Alcohol Dependence News and Research

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Peacekeepers, relief workers do not show same mental health effects as combat veterans

Despite similar traumatic exposures, peacekeepers and relief workers don't show the same mental health effects as combat veterans, reports a study in the December Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

15 Dec 2011

Unit pricing of alcohol on the agenda in the UK

The cost of alcohol must be increased to stem the thousands of drink-related diseases diagnosed each year, a group of medical experts said on Wednesday. Debate is on the rationality of unit pricing of alcohol across Britain.

15 Dec 2011

Link between NRXN3 gene and impulsivity

Being impulsive can lead us to say things we regret, buy things we really don't need, engage in behaviors that are risky and even develop troublesome addictions. But are different kinds of hastiness and rashness embedded in our DNA? A new study suggests the answer is yes -- especially if you're a man.

17 Nov 2011

Alcohol can readily decrease function of women's serotonin system

After only four years of problem drinking, a significant decrease in the function of the serotonin system in women's brains can be seen. This is the system that regulates such functions as impulse control and mood. It takes 12 years before a corresponding decrease is seen in men.

16 Nov 2011

A woman’s brain can get damaged faster with alcohol abuse: Study

A latest study has shown that female alcoholics suffer damage to the part of their brain that controls moods, impulses and sleep three times faster than their male counterparts.

10 Nov 2011

Positive results from Alkermes VIVITROL addiction study

Alkermes plc today presented positive results from a long-term study of VIVITROL (naltrexone for extended-release injectable suspension) at the 24th Annual U.S. Psychiatric and Mental Health Congress in Las Vegas, NV.

10 Nov 2011

Helping others helps adolescent helpers reduce cravings for alcohol and drugs

A new study of teens undergoing substance abuse treatment finds helping others helps the adolescent helper by reducing cravings for alcohol and drugs, a major precipitator of relapse.

9 Nov 2011

Three dry days a week reduces risk of alcohol related liver disease

The Royal College of Physicians said the present official guidance on healthy drinking limits is ‘extremely dangerous’ and must be rewritten – because it implies that drinking every day is fine. Government advice states men should drink no more than four units a day and women no more than three.

24 Oct 2011

Researchers use online survey to examine drinking patterns and personality traits

Researchers used an anonymous online survey to examine drinking patterns and personality traits. Results identified three groups, two of which drank at fairly high levels. The group with higher levels of impulsivity and aggression appears most at-risk for future alcohol problems.

15 Oct 2011

Caffeine may predict risk of drug abuse

Parents of young caffeine consumers take heed: that high-calorie energy drink or soda might present more than just obesity risk. In fact, according to a double-blind, placebo-controlled study that examined responses to stimulants, an individual's subjective response to caffeine may predict how he or she will respond to other stimulant drugs, possibly reflecting differences in risk for abuse of other more serious drugs of abuse, such as amphetamine and cocaine.

10 Oct 2011

Teenage problem drinking could be detected on Facebook

A new study suggests that college students’ Facebook pages might hold clues to which of them are at risk for alcohol dependence and abuse.

4 Oct 2011

Residential treatment may motivate young adults with addiction for recovery

Young adults undergoing addiction treatment arrive ready and willing to make the personal changes that bring about recovery, but it's the help and guidance received during treatment that build and sustain those changes, according to a longitudinal study published electronically and in press within the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

1 Oct 2011

Immune cells in brain linked with behavioural responses to alcohol

University of Adelaide researchers have found that immune cells in your brain may contribute to how you respond to alcohol.

30 Sep 2011

Immune cells in brain may predict alcohol abuse effects

Adelaide University researchers say there's a growing body of evidence that alcohol triggers rapid changes in the immune system in the brain and this is behind responses like staggering and slurring. They claim that blocking part of the immune system might reduce alcohol abuse and help prevent drink driving accidents.

29 Sep 2011