ScienceDaily (July 31, 2008) — Strong cravings for alcohol can be sparked by the mere sight, smell and taste of a person’s favorite drink. Responses to such cues that are associated with the positive effects of drinking are a lead cause of relapse in abstinent alcoholics.
Using a behavioral animal model, researchers of a new study, scheduled for publication in the August 1st issue of Biological Psychiatry, have found that the physical surroundings where alcohol cues are experienced can greatly influence the ability of those cues to trigger relapse.
Specifically, Chaudhri and colleagues taught rats to learn that a brief tone signaled when a small amount of alcohol would be available in a fluid receptacle for them to drink. This learning occurred in a distinctive environment consisting of a particular appearance, smell, and lighting. They were then put into a second, unique context with a different appearance, smell, and lighting, and were repeatedly exposed to the tone but never given alcohol.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Frequent Family Meals Might Reduce Teen Substance Use
ScienceDaily (July 25, 2008) — Parents who have regular meals with their adolescent children might help lessen the chances they will start drinking or smoking later in their teen years, according to new research.
Past studies have shown that family meals provide many benefits, including offering a venue for parents to communicate with their adolescents about their daily activities, as well as monitor their moods and whereabouts.
In the new study, researchers noted benefits in families that ate five or more meals together each week, and found that about 60 percent of the participants did so.
“Sixty percent having regular family meals is about what we would expect for middle school students,” said lead author Marla Eisenberg of the Division of Adolescent Health and Medicine at the University of Minnesota. “The percentage is lower among high school students, who are more likely to have afterschool activities or more freedom to spend time away from home.”
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Past studies have shown that family meals provide many benefits, including offering a venue for parents to communicate with their adolescents about their daily activities, as well as monitor their moods and whereabouts.
In the new study, researchers noted benefits in families that ate five or more meals together each week, and found that about 60 percent of the participants did so.
“Sixty percent having regular family meals is about what we would expect for middle school students,” said lead author Marla Eisenberg of the Division of Adolescent Health and Medicine at the University of Minnesota. “The percentage is lower among high school students, who are more likely to have afterschool activities or more freedom to spend time away from home.”
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Coffee And Cigarette Consumption Are High Among AA Attendees
ScienceDaily (July 22, 2008) — More than one million Americans currently participate in the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) program. While AA participants are reportedly notorious for their coffee drinking and cigarette smoking, very little research has quantified their consumption of these two products. Recent findings confirm that coffee and cigarette use among this population is greater than among the general U.S. population: most AA members drink coffee and more than half smoke.
"Drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes are part of the culture of AA, but we knew little about the degree to which this occurred, how much more prevalent these behaviors were compared to the general American population, or why AA participants actually drank coffee or smoked cigarettes," said Peter R. Martin, professor of psychiatry and pharmacology, director of the Vanderbilt Addiction Center at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and corresponding author for the study.
Martin added that many questions remain about the effects of coffee and cigarettes on recovering alcoholics. "What do cigarettes or coffee do for them; how do they believe that they are affected by smoking and drinking coffee?," he asked. "Is this behavior simply a way to bond or connect in AA meetings, analogous to the peace pipe among North American Indians, or do constituents of these natural compounds result in pharmacological actions that affect the brain? Perhaps most interesting, how do these consummatory behaviors affect the brain and what is their role in recovery?"
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
"Drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes are part of the culture of AA, but we knew little about the degree to which this occurred, how much more prevalent these behaviors were compared to the general American population, or why AA participants actually drank coffee or smoked cigarettes," said Peter R. Martin, professor of psychiatry and pharmacology, director of the Vanderbilt Addiction Center at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and corresponding author for the study.
Martin added that many questions remain about the effects of coffee and cigarettes on recovering alcoholics. "What do cigarettes or coffee do for them; how do they believe that they are affected by smoking and drinking coffee?," he asked. "Is this behavior simply a way to bond or connect in AA meetings, analogous to the peace pipe among North American Indians, or do constituents of these natural compounds result in pharmacological actions that affect the brain? Perhaps most interesting, how do these consummatory behaviors affect the brain and what is their role in recovery?"
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Teen Smokers Struggle To Kick The Habit; Most Want To Quit And Can't
ScienceDaily (July 20, 2008) — Most teenagers who smoke cigarettes make repeated attempts to quit but most are unsuccessful, according to new research from the Université de Montréal and funded by the Canadian Cancer Society.
"The study found that teen smokers make their first serious attempt to quit after only two and a half months of smoking, and by the time they have smoked for 21 months they have lost confidence in their ability to quit," says Dr. Jennifer O'Loughlin, the study's lead author and a researcher from the Université de Montréal's department of social and preventive medicine.
