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><channel><title>Drug Addiction Treatment &#187; alcoholism</title> <atom:link href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/tag/alcoholism/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com</link> <description>Get Informed. Get Help.</description> <lastBuildDate>Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:00:55 +0000</lastBuildDate> <language>en</language> <sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod> <sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency> <generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1</generator> <item><title>Heavy Alcohol and Cigarette Use Contributes to Risk of Cancer</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-cigarette-increase-risk-of-cancer/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-cigarette-increase-risk-of-cancer/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Mon, 22 Aug 2011 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[cancer]]></category> <category><![CDATA[smoking]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-cigarette-increase-risk-of-cancer/</guid> <description><![CDATA[The International Agency for Cancer Research studied the role of the consumption of both alcohol and tobacco in developing cancer. The analysis was case-controlled and uncovered the fact that both alcohol and smoking increased the risk of oral cancers known as upper aero-digestive tract cancers, or UADTs. The key factor involved was the combination of [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-cigarette-increase-risk-of-cancer/">Heavy Alcohol and Cigarette Use Contributes to Risk of Cancer</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The International Agency for Cancer Research studied the role of the consumption of both alcohol and tobacco in developing cancer. The analysis was case-controlled and uncovered the fact that both alcohol and smoking increased the risk of oral cancers known as upper aero-digestive tract cancers, or UADTs. The key factor involved was the combination of both cigarette smoking and heavy consumption of alcohol.<span
id="more-1528"></span></p><p>The study further showed that those who are combined heavy smokers and heavy alcohol consumers are put at more extreme risk. Those individuals who smoked and drank heavily were by far the highest cancer risk for UADT cancer. The cancer risk was highest for those who only drank liquors and lowest for beer and wine drinkers, according to Medical News Today.</p><p>The group of scientists performing the study gathered their research from seven different centers in Argentina, Brazil and Cuba and focused on groups where these types of cancer frequently occurred. The risk was greater for those who were smokers versus non-smokers and lower for alcohol consumers alone.</p><p>Over time the risks associated with the cancer decreased steadily the longer the person went without smoking or drinking. The researchers noted that most of these types of cancers could easily be prevented if the individuals quit either of these two habits, drinking or smoking tobacco.</p><p>For those who had never smoked, alcohol barely contributed to a risk for these kinds of cancers. None of the links between the two vices were statistically significant.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-cigarette-increase-risk-of-cancer/">Heavy Alcohol and Cigarette Use Contributes to Risk of Cancer</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-cigarette-increase-risk-of-cancer/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Alcohol Dependence Linked to Obesity, Poor Brain Health</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-dependence-linked-to-obesity-poor-brain-health/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-dependence-linked-to-obesity-poor-brain-health/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Fri, 10 Sep 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[brain]]></category> <category><![CDATA[obesity]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-dependence-linked-to-obesity-poor-brain-health/</guid> <description><![CDATA[Alcohol abuse and addiction can increase risk of obesity due to a rise in body mass index (BMI), according to previous research. Now, a new study has found that excessive alcohol use not only heightens BMI, but this increase is also linked to lower levels of brain function as a result of this joint action. [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-dependence-linked-to-obesity-poor-brain-health/">Alcohol Dependence Linked to Obesity, Poor Brain Health</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Alcohol abuse and addiction can increase risk of obesity due to a rise in body mass index (BMI), according to previous research. Now, a new study has found that excessive alcohol use not only heightens BMI, but this increase is also linked to lower levels of brain function as a result of this joint action.</p><p><span
id="more-1105"></span></p><p>Even light drinking is associated with high BMI and decreased brain volumes, lower levels of important metabolite compounds in the brain, and lower glucose activity in the frontal lobe&mdash;an area that can experience deterioration due to alcohol dependence. Researchers from the Northern California Institute for Research and Education in San Francisco, University of California, San Francisco, and University of California, San Diego investigated whether the BMI of alcohol-dependent adults independently affected their regional measure of brain structure, metabolite concentrations, and neocortical blood flow. The researchers&rsquo; findings show that alcohol-related brain injuries in alcoholics may be caused by the deadly combination of excessive drinking, elevated BMI, and chronic cigarette smoking.</p><p>Because ethanol contains almost as many calories as fat, it is the main contributor to abdominal obesity in drinkers who drink 2&ndash;3 drinks per day. Unlike other areas of the body that are affected by excess weight, abdominal obesity can lead to greater health risks, including risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and even dementia. Neurologically, high BMI in overweight and obese non-alcoholic individuals has been related to brain injury due to lowered concentrations of brain metabolites. Similarly, the researchers sought to determine whether alcoholics are at the same risk of brain injury due to their increased BMI in the overweight or obese range since heavy alcohol consumption is the main source of their excess weight. Because obesity among the U.S. population has progressively been rising in the past few years, the link between brain injury among alcoholics and non-alcoholics was significant to the researchers&rsquo; investigation.