Intoxication News and Research

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SIDS deaths surge 33% on New Year's Day

Not a happy holiday thought, but an important one: The number of babies who die of SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome, surges by 33 percent on New Year's Day. The suspected reason? Alcohol consumption by caretakers the night before.

16 Dec 2010

American Journal of Preventive Medicine delineates public health problem about caffeinated alcoholic beverages

In the wake of multiple state bans on caffeinated alcoholic beverages (CABs) and an FDA warning to four companies to remove their products from the marketplace, an article published online today in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine delineates the scope of the public health problem and suggests areas of research that might help address it.

30 Nov 2010

BayCare receives SAMHSA grant to develop VFCN network

BayCare Behavioral Health today announced that it has been awarded a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in the amount of $200,000 to develop the Veteran, Family and Community Network (VFCN).

18 Nov 2010

Cigarette smoke, automobile exhaust and french fries increase risk of developing Alzheimer's disease

There is growing evidence that exposure to a group of chemicals known as type-2 alkenes -- which are found in the smoke inhaled from cigarettes, the exhaust of automobiles and even in French fries - can increase the chances of developing Alzheimer's disease and other neurological conditions such as Parkinson's disease.

18 Nov 2010

FDA warns manufacturers of caffeinated alcoholic beverages

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today warned four companies that the caffeine added to their malt alcoholic beverages is an "unsafe food additive" and said that further action, including seizure of their products, is possible under federal law.

18 Nov 2010

Faster FDA action against alcoholic energy drinks needed

Alcoholic energy drinks have been making national headlines and four states to date have banned their sale following reports of blackouts and unsafe behaviors, especially among college students. These actions are encouraging to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center emergency physician Mary Claire O'Brien, M.D., who conducted groundbreaking research into the dangers of the manufactured drinks.

17 Nov 2010

Community-wide prevention strategy helps reduce student drinking

Heavy drinking among college students results in over 1800 deaths each year, as well as 590,000 unintentional injuries, almost 700,000 assaults and more than 97,000 victims of sexual assaults. In a new study published in the December issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers report on the results of the Safer California Universities study, a successful community-wide prevention strategy targeted at off-campus settings. This is one of the first studies to focus on the total environment rather than on prevention aimed at individuals.

12 Nov 2010

Dangerous combination of alcohol and caffeine in energy drink

Nicknamed "blackout in a can" or "liquid cocaine," alcoholic energy drink Four Loko seems like the perfect cocktail because the combination of alcohol and caffeine can heighten the buzz for those drinking it. The mix can be especially tempting for college students, even more so if they have or are predisposed to alcoholism. Dr. Kimberly Dennis, Medical Director at Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center, warns the effects can be seriously damaging to one's health, and even deadly.

27 Oct 2010

Rising alcohol prices driving the young towards illicit drug use

A latest study that spanned over two years revealed a link between alcohol prices and consumption of illicit drugs such as ecstasy. The study says that as alcohol prices have risen young people have ‘switched’ to the party drug ecstasy as an alternative.

26 Oct 2010

Gene that protects against alcoholism discovered

Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have discovered a gene variant that may protect against alcoholism.

20 Oct 2010

Dopamine behind mens susceptibility to alcoholism

Alcohol is one of the most commonly abused substances, and men are up to twice as likely to develop alcoholism as women. Until now, the underlying biology contributing to this difference in vulnerability has remained unclear.

19 Oct 2010

Crackdown on liquor licensing breaches needed: Doctors

AMA Victoria has urged the State to look deeper into liquor licensing breaches and has alleged that there have been only four prosecutions out of the near 15,200 breaches. There were 1,200 venues who were reportedly supplying liquor “other than in accordance with the license”. AMA Victoria has asked the state government to introduce harsher penalties for venue operators that breach their liquor licensing conditions.

18 Oct 2010

TruTouch secures grant to accelerate development of next-generation technology platform

TruTouch Technologies, a pioneer in non-invasive biometric intoxication detection systems, today announced that it has secured a $438,000 grant to accelerate the development of its next-generation technology platform.

11 Oct 2010

Researchers identify risk factors that cause bicycling injuries

The streets of New York City can be dangerous for bicyclists, but they can be especially risky for young adult male bicyclists who don't wear helmets, have too much to drink, or are listening to music through earphones, a group of investigators from New York City's Bellevue Hospital reported at the 2010 Annual Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons.

8 Oct 2010

Odd foreign bodies removed from patients

Sermo, the world's largest online community for physicians, today announced its weekly hot topic. Of over 200 physician respondents to an online poll and discussion, 85% said they have removed odd foreign bodies from patients.

6 Oct 2010

More people are consuming alcohol now than 20 years ago

More people are drinking than 20 years ago, according to a UT Southwestern Medical Center analysis of national alcohol consumption patterns. Gathered from more than 85,000 respondents, the data suggests that a variety of factors, including social, economic and ethnic influences and pressures, are involved in the increase.

30 Sep 2010

BayCare Behavioral receives grant to launch VIP Program

This week, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded BayCare Behavioral Health with a $1.75 million grant to launch the Veteran and Inebriate Program (VIP).

27 Sep 2010

Gladstone Institute elects for 2010 recipient of Avant-Garde Award for HIV/AIDS Research

The National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, announced today that Dr. Eric M. Verdin of the J. David Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco, Calif., has been selected as the 2010 recipient of the NIDA Avant-Garde Award for HIV/AIDS Research for his proposal to study the mechanisms of latent HIV infection.

14 Sep 2010

GABRA2 gene influences brain’s reward responses to alcohol odors: Research

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are DNA sequence variations that occur when a single nucleotide in the genome sequence is altered. Prior research suggested an association between SNPs in a gene that encodes aspects of the brain's gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA)-A receptors (the GABRA2 gene) and alcohol dependence. A study of responses to the aromas of alcoholic drinks according to subjects' genotyping at a SNP in GABRA2 has found that this genotype can affect the brain's reward responses to cues such as alcohol odors.

3 Sep 2010

Findings suggest sustainable school-base prevention program for youth at risk for substance abuse

The coming weeks mark the return to school for many of our youngest citizens. Sadly the satisfaction of making new friends and obtaining good test scores may be overshadowed by the prospect of substance abuse for some school-aged adolescents. The previous decade has witnessed a two-fold increase in both alcohol consumption and intoxication by adolescents age 12 to 17.

31 Aug 2010