Abnormal Brain Structure In Both Siblings - Addiction Only Affects One
A study conducted by Dr. Karen Ersche, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, England, and published in Science, reveals that one sibling who is addicted to drugs, and the other who is not, have similar brain abnormalities. These abnormalities come from an area of the brain that is vital for aiding people in exhibiting self control...

Addicts' Cravings Have Different Roots In Men And Women
When it comes to addiction, sex matters. A new brain imaging study by Yale School of Medicine researchers suggests stress robustly activates areas of the brain associated with craving in cocaine-dependent women, while drug cues activate similar brain regions in cocaine-dependent men. The study, expected to be published online Jan...

Early Intervention May Curb Dangerous College Drinking
The first few weeks of college are a critical time in shaping students' drinking habits. Now Penn State researchers have a tailored approach that may help prevent students from becoming heavy drinkers. "Research shows there is a spike in alcohol-related consequences that occur in the first few weeks of the semester, especially with college freshmen," said Michael J...

Alcohol Consumption And Risk Of Colon Cancer In People With A Family History Of Such Cancer
A study based on more than 87,000 women and 47,000 men in the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, looks at whether there is a link between colon cancer and alcohol, and if so at what level of consumption, and the importance of a family history of the disease. A total of 1,801 cases of colon cancer were diagnosed during follow-up from 1980 onwards...

Alcohol And Your Heart: Friend Or Foe?
A meta-analysis done by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) into the relationship between alcohol consumption and heart disease provides new insight into the long-held belief that drinking a glass of red wine a day can help protect against heart disease. "It's complicated," says Dr. Juergen Rehm, director of social and epidemiological research at CAMH. Dr...

Potential Target Identified For Anti-Craving Medications
Scientists at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) have identified a potential target for the development of anti-craving medications for people with addictions to stimulants such as methamphetamine. The discovery centres on a brain receptor related to the chemical dopamine, which has a complex role in addictive behaviours...

Endocannabinoid System Disturbed By GABA Deficits
Changes in the endocannabinoid system may have important implications for psychiatric and addiction disorders. This brain system is responsible for making substances that have effects on brain function which resemble those of cannabis products, e.g., marijuana...

Off-Campus College Party Hosts Drink More Than Attendees
On any given weekend, at least 10 percent of students at a single college could be hosting a party, and on average, party hosts who live off campus are drinking more and engaging in more alcohol-related problem behaviors than are the students attending their bashes, research suggests...

What Is Nicotine?
Nicotine is a nitrogen-containing chemical - an alkaloid, which is made by several types of plants, including the tobacco plant. Nicotine is also produced synthetically. Nicotiana tabacum, the type of nicotine found in tobacco plants, comes from the nightshade family. Red peppers, eggplant, tomatoes and potatoes are examples of the nightshade family...

Does Inability To Express Emotions Affect Treatment In Substance Abuse?
Alexithymia describes a person's state of deficiency in understanding, processing, or describing emotions, and even though the rate for alexithymia in those with substance use disorders is reported to be almost 67%, there are few studies that have evaluated therapy in alexithymic SUD patients...

Worm's Lifespan Dramatically Extended By Tiny Amounts Of Alcohol
Minuscule amounts of ethanol, the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, can more than double the life span of a tiny worm known as Caenorhabditis elegans, which is used frequently as a model in aging studies, UCLA biochemists report. The scientists said they find their discovery difficult to explain...

Mental Illness Affects 1 In 5 Americans
In the past year, 45.9 million Americans above the age of 18 years, or 20% of 18 year-olds, experienced mental illness, according to a new national report. Mental illness amongst those aged between 18 and 25 years (29.9%) was more than double as high, compared with people aged 50 years or older (14.3%)...

1 In 5 Americans With Mental Illness, National Survey
Some 45.9 million, or around 1 in 5 American adults (age 18 and over) experienced a mental illness in the past year, according to the US government's latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health, released this month...

When Housing For The Homeless Allows Alcohol, Heavy Drinkers Imbibe Less
A study of a controversial housing project that allows chronically homeless people with severe alcohol problems to drink in their apartments found that during their first two years in the building residents cut their heavy drinking by 35 percent. For every three months during the study, participants drank an average of 8 percent fewer drinks on their heaviest drinking days...

Alarming Number Of Texas Teens Playing The Choking Game
Nearly one out of seven college students surveyed at a Texas university has participated in the Choking Game, a dangerous behavior where blood flow is deliberately cut off to the brain in order to achieve a high, according to a study by The Crime Victims' Institute at Sam Houston State University...