</p><p>In their study, lead researcher Dieter Meyerhoff, lead author Stefan Gazdzinski, and associate Susan Tapert retrospectively examined data on 54 alcohol-dependent men who has undergone treatment for their alcohol use to analyze the effects of alcohol dependence on their neurobiology. At the time of their study, the participants had been abstinent from alcohol for one month following their treatment and had BMI between 20&ndash;37 kg/m2. The participants&rsquo; BMI, brain volume, metabolic concentrations, and blood flow were measured through structural and perfusion MRI as well as from a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging scanner.</p><p>Researchers controlled such factors as the participants&rsquo; age, smoking status, and level of alcohol consumption during the study. As a result, higher BMI was related to lower levels of metabolite concentrations and blood flow in the frontal lobe. While it has generally been believed that alcohol abuse is the sole cause of poor brain health, the researchers found that high BMI is also associated with brain injury in alcoholics. Because alcoholics tend to increase their BMI due to their high drinking intake, they are at risk of obesity and adverse effects on the brain. Conclusively, the metabolic changes that occur as a result of their drinking may be the root of the alcoholics&rsquo; brain injuries. Furthermore, brain injury was exacerbated by chronic smoking in these alcoholics, in comparison to the non-smoking alcoholics.</p><p>The researchers explain that the occurrence of brain injury in the study&rsquo;s population is complex. They suggest that the alcoholic men may have poor brain functioning due to their excessive drinking, which made decision-making more challenging when it came to consuming alcohol and food. In turn, obesity caused by their heavy drinking could have led to brain injury in these men, making the process a very cyclical action. In either case, better self-care is needed to help individuals suffering from alcoholism and obesity, including alcohol treatment, weight loss management, improved diet, and exercise in order to recover their general brain health.</p><p>Professor Gazdzinski is now a researcher at Jagiellonian University in Poland, Dr. Tapert is a professor of psychiatry at UCSD and director of Substance Abuse/Mental Illness in the VA San Diego Healthcare System, and Dr. Meyerhoff is a professor of radiology at UCSF and San Francisco Veteran&#8217;s Affairs Medical Center. Their new study will be available in the December 2010 issue of <i>Alcoholism: Clinical &amp; Experimental Research</i> and is currently published online.</p><p>Source: Medical News Today,&nbsp;Link Between Excessive Drinking, Poor Brain Health, Obesity, September 9, 2010</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-dependence-linked-to-obesity-poor-brain-health/">Alcohol Dependence Linked to Obesity, Poor Brain Health</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/alcohol-dependence-linked-to-obesity-poor-brain-health/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers Returns to Alcohol Rehab</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/actor-jonathan-rhys-meyers-returns-to-alcohol-rehab/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/actor-jonathan-rhys-meyers-returns-to-alcohol-rehab/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Wed, 19 May 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[addiction treatment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[celebrity addiction]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/actor-jonathan-rhys-meyers-returns-to-alcohol-rehab/</guid> <description><![CDATA[&#160;&#34;The Tudors&#34; star Jonathan Rhys Meyers is returning to London to begin treatment for his addiction to alcohol, the actor&#8217;s rep confirms to People.com. &#34;He just really wants to get better,&#34; a source told the magazine. &#34;This has been an ongoing battle for him.&#34; New York Daily News writes that the 32-year-old actor&#8217;s latest attempt [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/actor-jonathan-rhys-meyers-returns-to-alcohol-rehab/">Actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers Returns to Alcohol Rehab</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;&quot;The Tudors&quot; star Jonathan Rhys Meyers is returning to London to begin treatment for his addiction to alcohol, the actor&#8217;s rep confirms to People.com.</p><p><span
id="more-905"></span></p><p>&quot;He just really wants to get better,&quot; a source told the magazine. &quot;This has been an ongoing battle for him.&quot;</p><p>New York Daily News writes that the 32-year-old actor&#8217;s latest attempt to get sober follows a RadarOnline.com report that claimed he recently became &quot;belligerent&quot; and &quot;disruptive&quot; when airport staff prohibited him from boarding a flight after noticing he was &quot;pounding drinks&quot; before take off.</p><p>The drunken incident, which reportedly occurred at New York&#8217;s John F. Kennedy airport in early May, is said to have resulted in the actor getting banned from flying United Airlines in the future.</p><p>This isn&#8217;t the first trip to rehab for Rhys Meyers, who has had a string of airport-related incidents end in scandal</p><p>The actor first checked into rehab for alcohol abuse in May 2005. Seven months after completing a second rehab stint in 2007, the actor was arrested at a Dublin airport and charged with public intoxication and breach of the peace.