Copyright 2009 Medical News Today Latest Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/alcohol/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170158.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170158.php UCSF HIV researchers have received two NIH grants of $1 million each to study the use of web-based, patient controlled personal health records to improve health and HIV prevention outcomes for HIV positive patients. Both studies are funded through the federal stimulus bill, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. HIV / AIDS Fri, 06 Nov 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170104.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170104.php The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers that Stiff Nights, a product marketed as a dietary supplement for sexual enhancement, contains an ingredient that can dangerously lower blood pressure and is illegal. Over the past several years, the FDA has found Sexual Health / STDs Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170057.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170057.php The National Council on Patient Information and Education (NCPIE), along with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and representatives from 15 nationally recognized prevention, health professional and child advocacy organizations, are launching Maximizing Your Role as a Teen Influencer: What You Can Do to Help Prevent Teen Prescription Drug Abuse. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169871.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169871.php Use of cannabinoids (marijuana) could assist in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder patients. This is exposed in a recent study carried out at the Learning and Memory Lab in the University of Haifa's Department of Psychology. The study, carried out by research student Eti Ganon-Elazar under the supervision of Dr. Irit Akirav, was published in the prestigious Journal of Neuroscience. Anxiety / Stress Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169836.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169836.php A group of drunken fruit flies have helped researchers from North Carolina State and Boston universities identify entire networks of genes - also present in humans - that play a key role in alcohol drinking behavior. This discovery, published in the October 2009 print issue of the journal Genetics, provides a crucial explanation of why some people seem to tolerate alcohol better than others, as well as a potential target for drugs aimed at preventing or eliminating alcoholism. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169436.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169436.php Stress-evoked changes in circuits that regulate serotonin in certain parts of the brain can precipitate a low mood and a relapse in cocaine-seeking, based on mouse studies published online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "The impetus for this research was our interest in how stress alters the brain's cell receptors and protein signals in ways that lead to mood changes, depression, anxiety, and drug seeking," said Dr. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Sat, 31 Oct 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169360.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169360.php They found that the prevalence of all common mental disorders was 27.2%, and PTSD symptoms, 4.8%. There were no substantial differences in the prevalence of PTSD symptoms between US and UK troops deployed to Iraq, which had been previously found. In UK troops, the most common diagnoses were alcohol abuse (18.0%) and depression/anxiety (13.5%). Mental Health Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169268.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169268.php At any given time, over two million people are imprisoned in penal institutions in Europe. Prisons are extremely high-risk environments for the transmission of infectious diseases because of a high number of risk factors, such as overcrowding, poor nutrition, limited access to health care, continued illicit drug use and unsafe injecting practices, unprotected sex and tattooing. HIV / AIDS Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169278.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169278.php NPR explores the reasons for the high rates of HIV/AIDS infection among black women: "African-Americans, who only make up 1+2 percent of the U.S. population, account for nearly half of those living with HIV. More specifically, black women represent 61 percent of the new HIV cases among all women. HIV / AIDS Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169282.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169282.php A regional conference kicked off Wednesday in Moscow with experts calling on Russian authorities to change their approach to preventing the spread of HIV among injection drug users [IDUs], Deutsche Presse-Agentur/M&C reports (10/28). HIV / AIDS Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169132.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169132.php Targeting the five major causes of premature death could increase global life expectancy by almost five years, the WHO said Tuesday, Reuters reports. According to a WHO's Nutrition / Diet Thu, 29 Oct 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169127.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169127.php A Nevada case causes concern for pharmacies about possible liability for actions taken by customers who may abuse drugs. The Wall Street Journal reports on the case of Patricia Copening, who pleaded guilty to reckless driving after her car swerved off a highway and struck and killed a 21-year-old and injured a 33-year-old. "In Ms. Pharmacy / Pharmacist Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169067.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169067.php Two Yale School of Medicine physicians have been awarded a $4.1 million research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study a new pharmacological treatment for newly released HIV-positive inmates with alcohol dependence who are transitioning back into the community. The U.S. prison population is disproportionately impacted by HIV and by alcohol and drug abuse. A majority of HIV-positive inmates also have substance abuse disorders. HIV / AIDS Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168938.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168938.php Many people perceive gambling to be a harmless recreational activity. However, it is estimated that six to eight million people in the United States personally suffer from a gambling related problem. This problem seems to grow tentacles, extending out to wreak havoc and can profoundly impact the physical, emotional, and financial health of the family (spouses, children, extended). Psychology / Psychiatry Tue, 27 Oct 2009 05:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168861.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168861.php Your genetic make up may predispose you to drink more but may not increase your genetic risk for alcoholism (alcohol dependence). Research published in the open access journal, BMC Biology, pinpoints genetic pathways and genes associated with levels of alcohol consumption but not with alcohol dependence in rats and humans. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168816.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168816.php Alcohol abuse is a leading cause of liver cirrhosis in Mexico. Given that genetics likely play a role in high rates of alcoholic liver disease, researchers analyzed the polymorphisms of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH1B), aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) and cytochrome P4502E1 (CYP2E1) in two groups in Mexico: the Mestizos, those with mixed genes, and the Huichols, an indigenous group with no racial admixture. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168817.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168817.php While many genetic studies have examined alcoholism among adults, identifying genes that are associated with alcohol misuse during youth is equally important, given that genetic and environmental influences on alcoholism vary across development. New findings show an association between a polymorphism of the µ-opioid receptor (OPRM1) gene and alcohol misuse among adolescents. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168820.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168820.php Although alcohol consumption has been linked to colon and breast cancer, exactly how this occurs remains unclear. A new study has found that epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) - which is essential for numerous developmental processes - may also be a cellular pathway by which alcohol-induced cancer cells aggressively progress and metastasize. Colorectal Cancer Tue, 27 Oct 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168773.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168773.php Alcohol consumption has long been linked to cancer and its spread, but the underlying mechanism has never been clear. Now, researchers at Rush University Medical Center have identified a cellular pathway that may explain the link. Cancer / Oncology Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168746.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168746.php In the latest article in PLoS Medicine's series proposing the delivery of packages of care for mental, neurological and substance-use disorders in low- and middle-income countries, Vivek Benegal and colleagues discuss the treatment of alcohol use disorders in settings where resources are limited. Packages of care are combinations of treatments aimed at improving the recognition and management of conditions to achieve optimal outcomes. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168758.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168758.php A Canadian study published today on bmj.com reports that homeless and marginally housed people have much higher mortality and shorter life expectancy than could be expected on the basis of low income alone. In comparison with the general population, earlier studies have suggested high levels of excess mortality among the homeless. Public Health Mon, 26 Oct 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168655.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168655.php Ten percent of young adolescent boys -- or one in 10 -- exhibit a symptom of conduct disorder as well as a symptom of risky or problem gambling, according to new research findings from the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA). As the number of conduct disorder symptoms increase, the number of problem gambling symptoms increase in step, the study showed. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168519.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168519.php Last year the UK government reclassified cannabis from a class C to a class B drug, partly out of concerns that cannabis, especially the more potent varieties, may increase the risk of schizophrenia in young people. But the evidence for the relationship between cannabis and schizophrenia or psychosis remains controversial. A new study has determined that it may be necessary to stop thousands of cannabis users in order to prevent a single case of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Fri, 23 Oct 2009 06:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168483.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168483.php The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on Wednesday released a report - " Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Fri, 23 Oct 2009 05:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168528.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168528.php Low alcohol consumption is bad for your health in general. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation studied the relationship between alcohol consumption and health to test the current theory which suggests improved health is responsible for the link found between low alcohol consumption and increased wages. Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs