholism and binge-eating. It also impacts on sugar consumption, which is due, in part, to genetic factors, reveals new research from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

5 Apr 2011

Nicotine has no effect on lung cancer tumor incidence, frequency or size

Nicotine at doses similar to those found in most nicotine replacements therapies did not increase lung cancer tumor incidence, frequency or size, according to results of a mouse study presented at the AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011, held here April 2-6.

5 Apr 2011

Food addicts appear to have high neural activity in brain

Persons with an addictive-like eating behavior appear to have greater neural activity in certain regions of the brain similar to substance dependence, including elevated activation in reward circuitry in response to food cues, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the August print issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

5 Apr 2011

BUSPH, The Partnership at Drugfree.org collaborate to increase 'Join Together' resource utilization

The Partnership at Drugfree.org, in cooperation with the Boston University School of Public Health, announced today that Join Together has become part of the 25-year-old nonprofit organization based in New York City.

4 Apr 2011

Researchers suggest link between dopamine-related genes and person's risk of addiction

There is growing evidence that the risk factors for addiction change throughout the lifespan. The risk factors for developing addiction in adolescence are the most intensively studied because this life phase is associated with the highest addiction risk.

31 Mar 2011

SAMHSA publishes strategic initiatives paper on nation's behavioral health care system

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration today published its strategic initiatives paper - an overview of SAMHSA's goals, priorities and action steps for accomplishing its mission of reducing the impact of substance abuse and mental illness on America's communities.

30 Mar 2011

Eating disorders tough to conquer

Young people and adolescents have been repeatedly warned regarding eating disorders. Lisa Harmon Mollicone, coordinator of the Manalapan-Englishtown Community Alliance for the Prevention of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, addressed the topic of eating disorders at a full house during the Dec. 14 meeting of the alliance, held at the Manalapan Senior Center.

29 Mar 2011

Medical expert says PSTD cases may increase following Japanese tsunami

The Japanese tsunami took quite a massive toll, injuring and killing thousands and causing billions of dollars in destruction. But looking beyond physical destruction, the tsunami took an emotional toll on many as well.

29 Mar 2011

From fatigued to fantastic! You CAN effectively treat CFS, fatigue, fibromyalgia and muscle pain

The “perfect storm” for Fibromyalgia, CFS/ME, and fatigue in general is preparing to hit. A combination of poor nutrition, decreasing sleep, increasing stress and environmental toxins has created a human energy crisis of unprecedented proportions. Over the past 10 years, the incidence of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Fibromyalgia (FMS) has exploded by 400 to 1000 percent, as documented in five separate studies. The numbers for those with CFS in the U.S., previously estimated at 500,000, are now being re-tallied at closer to 1- 2.5 million. Previous estimates placed the number of Americans with FMS at 6 million. Studies worldwide suggest this has likely gone up in the last decade to ~ 12-24 million Americans! Meanwhile, ¼ of Americans suffer with chronic pain and most are fatigued.

28 Mar 2011

Diabetic smokers beware - Nicotine raises blood sugar: Study

U.S. researchers have found that nicotine in cigarettes may be responsible for serious complications in smokers with diabetes. They have shown that nicotine is strongly linked to persistently raised blood sugar levels among diabetics and scientists say they should make every effort to quit. There may also be implications for diabetics attempting to give up the habit who use nicotine-replacement therapy for extended periods.

27 Mar 2011

New findings may make morphine a safer, more effective drug for chronic pain control

An orphan drug originally used for HIV treatment has been found to short-circuit the process that results in additional sensitivity and pain from opioid use. The study by researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine is reported in the March 25, 2011 issue of Brain, Behavior and Immunity.

25 Mar 2011

ASAM issues white paper to halt medical marijuana use

Citing the dangers of marijuana, the lack of clinical research on a controlled substance with a high potential for abuse, and the physician's oath to "first, do no harm," the American Society of Addiction Medicine today issued a white paper recommending a halt to using the weed as a medicine in states where it has been declared legal.

24 Mar 2011

Brain's pleasure and reward circuitry gets a big boost after a sleepless night

A sleepless night can make us cranky and moody. But a lesser known side effect of sleep deprivation is short-term euphoria, which can potentially lead to poor judgment and addictive behavior, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley.

24 Mar 2011

Biologists decipher molecular code regulating availability of brain channel linked to neuronal excitability

A key question in protein biochemistry is how proteins recognize "correct" interaction partners in a sea of cellular factors. Nowhere is that more critical to know than in the brain, where interactions governing channel protein activity can alter an organism's behavior.

23 Mar 2011

Smoking during pregnancy increases risk of children becoming smokers too

New research has revealed that prenatal exposure to nicotine increases the vulnerability to nicotine self-administration in adolescent mice. The results support the hypothesis that adolescents with prenatal nicotine exposure are more likely to start smoking earlier than their peers and that they are also more susceptible to the addictive effects of nicotine, especially as a result of stress and peer pressure.

21 Mar 2011

Roundup: Texas attacks health law as Calif., Ind. hospitals cope with law's effects

At today's meeting of the House Select Committee on State Sovereignty, Republican lawmakers laid out a dozen bills — and a handful of different strategies — to prevent implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in Texas, and allow the state to operate Medicaid its own way.

19 Mar 2011

Researchers discover a type of 'cellular bilingualism' in brain

A team of researchers from the University of Montreal and McGill University have discovered a type of "cellular bilingualism" - a phenomenon that allows a single neuron to use two different methods of communication to exchange information.

18 Mar 2011

New drug can aid in smoking reduction therapy

Researchers working in a research project within the Academy of Finland's Research Programme on Substance Use and Addictions have been developing a targeted drug that could aid in smoking reduction therapy. The new drug slows down the metabolism of nicotine, which would help smokers to cut down their smoking.

18 Mar 2011

Expert says celebrity addiction stories can serve as warning about drug abuse effects

Stories about celebrities with alleged drug problems make entertaining fodder for the media. But to addiction expert Dr. Gregory Jantz, founder of The Center for Counseling and Health Resources and author of several books on addiction, these well-publicized stories of celebrity drug abuse and addiction can serve as a serious warning.

17 Mar 2011

Addiction News and Research

Cocaine-addicted individuals show heightened response to drug-related images

Neuropeptide ghrelin impacts alcoholism, binge-eating and sugar consumption

Nicotine has no effect on lung cancer tumor incidence, frequency or size

Food addicts appear to have high neural activity in brain

BUSPH, The Partnership at Drugfree.org collaborate to increase 'Join Together' resource utilization

Researchers suggest link between dopamine-related genes and person's risk of addiction

SAMHSA publishes strategic initiatives paper on nation's behavioral health care system

Eating disorders tough to conquer

Medical expert says PSTD cases may increase following Japanese tsunami

From fatigued to fantastic! You CAN effectively treat CFS, fatigue, fibromyalgia and muscle pain

Diabetic smokers beware - Nicotine raises blood sugar: Study

New findings may make morphine a safer, more effective drug for chronic pain control

ASAM issues white paper to halt medical marijuana use

Brain's pleasure and reward circuitry gets a big boost after a sleepless night

Biologists decipher molecular code regulating availability of brain channel linked to neuronal excitability

Smoking during pregnancy increases risk of children becoming smokers too

Roundup: Texas attacks health law as Calif., Ind. hospitals cope with law's effects

Researchers discover a type of 'cellular bilingualism' in brain

New drug can aid in smoking reduction therapy

Expert says celebrity addiction stories can serve as warning about drug abuse effects

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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