</p><p>He checked into rehab a third time in February 2009 to seek treatment for his addition to alcohol. In June 2009, Rhys Meyers was detained after an alleged drunken assault on several bar employees at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/actor-jonathan-rhys-meyers-returns-to-alcohol-rehab/">Actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers Returns to Alcohol Rehab</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/actor-jonathan-rhys-meyers-returns-to-alcohol-rehab/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Video Game Hopes to Help Recovering Alcoholics Stay Sober</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/video-game-hopes-to-help-recovering-alcoholics-stay-sober/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/video-game-hopes-to-help-recovering-alcoholics-stay-sober/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Fri, 14 May 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[addiction treatment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/video-game-hopes-to-help-recovering-alcoholics-stay-sober/</guid> <description><![CDATA[A video game being developed by the University of Central Florida (UCF) and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Charleston, S.C. hopes to help recovering alcoholics reintegrate with sober life and prevent recidivism, the Orlando Sentinel reported. The game, called &#8220;Guardian Angel,&#8221; works by leading the player through a series of mini games that [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/video-game-hopes-to-help-recovering-alcoholics-stay-sober/">Video Game Hopes to Help Recovering Alcoholics Stay Sober</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>A video game being developed by the University of Central Florida (UCF) and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Charleston, S.C. hopes to help recovering alcoholics reintegrate with sober life and prevent recidivism, the Orlando Sentinel reported.</p><p><span
id="more-901"></span></p><p>The game, called &ldquo;Guardian Angel,&rdquo; works by leading the player through a series of mini games that mimic the choices addicts face leaving rehabilitation. For instance, players begin the game without a job or driver&rsquo;s license, and must complete objectives such as planning routes around the city without passing a liquor store, or ridding their homes of alcohol and related triggers. The game also includes an emotional component, with a &ldquo;craving meter&rdquo; that keeps track of the user&rsquo;s character&rsquo;s stress level and state of mind. If those cravings get too high, the player relapses.</p><p>The hope, says Dr. Marcia Verduin, one of the UCF professors developing the game, is that players will make these mistakes in the game to see what happens instead of doing it in the real world. Another professor involved with the project said they also wanted to make practicing relapse skills more enjoyable.</p><p>Research was set to terminate at the end of April, but has been extended to June, with the possibility of a second research cycle in the fall with a larger sample. The current pool comprises 40 VAMC volunteers. Once research is complete, the professors hope to make the game available for free on the Internet.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/video-game-hopes-to-help-recovering-alcoholics-stay-sober/">Video Game Hopes to Help Recovering Alcoholics Stay Sober</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/video-game-hopes-to-help-recovering-alcoholics-stay-sober/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Gauging an Alcoholic&#8217;s Level of Engagement in AA</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/gauging-an-alcoholics-level-of-engagement-in-aa/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/gauging-an-alcoholics-level-of-engagement-in-aa/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Thu, 08 Apr 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[addiction treatment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/gauging-an-alcoholics-level-of-engagement-in-aa/</guid> <description><![CDATA[A new empirical model has been developed to quantify and gague an alcoholic&#8217;s level of engagement in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)-related helping (AAH). The model was created by Maria Pagano, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the instrument validity study, &#34;Running Head: Service to Others in Sobriety,&#34; is [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/gauging-an-alcoholics-level-of-engagement-in-aa/">Gauging an Alcoholic&#8217;s Level of Engagement in AA</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>A new empirical model has been developed to quantify and gague an alcoholic&rsquo;s level of engagement in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)-related helping (AAH). The model was created by Maria Pagano, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the instrument validity study, &quot;Running Head: Service to Others in Sobriety,&quot; is published in the spring 2010 issue of Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly.</p><p><span
id="more-845"></span></p><p>This study is a natural extension of Dr. Pagano&#8217;s 2004 study, &quot;Helping others in Alcoholics Anonymous and drinking outcomes: Findings from Project MATCH,&quot; published in the Journal of Studies on Alcoholism. The study involved 1,726 treatment-seeking alcoholics in Project MATCH. In this study, Dr. Pagano demonstrated that AAH cut the risk of relapse in half in the year following discharge.</p><p>&quot;Service was originally conceived by AA co-founders in Ohio to represent one-third of the 12-step recovery program. Many counselors agree that service has diminished over time as an important recovery activity to involve alcoholics in as a method to stay sober,&quot; said Dr. Pagano.</p><p>With evidence of the salience of service work in sustaining sobriety, Dr. Pagano developed a method to quantify and gauge an alcoholic&#8217;s participation level in AAH. In in-depth interviews with AA members with more than 20 years of sobriety, her continued research found AAH to be rated as very important during early recovery as well as in long-term recovery. As a result of the empirical work and qualitative interviews with recovering alcoholics, Dr. Pagano designed a tool that assesses AAH participation, the &quot;Service to Others in Sobriety&quot; (SOS) tool.</p><p>&quot;The SOS measures the degree to which an alcoholic is giving service as a good citizen of AA, such as being the coffee maker or door greeter,&quot; said Dr. Pagano. &quot;It also measures service activity in sharing recovery experience, strength and hope with fellow sufferers.&quot;</p><p>Both concrete acts of service and personal sharing appear important in living sober as reported in the study.&nbsp;Individuals were asked to report how often in the past month they participated in common AAH activities. The responses ranged from &quot;rarely&quot; to &quot;always.&quot; SOS items were then summed to form a total score ranging from 12-60.