Alcohol Addiction News and Research

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Scientists develop new way to study role of GABA-A receptors in various disorders

A new way to study the role of a critical neurotransmitter in disorders such as epilepsy, anxiety, insomnia, depression, schizophrenia, and alcohol addiction has been developed by a group of scientists led by Gong Chen, an associate professor of biology at Penn State University.

9 Aug 2012

First study to examine relationship of risky content in alcohol ads to youth exposure

The content of alcohol ads placed in magazines is more likely to be in violation of industry guidelines if the ad appears in a magazine with sizable youth readership, according to a new study from the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, the study is the first to measure the relationship of problematic content to youth exposure, and the first to examine risky behaviors depicted in alcohol advertising in the past decade.

9 Aug 2012

Overeating and increased weight linked to brain region associated with motivation and reward

Snack consumption and BMI are linked to both brain activity and self-control, new research has found.

23 Jul 2012

Does alcohol kill brain cells?

Several origins have been suggested for the idea that alcohol kills brain cells. Some link it to the temperance movement, which called for prohibition of alcohol.

9 Jul 2012

Alcoholic liver disease risk only ‘modestly’ affected by genetic factors

Research has suggested that environmental factors have a greater impact on the risk of alcoholic liver disease (ALD) than genetic predisposition.

5 Jul 2012

Acute pancreatitis: An interview with Viktor Oskarsson

Acute pancreatitis is an inflammatory disease of the pancreas. The most common symptom is acute abdominal pain, which is often accompanied with nausea and vomiting.

4 Jul 2012

Nicotine addiction: An interview with Dr. Crystal

Cigarette smoking and nicotine addiction are widespread problems throughout the world. Many people continue to smoke despite high taxes and the available public information on the dangers of smoking.

3 Jul 2012

Cancer survivors benefit from healthy lifestyle

Australia’s first community-based Cancer Survivors Centre, which is based at the University of New South Wales, has joined the Dry July campaign in a bid to pinpoint the vital role a healthy lifestyle plays in fending off cancer and the after-effects of the disease.

26 Jun 2012

No evidence for inherited addictive behavior

Dr. Stanton Peele's extensive research concludes that there is no evidence that biological or genetic mechanisms have been identified for addictive behavior or that addictive behavior is therefore inherited. The inherited addiction gene theory is widely used by the majority of alcohol and drug rehab programs, but Peele's research reveals that addiction is just too complicated to be contained within a simple inherited gene.

15 Jun 2012

Viewpoints: Wis. vote cements walker plan to raise state workers' health costs; Treating addiction; Obama's silence on insurance mandate

Many of those voters also expect that, going forward, the dividends for Wisconsin residents, their school districts and other governments will continue to grow. As old labor contracts expire, public officials will write into the new contracts the other Walker-inspired personnel provisions -; such as higher (but still relatively inexpensive) employees' contributions to their pension and health plans -; that have lowered government expenses. New labor pacts, that is, should keep reducing government costs across Wisconsin.

7 Jun 2012

4,600 lives could be saved a year by cutting daily alcohol intake to half a unit (5g)

Cutting daily alcohol intake to just over half a unit (5 g), could save 4,600 lives a year in England, say experts in the online journal BMJ Open.

31 May 2012

New instrument to measure Facebook addiction

Are you a social media enthusiast or simply a Facebook addict? Researchers from Norway have developed a new instrument to measure Facebook addiction, the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale.

7 May 2012

Dentists to screen for too much alcohol intake

The UK Government is proposing that dentists should question their patients on alcohol consumption, or that dental receptionists hand out drinking questionnaires to patients to be filled in while they wait for appointments. The plans have been drawn up by dentists at Cardiff University to try to combat excessive drinking. Patients who are deemed to drink too much would be referred on to sessions with dental nurses or hygienists for advice on cutting down.

5 Apr 2012

TLR4/MD-2 protein complex triggers morphine-induced inflammation

A University of Colorado Boulder-led research team has discovered that two protein receptors in the central nervous system team up to respond to morphine and cause unwanted neuroinflammation, a finding with implications for improving the efficacy of the widely used painkiller while decreasing its abuse potential.

3 Apr 2012

Alcohol linked to 25% increase in liver disease deaths

The first report from the fledgling National End of Life Care Intelligence Network warns that the victims of liver disease are getting younger, with deaths increasing among people in their forties. Deaths rose from 9,231 in 2001 to 11,575 in 2009; some 60% of these were men, and 90% of them were under 70. Deaths are more common in England's northern regions marked by high unemployment and low educational achievement.

25 Mar 2012

LSD for alcohol addiction: Study

Hallucinogenic drug LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) could help alcoholics give up drinking, according to an analysis of studies performed in the 1960s. A study, presented in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, looked at data from six trials and more than 500 patients. It said there was a “significant beneficial effect” on alcohol abuse, which lasted several months after the drug was taken.

12 Mar 2012

Middle aged ignoring health messages on alcohol consumption

A new survey finds that adults aged 45 and over are more than three times as likely to drink alcohol almost every day as those under 45. This could mean that the middle aged population is ignoring the serious health risks associated with excessive drinking. The age disparity is most pronounced among women. Those aged 65 and over are 12 times more likely than those aged between 16 and 24 to drink on a near-daily basis according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

11 Mar 2012

Gaps in knowledge about alcohol limits

A Centre for Alcohol Policy Research report, released today, found 95 per cent of people surveyed were unable to correctly identify the Australian guidelines for safe drinking levels. Between 30 and 50 per cent were unable to even provide an estimate.

5 Mar 2012

Quit-smoking drug Chantix effective in cocaine and alcohol addiction

Varenicline is unique among anti-addiction medications in the way it affects the brain. Like nicotine, varenicline activates a specific receptor for a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, but it does so less intensely than the active ingredient of cigarettes does. The net effect is that the drug seems to help by both cutting cravings and making the formerly desired drug less pleasant — without making non-drug pleasures less intense. Alcohol works on the same chemical receptors in the brain as nicotine, and it may enhance the pleasurable effects of smoking.

18 Feb 2012

New editorial offers clarity on confusing drug and alcohol addiction terminology

A new editorial released this week offers clarity and structure on confusing drug and alcohol addiction terminology for prescribers, users and regulators. "Through a glass darkly: can we improve clarity about mechanism and aims of medications in drug and alcohol treatments?" is published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, the official journal of the British Association for Psychopharmacology, published by SAGE.

4 Feb 2012