Statistically, Hispanic-Americans have lower alcohol and drug consumption rates than the U.S. national average. Yet the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has found a rise in binge drinking rates among Hispanic-American groups that is now higher than the national average.
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A new study has found that your genes influence the ways in which you respond to environmental social drinking cues such as alcohol advertisements and seeing other people drinking. The study, published in the journal Psychological Science, was conducted by Helle Larsen from Radboud University in the Netherlands and her colleagues.
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A new study suggests that cravings for cigarettes have more to do with social and psychological cues than actually being deprived of an addictive substance. This finding could lead to better methods of treating nicotine addiction, as more focus needs to be placed on the psychology behind smoking. The study, published in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, could also help explain why nicotine patches and gum are often ineffective in helping people quit smoking.
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A study published in the July issue of the Journal of Neurobiology discovered that the effects felt after romantic rejection are associated with parts of the brain that control addiction, craving, depression, and reward. Although this suggests that romantic love is linked to addiction in the brain, the behaviors that go along with it can be broken.
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A new study shows that gender appears to play a role in the risk of abuse of prescription pain drugs. Predictors of such abuse are different in men and women, researchers say, and knowing this could help doctors adopt treatment plans that are less likely to cause misuse of opioid medications.
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Four unhealthy behaviors–smoking, lack of physical activity, poor diet, and alcohol consumption–appear to be associated with a substantially increased risk of death when combined, according to a report in the April 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
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Sleep problems are a major public health issue in the United States. In 2006, for example, more than half of 6th to 12th graders reported feeling tired or sleepy, and more than 30 percent reported having problems remaining asleep during the night. A first-of-its-kind study has found a long-term relationship between childhood sleep problems and subsequent alcohol and drug outcomes. Results will be published in the June 2010 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.
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Young adults who have used cannabis or marijuana for a longer period of time appear more likely to have hallucinations or delusions or to meet criteria for psychosis, according to a report posted online that will appear in the May print issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Previous studies have identified an association between cannabis use and psychosis, according to background information in the article. However, concerns remain that this research has not adequately accounted for confounding variables.
Scientists announced Wednesday that they have solved the mystery behind why people become addicted to a class of prescription drugs that includes some anti-depressants, muscle relaxants, and sleeping pills.
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A new report by the Turkish Drug and Drug Addiction Monitoring Center shows that the youngest age of drug abusers in Turkey is 11, while the oldest is 67. Released last month, the report also shows the route of drug trafficking, which starts in Afghanistan and passes through Turkey to reach Italy and Germany, and then disperse throughout all of Europe.