</p><p>&quot;Service activities measured by the SOS are free, accessible, available to all patients regardless of education, gender, or racial background, and can be encouraged right from the start,&quot; said Dr. Pagano. &quot;The SOS tool provides a snapshot of a patient&#8217;s participation in AAH, a clinical threshold associated with sustained sobriety, and concrete service activities encouraged as part of the 12-step program of recovery.&quot;</p><p>Dr. Pagano validated the SOS using a sample of 301 treatment-seeking alcoholics. Interviewed three years following treatment, alcoholics reported low AAH participation (i.e., SOS items rated &quot;never&quot; or &quot;rarely&quot;) in taking calls or spending time with a sponsor (66%), guiding another through the 12-steps (59%), and holding a service position (53%).</p><p>In contrast, the most common forms of AAH endorsed (i.e., SOS items rated &quot;often&quot; or &quot;always&quot;) were putting away chairs after a meeting (75%), encouraging a newly sober alcoholic to go to a meeting (72%), and donating money to a 12-step organization (63%).</p><p>Findings demonstrated adequate psychometric properties of the SOS, including convergent validity, internal consistent (alpha=0.92) and test-rest reliability (r=0.94).</p><p>With a recent three-year grant award from the John Templeton Foundation, Dr. Pagano is extending prior work with adults to include adolescents suffering from the disease of addiction.</p><p>This study was funded by the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/gauging-an-alcoholics-level-of-engagement-in-aa/">Gauging an Alcoholic&#8217;s Level of Engagement in AA</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/gauging-an-alcoholics-level-of-engagement-in-aa/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Young Scots Recommend Ban on Alcohol Advertising</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/addiction-in-the-news/addiction-news/young-scots-recommend-ban-on-alcohol-advertising/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/addiction-in-the-news/addiction-news/young-scots-recommend-ban-on-alcohol-advertising/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Research & News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcohol]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[binge drinking]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/addiction-news/young-scots-recommend-ban-on-alcohol-advertising/</guid> <description><![CDATA[The Youth Commission on Alcohol, a group of 16 Scottish volunteers aged between 14 and 22, has spent a year preparing its 38 recommendations for banning advertising alcohol in public. Commission members supported plans for a minimum price for alcohol but said it would not solve problem drinking. They called for more lessons in school [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/addiction-in-the-news/addiction-news/young-scots-recommend-ban-on-alcohol-advertising/">Young Scots Recommend Ban on Alcohol Advertising</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The Youth Commission on Alcohol, a group of 16 Scottish volunteers aged between 14 and 22, has spent a year preparing its 38 recommendations for banning advertising alcohol in public. Commission members supported plans for a minimum price for alcohol but said it would not solve problem drinking. They called for more lessons in school about alcohol abuse and research into the impact of passive drinking.</p><p><span
id="more-806"></span></p><p>The BBC reports that the commission said many young people are negatively affected, not by their own drinking choices, but by those of others. Their report identifies a gap in existing research into the impact of passive drinking on young people and adults.</p><p>The Youth Commission said adults should be encouraged into alcohol-free lifestyle choices which created a positive leisure time culture. They also said a complete ban of alcohol advertising in public places should be a long-term goal.</p><p>Members of the commission questioned their friends and fellow students, as well as talking to the drinks industry and doctors. Their findings will be handed to the minister for public health, Shona Robison, on Tuesday.</p><p>Youth Commissioner Ryan Leitch, 22, from Glasgow, said: &quot;We based our recommendations on the evidence we received from alcohol experts and the Scottish people. There isn&#8217;t one answer so we have come up with a number of key approaches to improve Scotland&#8217;s relationship with alcohol.&quot;</p><p>Leitch said the Scottish government&#8217;s plan to introduce a minimum price for each unit of alcohol in a drink was not the only way of tackling the issue. He said the youth commission supported minimum pricing but a &quot;multi-pronged&quot; approach was need to tackle alcohol abuse.</p><p>Public Health Minister Shona Robison said: &quot;Tackling alcohol misuse is a key priority for the Scottish government and we recognize both the need to protect young people from this potential harm and the role they can play in tackling Scotland&#8217;s reputation as a nation of heavy drinkers.  The Youth Commission on Alcohol has been a unique piece of work, and engaging with these young people will provide further input to our ongoing action.&quot;</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/addiction-in-the-news/addiction-news/young-scots-recommend-ban-on-alcohol-advertising/">Young Scots Recommend Ban on Alcohol Advertising</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/addiction-in-the-news/addiction-news/young-scots-recommend-ban-on-alcohol-advertising/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>More Army Soldiers Seeking Treatment for Alcoholism</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/more-army-soldiers-seeking-treatment-for-alcoholism/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/more-army-soldiers-seeking-treatment-for-alcoholism/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[addiction treatment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcohol]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/more-army-soldiers-seeking-treatment-for-alcoholism/</guid> <description><![CDATA[After driving with a blood-alcohol content more than three times the legal limit and nearly decapitating a 19-year-old woman, Army Sgt. Edison Bayas is serving a 15-year prison sentence for intoxication manslaughter. The decorated career soldier is just one of thousands whose problems with alcohol spun out of control in the midst of two wars. [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/more-army-soldiers-seeking-treatment-for-alcoholism/">More Army Soldiers Seeking Treatment for Alcoholism</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>After driving with a blood-alcohol content more than three times the legal limit and nearly decapitating a 19-year-old woman, Army Sgt. Edison Bayas is serving a 15-year prison sentence for intoxication manslaughter. The decorated career soldier is just one of thousands whose problems with alcohol spun out of control in the midst of two wars.</p><p><span
