Archive for October, 2010
College Students’ Illnesses Due to Caffeinated Alcoholic Beverage
Earlier this month, nine students from Central Washington University were hospitalized after being found unconscious at an off-campus party. Initially the students were suspected to have been drugged with Rohypnol (“roofies,” the “date rape drug”), but an investigation confirmed that they were actually drinking “Four Loko,” a caffeinated malt liquor known as “blackout in a can.”
Rethinking Alcohol and Pregnancy
During pregnancy, the fetus is developing at an astounding rate, with organs and features forming in the very early weeks after conception. Anything that crosses the placenta from the mother has the potential to have an impact on the development of the baby, from drugs to paint fumes. Research has shown alcohol to be especially harmful, with resulting problems lasting into adulthood for the baby.
Why Men Are at Greater Risk for Alcoholism
Alcohol use disorder is very difficult to overcome. Those who seek treatment may relapse after recovery, cycling back into programs multiple times before they are successful. Men are twice as likely as women to develop alcoholism, though a biological reason for this difference between genders had not been found until now.
Alcohol Increases Errors and Reaction Time During Decision Making, New Study Shows
A new study has found that certain brain regions that are involved in error processing are more affected by alcohol than other regions. It’s long been known that alcohol alters behavior, but until now, there hasn’t been much research on how alcohol affects brain systems. Beth Anderson, a postdoctoral fellow at the Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Centre at Hartford Hospital in Connecticut, said that once researchers understand how alcohol alters the brain, they can better inform people about the negative consequences of alcohol.
Stress Hormone Complicates Recovery for Alcoholics
Alcoholics undergo a difficult recovery process when they decide to give up drinking and pursue a better quality of life. Unfortunately, for many, the process includes multiple relapses back into drinking behaviors. Often there are several attempts at recovery and feelings of frustration and defeat at each relapse point.
Binge Drinking in America
Heavy drinking is usually associated with young adults, especially with college-age kids, out from under parents’ rules for the first time and enjoying their newfound freedom. It is assumed that it is something they will outgrow, once they’ve had their taste of it, and settle into more responsible behavior.
Caucasian Women Drinking More Per Person
The volume of alcohol consumers are downing has increased, which should have producers and retailers celebrating. For those supporting the bill to cover alcohol addiction treatments, however, the reaction is likely to be the opposite.
Most Alcohol Use Disorders Among Disaster Survivors Is Preexisting
A new study from the Veterans Administration North Texas Health Care System has found that more than 80 percent of alcohol-related problems that occur following disasters were preexisting or ongoing. Dr. Carol S. North and colleagues examined a large database of survivors of 10 recent U.S. disasters, looking at pre- and post-disaster alcohol use disorders. Although previous studies have suggested that people are more likely to develop alcohol problems after disasters, a causal relationship has not been found.
Alcohol Consumption Increasing among Americans
A new study found that alcohol consumption has increased in the United States, possibly due to social, economic, and ethnic influences. Researchers from UT Southwestern Medical Center examined national alcohol consumption patterns among those who participated in the National Longitudinal Alcohol Epidemiologic Study from 1991-1992 and the National Epidemiological Study on Alcohol and Related Conditions from 2001-2002. About 43,000 people participated in each survey.
But I Like to Drink: What He Is Really Saying
When you hear your guy say he likes to drink, there’s usually more than one reason why – and it may be something other than just taste. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with responsible drinking by either sex (as long as they’re of legal drinking age and don’t have health or other problems that dictate abstaining), sometimes men seem to carry things a bit too far in terms of alcohol consumption. Of course, women can do the same, but this is about men. So, here are 10 thoughts on what he is really saying when he says, “But I like to drink.”