id="more-777"></span></p><p>Sarah Netter of ABCNews.com writes that soldiers are now seeking treatment in record numbers, according to new figures put out by the Army. Nearly 9,200 soldiers sought treatment for alcohol abuse in 2009, a 56 percent increase since the war in Iraq started. Another 11,892 were required to undergo &quot;alcohol education,&rdquo; a 16-to-20-hour course for soldiers who were disciplined for an alcohol-related incident, but not found to have an actual abuse problem.</p><p>&quot;There has always been a healthy work-hard, play-hard ethos to the military,&quot; Tom Tarantino, legislative director for the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Association, told ABCNews.com. &quot;It can turn very quickly over from being recreational to a problem.&quot;</p><p>Army officials say 85 percent of the soldiers who seek outpatient substance abuse treatment are there because of alcohol. The Army is now in the midst of a nationwide search for additional counselors in an effort to reduce the wait time for help from days down to hours. There is currently one counselor for every 2,000 soldiers.</p><p>&quot;I don&#8217;t necessarily think they pay enough attention until it&#8217;s too late,&quot; said Brian, a three-tour Fort Hood area soldier who is more than two years sober and on temporary disability from the Army with traumatic brain injury and other extensive combat-related medical problems. Brian said it was the realization that his career in the military was over that prompted him to get treatment. &quot;I realized I wasn&#8217;t ever going to have a job that was going to enable me to drink like in the military,&quot; he said.</p><p>Brian signed up for the Army nearly 12 years ago, and said he began drinking heavily after his first deployment to Iraq in 2003. Involved in four separate bomb attacks in that one tour, he &ldquo;started drinking heavily to mask the pain.&rdquo;</p><p>&quot;Every night it was a minimum of a 12-pack, up to 24,&quot; he said. &quot;I stayed at home, would sit and drink until 10 &#8216;o clock. I&#8217;d drink until my body shut down.&quot;</p><p>By Brian&#8217;s third tour in 2005, he was drinking the &quot;near beers&quot; you could buy on base that smelled like the real thing and had a very low alcohol content. He&#8217;d also get real beer in care packages from friends and family that didn&#8217;t realize he was addicted.</p><p>His soldiers would sometimes smell the alcohol on him, but Brian said he&#8217;d always have an excuse.</p><p>When a potential fourth tour raised questions about his physical ability to lead his command&mdash;he&#8217;d had multiple shoulder surgeries and had mesh implanted in his abdomen&mdash;Brian was put into the Army&#8217;s Warrior Transition Unit for injured soldiers. That&rsquo;s where he realized he had to stop drinking. He called his wife and told her he was going to get treatment. He later found out she&#8217;d already been planning to take the children and leave him.</p><p>Tarantino, a retired Army captain, said stories like Brian&#8217;s drive home the need for more attention to combat-related mental health issues.</p><p>&quot;Alcohol abuse is a symptom of the larger problem. It is not the larger problem,&quot; he said. &quot;There is a stigma with saying &#8216;I need help.&rsquo; We&#8217;re all taught to be strong and macho and we can lift the world on our shoulders.&quot;</p><p>Bayas&rsquo; problems with alcohol went back years, even before he deployed to Iraq.<br
/> His attorney, Miguel Villalba, said Bayas, 36, had curbed his drinking after two DUI arrests in the 1990s, while he was in the Army.</p><p>But after pulling his best friend&#8217;s body out of an exploded tank on his first tour in Iraq in 2004 and going through a divorce after he got home, he started drinking again. And, his lawyers argued, it was no secret he had a problem. Looking at his 18-year military record, &quot;his alcohol issue was never really addressed.&quot;</p><p>&quot;That he had a drinking problem was known to the world,&quot; Villalba said. &quot;And this was happening at a time when he was being given all kinds of commendations.&quot;</p><p>The drunk-driving accident that killed the 19-year-old college student happened just 10 days after Bayas got back from Iraq. He plowed through her car, which was stopped for a red light, going 60 mph without ever slowing down.</p><p>When police on scene asked him where he was headed, Villalba said, Bayas responded, &quot;I was on my way to get my men. I was in Iraq. I was on my way to get my men.&quot;</p><p>His lawyer said Bayas was not diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder until after his arrest. He pleaded guilty to the manslaughter charge.</p><p>&quot;He accepted full responsibility for it,&quot; Villalba said. &quot;The effects of what has happened have been ravaging&quot; for Bayas and the victim&#8217;s family.</p><p>The majority of the soldiers seeking counseling for alcohol abuse are 18 to 25 years old.<br
/> Army spokesman Hank Minitrez told ABCNews.com that they are trying to do better with reaching the young soldiers earlier.</p><p>&quot;For many, shipping out for the Army is the first time away from home for our young soldiers, so they are experimenting with life so to speak,&quot; Minitrez wrote in an e-mail. &quot;We are also dealing with younger brains that have not fully developed their executive functions &#8212; that little guy on our shoulder that says, &#8216;Don&#8217;t do it!&#8217;&quot;<br
/> Gary Klozenbucher, clinical director of the Army Substance Abuse Program at Fort Riley in Kansas, told ABCNews.com that most of the soldiers they see in treatment are in the early stages of their addiction.</p><p>Some come in scared after being referred by a commander, he said. Others are defiant and insist they have their drinking under control. While many come in with a mix of substance abuse issues, alcohol is &quot;absolutely&quot; the most prevalent.</p><p>But Klozenbucher wasn&#8217;t convinced that deployments create alcohol problems.<br
/> &quot;The majority of the time, the soldiers that we are seeing that have identified as having alcohol and drug problems after a deployment, most of those soldiers have had some history prior to the deployment,&quot; he said. &quot;As far as the development of a drug problem, that can play a major role in the progression of the addiction.&quot;</p><p>He did concur, however, that alcohol abuse can be a catalyst for a host of other problems seen in Fort Riley soldiers, including legal, financial and domestic issues.</p><p>&quot;Certainly we&#8217;re seeing those problems with our soldiers,&quot; Klozenbucher said. &quot;There are a strong relationships with drug and alcohol problems.&quot;</p><p>Experts&mdash;both current Army employees and veterans&mdash;ay the difference between today&#8217;s soldiers and previous generations is that alcohol is viewed as more of a problem rather than a bonding experience.</p><p>&quot;Back when I was in the Army, back in the 1970s and &#8217;80s, we assumed drinking was mandatory,&quot; joked Larry Scott, an Army veteran and founder of vawatchdog.org, which keeps tabs on programs and news about the Army and Veterans Affairs. &quot;Really don&#8217;t recall too many people who didn&#8217;t drink.&quot;</p><p>Scott even remembered a commander in Korea once pleading with his soldiers to try and keep it to two on-duty drinks at lunch.</p><p>&quot;Drinking was as big a problem then as it is now. It just wasn&#8217;t as highlighted,&quot; he said. &quot;I would say they&#8217;re moving in the right direction.&quot;</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/more-army-soldiers-seeking-treatment-for-alcoholism/">More Army Soldiers Seeking Treatment for Alcoholism</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/more-army-soldiers-seeking-treatment-for-alcoholism/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>1</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>What if the Buddha Were an Alcoholic?</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/what-if-the-buddha-were-an-alcoholic/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/what-if-the-buddha-were-an-alcoholic/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Fri, 05 Feb 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[addiction treatment]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/what-if-the-buddha-were-an-alcoholic/</guid> <description><![CDATA[Author and meditation instructor Kevin Griffin will be lecturing on the interrelationship between the 12 steps and Buddhism and leading a meditation retreat this weekend at Against the Stream Meditation Society, located at 4300 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. The first event, hosted by Writers In Treatment, Malibu Beach Recovery Center, and Recovery View, takes [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/what-if-the-buddha-were-an-alcoholic/">What if the Buddha Were an Alcoholic?</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Author and meditation instructor Kevin Griffin will be lecturing on the interrelationship between the 12 steps and Buddhism and leading a meditation retreat this weekend at Against the Stream Meditation Society, located at 4300 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles.  The first event, hosted by Writers In Treatment, Malibu Beach Recovery Center, and Recovery View, takes place Friday, February 5 at 7:30pm, during which Mr. Griffin will be giving a presentation on the Dharma and recovery called &ldquo;If The Buddha Was an Alcoholic: The 11th Step and the Path to Recovery.&rdquo; On Saturday, February 6, Mr. Griffin will be conducting a daylong retreat with guests.</p><p><span
id="more-698"></span></p><p>Mr. Griffin has been practicing Buddhism since1996 and travels the country providing lectures, workshops, classes, and retreats for the public as a means of recovery outreach, education, and meditation training. In his 2004 book, One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps, Mr. Griffin relates his own experiences dealing with alcohol dependency and substance abuse and how he found release and recovery not only through deepening his understanding of Buddhism practice, but also through 12-step programs.</p><p>According to Griffin, the spiritual aspect of 12-step programs may turn off some people who tend to have a nihilistic view of life and desire instant gratification. The idea of embracing a higher power may seem unrealistic to these individuals, and as a consequence, they may not discover the relief from their addiction that a 12-step program otherwise could have provided them. Griffin offers an alternate way to view the spiritual and religious context of 12-step programs by discussing his own success with recovery through meditation and the Buddhist practice.</p><p>As Griffin describes, the Buddha taught that one&rsquo;s suffering is caused by desiring the things we do not have&mdash;and realistically, can never have. There is no way to prevent such universal processes as aging, death, illness, or loss, and the hold that the disease of alcoholism (or substance addiction) can have over an individual is one of these unpreventable processes. One is powerless to the force of addiction (the pinnacle of desire), but he or she does have power over his or her own choices and actions, a concept which Griffin says will lead addicts to the path of recovery.</p><p>The Buddha, Griffin explains, emphasizes finding peace within one&rsquo;s self instead of outside the self. Griffin states, &ldquo;We are powerless over the disease of alcoholism and the effects of alcohol, but we are not powerless over whether we pick up a drink or not. The Buddha was empathetic on the point that we are responsible moment to moment for our words and actions, not just victims of destiny or hidden forces; we have an element of free will.&rdquo;  Griffin also believes that learning meditation skills can help anyone, whether one is dependent on a substance or not.</p><p>Griffin&#8217;s latest book, A Burning Desire: Dharma, God, and the Path to Recovery, further delves into embracing a higher power in order to progress through the 12 steps. Griffin illustrates how one may find peace and effective strategies for recovery, not by choosing one of the extremes of either atheism or worship of a Supreme Being, but rather by choosing &ldquo;the Middle Way&rdquo; as taught in Buddhist practice. Griffin will discuss the messages of his two books as well as the 11th step: Finding the will, knowledge, and consciousness to sustain the strength needed to overcome by means of prayer and meditation.</p><p>For more information on Kevin Griffin, visit his website at <a
target="_blank" href="http://www.kevingriffin.net/newsite/index.htm" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.kevingriffin.net/newsite/index.htm?referer=');">http://www.kevingriffin.net/newsite/index.htm</a>. For more information on these events, contact Writers In Treatment at (818) 762-0461 or call Against the Stream Meditation Center at (323) 665-4300.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/what-if-the-buddha-were-an-alcoholic/">What if the Buddha Were an Alcoholic?</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/what-if-the-buddha-were-an-alcoholic/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Rip Torn to Enter Rehab after Alcohol-Related Arrest</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/rip-torn-to-enter-rehab-after-alcohol-related-arrest/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/rip-torn-to-enter-rehab-after-alcohol-related-arrest/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[celebrity addiction]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/rip-torn-to-enter-rehab-after-alcohol-related-arrest/</guid> <description><![CDATA[Actor Rip Torn was so intoxicated when he broke into a Connecticut bank carrying a loaded gun that he thought he was home, taking off his hat and boots and leaving them by the door, according to court records. The Associated Press reports that the 78-year-old actor was arraigned Monday on several charges after spending [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/rip-torn-to-enter-rehab-after-alcohol-related-arrest/">Rip Torn to Enter Rehab after Alcohol-Related Arrest</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Actor Rip Torn was so intoxicated when he broke into a Connecticut bank carrying a loaded gun that he thought he was home, taking off his hat and boots and leaving them by the door, according to court records.</p><p><span
id="more-697"></span></p><p>The Associated Press reports that the 78-year-old actor was arraigned Monday on several charges after spending the weekend in a police holding cell near his hometown of Salisbury, in northwestern Connecticut.</p><p>Torn, who did not enter a plea, was released on $100,000 bond a few hours later. He smiled and wished onlookers a nice day but did not answer questions about the arrest.</p><p>He is expected to enter an alcohol rehabilitation center in New York as early as Tuesday, according to his attorney.</p><p>Torn was given probation last year in a Connecticut drunken driving case and allowed to enter an alcohol education program. He completed the first stage of that program. He also has two previous drunken driving arrests in New York.</p><p>&quot;The history here is clear that there&#8217;s an alcohol issue that needs to be addressed,&quot; his attorney, A. Thomas Waterfall, told Bantam Superior Court Judge John W. Pickard on Monday.</p><p>The &quot;Men in Black&quot; actor is accused of breaking into the Litchfield Bancorp branch through a window Friday night in Salisbury, where officers responding to an alarm found him wandering in the lobby and nearly incoherent.</p><p>According to court records, Torn was disoriented, reeked of alcohol, and asked the state police troopers repeatedly why they were taking him out of his home.</p><p>&quot;Obviously, he wasn&#8217;t there intending to commit a crime, in my estimation,&quot; Waterfall said.</p><p>Officers found a loaded .22-caliber revolver in Torn&#8217;s pocket, according to court records, and a breath test showed his blood-alcohol content as 0.203 percent&mdash;more than twice the 0.08 legal limit for driving in Connecticut.</p><p>Torn is being charged with criminal trespass, carrying a gun without a permit, carrying a gun while intoxicated, burglary, and criminal mischief. His case was transferred to a court in Litchfield that handles more serious cases because of the weapons charges.</p><p>He remembers nothing of that night, Waterfall said Monday after the arraignment.</p><p>&quot;He&#8217;s a very nice person, a very friendly individual. Obviously this is a serious event, so we will deal with it as we go on,&quot; Waterfall said.</p><p>Torn never brandished the weapon when the officers confronted him, according to Waterfall and the court records, and has no history of violence. His permit to carry a firearm in Connecticut had expired in October 2007.</p><p>The actor, whose real name is Elmore Rual Torn, has appeared on the television show &quot;30 Rock&quot; and won an Emmy in 1996 for his work on &quot;The Larry Sanders Show.&quot; In addition to &quot;Men in Black,&quot; his recent movie credits include &quot;The Insider&quot; and &quot;Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story.&quot;<br
/> Torn is scheduled to return to Litchfield Superior Court on Feb. 17.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/rip-torn-to-enter-rehab-after-alcohol-related-arrest/">Rip Torn to Enter Rehab after Alcohol-Related Arrest</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/rip-torn-to-enter-rehab-after-alcohol-related-arrest/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> <item><title>Research Examines Link between Sexual Abuse and Alcohol Dependence</title><link>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/research-examines-link-between-sexual-abuse-and-alcohol-dependence/</link> <comments>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/research-examines-link-between-sexual-abuse-and-alcohol-dependence/#comments</comments> <pubDate>Tue, 02 Feb 2010 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate> <dc:creator>Drug Addiction</dc:creator> <category><![CDATA[Alcohol Addiction]]></category> <category><![CDATA[alcoholism]]></category> <category><![CDATA[genes]]></category> <category><![CDATA[rape]]></category><guid
isPermaLink="false">http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/research-examines-link-between-sexual-abuse-and-alcohol-dependence/</guid> <description><![CDATA[It is well known that exposure to severe stress early in life increases the risk of alcohol and drug addiction. However, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that some adults who were sexually abused as children and therefore at high risk for alcohol problems carry gene variants that protect [...]<p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/research-examines-link-between-sexual-abuse-and-alcohol-dependence/">Research Examines Link between Sexual Abuse and Alcohol Dependence</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It is well known that exposure to severe stress early in life increases the risk of alcohol and drug addiction. However, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that some adults who were sexually abused as children and therefore at high risk for alcohol problems carry gene variants that protect them from heavy drinking and its effects.</p><p><span
id="more-695"></span></p><p>The researchers, from the university&#8217;s Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, say the finding could aid the development of therapies for alcohol dependence by offering suggestions for targeted treatments based on genetic traits and history of exposure to severe stressors.</p><p>Scientists estimate that about half the risk for alcoholism is encoded in a person&#8217;s genes. The rest comes from environmental factors, such as age at first drink and exposure to extreme stress. Other research has suggested that when the environmental risk factors occur during key periods of brain development, genes and environment working together can increase the likelihood an individual will become alcohol dependent. Child sexual abuse is one of the environmental stressors that can interact with genes to significantly increase the risk for alcohol problems.</p><p>But the researchers report in the January issue of Addiction Biology that people with a particular pattern of genetic markers seem to be protected against alcohol problems, even if they were sexually abused as children.</p><p>Those who were protected carry a set of genetic variations that scientists call the H2 haplotype. Similar to a blood type, a haplotype is more than just a single genetic mutation. It is a normally occurring pattern of gene variants that are statistically associated with one another so that when scientists find a few genetic markers, they can successfully predict what other genetic variations will occur within a particular region of DNA.</p><p>&quot;We looked at how genes and environment interact,&quot; says Elliot C. Nelson, M.D., lead author of the study. &quot;Our analysis included both sexual abuse and information about the DNA region that carries the H2 haplotype. People who carry that genetic pattern were protected against the risks for alcohol consumption and alcohol dependence typically associated with sexual abuse.&quot;</p><p>Other sexual abuse victims in the study had the alternate genetic pattern known as the H1 haplotype. Those individuals had three times the risk of heavy drinking and alcohol dependence as those who had not been sexually abused.</p><p>&quot;They drank much more alcohol and had a significantly greater risk for problems,&quot; says Nelson, an associate professor of psychiatry. &quot;But abuse victims with the H2 haplotype seemed to be completely protected against those risks.&quot;</p><p>Nelson&#8217;s team studied data from more than 1,100 people in 476 Australian families who participated in the Nicotine Addiction Genetics project. Originally, that study was set up to learn about nicotine addiction, but investigators also looked at related problems, including how much alcohol people drank and whether they met the diagnostic criteria for alcohol dependence.</p><p>Study subjects also were asked about sexual abuse in childhood. A total of 121 women and 35 men reported a history of sexual abuse beginning at around age 11. Nelson&#8217;s group also had access to DNA samples from those evaluated in this study.<br
/> By identifying a handful of specific sites in the genome, it&#8217;s possible to classify a person as having either the H1 or the H2 haplotype. One of the genes in the DNA region included in H1 and H2 is called corticotropin releasing hormone receptor type 1 (CRHR1). Nelson&#8217;s group is focusing on that gene, which research in animals has implicated in risk for alcohol dependence.</p><p>Many past studies have focused on genes related to alcohol metabolism, but CRHR1 is not a metabolism gene. Nelson says it appears from animal studies, however, that the gene may be involved in risks associated with the effects of environmental stress. In the case of humans, he suspects variants of the gene may play a role in protecting against stresses caused by child sexual abuse.</p><p>&quot;There are many different ways an individual can become alcoholic, some involving heavy genetic risks, some involving specific environmental factors, such as exposure to peers who drink heavily,&quot; Nelson says. &quot;This particular pathway involving CRHR1 is interesting because it seems to play an extremely important role in animal models of alcohol consumption and dependence.&quot;</p><p>He says better understanding of how the gene works may help scientists understand the process by which people become alcoholics. As they attempt to clarify the possible role of the CRHR1 gene in protecting sexual abuse survivors from alcohol dependence, Nelson says it may be interesting to look at other severe environmental stressors that trigger alcohol use to see whether people with the H2 variation also are protected from those forms of risk.</p><p>In addition, he says drugs have been developed that block CRHR1 receptors. If it turns out that humans are responding to the same stressors and reacting via the same genetic pathway that animals do, Nelson says some of those drugs may be able to help people who are alcoholic using the same pathway that protects people with the H2 haplotype.</p><p>This study was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health, the ABMRF/Foundation for Alcohol Research and the Australian NHMRC Fellowship Scheme.</p><p><a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/research-examines-link-between-sexual-abuse-and-alcohol-dependence/">Research Examines Link between Sexual Abuse and Alcohol Dependence</a> is a post from: <a
href="http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com">Drug Addiction Treatment</a></p> ]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>http://www.drugaddictiontreatment.com/types-of-addiction/alcohol-addiction/research-examines-link-between-sexual-abuse-and-alcohol-dependence/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments> </item> </channel> </rss>
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