Dr. O'Loughlin analyzed data from 319 Montreal teens who completed reports on their smoking habits every three months for five years. The study found that teen smokers progress through stages or milestones in their attempts to stop smoking. These stages are:
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
"The study found that teen smokers make their first serious attempt to quit after only two and a half months of smoking, and by the time they have smoked for 21 months they have lost confidence in their ability to quit," says Dr. Jennifer O'Loughlin, the study's lead author and a researcher from the Université de Montréal's department of social and preventive medicine.
Dr. O'Loughlin analyzed data from 319 Montreal teens who completed reports on their smoking habits every three months for five years. The study found that teen smokers progress through stages or milestones in their attempts to stop smoking. These stages are:
- Confidently declaring that they have stopped smoking forever, one to two months after their first puff;
- Expressing a conscious desire to quit with a growing realization that quitting requires serious effort;
- Over the next two years, as cravings and withdrawal symptoms increase, gradually losing confidence in their ability to quit;
- A year later, they are smoking daily and now realize they still smoke because it is very hard to quit;
- About two years after starting to smoke cigarettes daily, teen smokers are showing full-blown tobacco dependence.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Does Gene Variant Make Women More Prone To Alcoholism?
ScienceDaily (July 9, 2008) — A particular gene variant might make women more susceptible to alcoholism. At least, a study carried out by the Universities of Bonn and Sweden's Karolinska Institute makes this a plausible conclusion. Accord-ing to this, a gene in the endorphin metabolism is altered in a typical fashion more often in women alcoholics than in healthy women. In mice too, endorphins seem to play an important role in the amount of alcohol consumed, particularly among females.
Endorphins are known as 'happiness' hormones. They activate what is known as the reward system in the brain and thereby ensure a good mood. This could be the case after jogging (experts talk about 'Runner's High'), after a bar of chocolate or also after a glass of beer or wine. The body endeavours to repeat this high, in the worst case ending in addiction.
Without these 'happiness' hormones you should be going easy on the alcohol, the theory also says. Researchers have tested this hypothesis. For this they examined mice that could not produce any endorphins due to a genetic mutation. The laboratory mice had the choice of quenching their thirst with pure water or an ethanol solution. 'Overall, mice without endorphins drank less alcohol than their relatives with endorphins,' Dr. Ildikó Rácz from the Bonn Institute of Molecular Psychiatry explains. She led the study together with her colleague Britta Schürmann and the director of the institute, Professor Dr. Andreas Zimmer.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Endorphins are known as 'happiness' hormones. They activate what is known as the reward system in the brain and thereby ensure a good mood. This could be the case after jogging (experts talk about 'Runner's High'), after a bar of chocolate or also after a glass of beer or wine. The body endeavours to repeat this high, in the worst case ending in addiction.
Without these 'happiness' hormones you should be going easy on the alcohol, the theory also says. Researchers have tested this hypothesis. For this they examined mice that could not produce any endorphins due to a genetic mutation. The laboratory mice had the choice of quenching their thirst with pure water or an ethanol solution. 'Overall, mice without endorphins drank less alcohol than their relatives with endorphins,' Dr. Ildikó Rácz from the Bonn Institute of Molecular Psychiatry explains. She led the study together with her colleague Britta Schürmann and the director of the institute, Professor Dr. Andreas Zimmer.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Monday, June 16, 2008
High Impulsivity Predicts The Switch To Compulsive Cocaine-taking
ScienceDaily (June 16, 2008) — Scientists at the University of Cambridge have found impulsivity, a trait often associated with addicts’ behaviour, predicts whether casual drug use will lead to compulsive drug use. Their findings were recently reported in Science.
Many individuals take addictive drugs at some point in their lives – not just illicit drugs like cocaine and heroin, but also legal and commonly available substances such as alcohol and nicotine. But only a sub-group of those who take drugs eventually lose control over their drug use and become ‘addicted’.
These individuals take more drugs than intended, seek and take drugs compulsively and persist in doing so despite the many adverse consequences, such as compromising their health, family relationships, friendships and work. Many resort to criminal behaviour to obtain the funds necessary to sustain their compulsive drug use.
Why are some individuals vulnerable to this transition from casual to compulsive drug use? Scientists have concluded that there is a genetic vulnerability to addiction, which is best known for alcoholism. However, the precise relationship between vulnerability genes and addictive behaviour remains to be established.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Many individuals take addictive drugs at some point in their lives – not just illicit drugs like cocaine and heroin, but also legal and commonly available substances such as alcohol and nicotine. But only a sub-group of those who take drugs eventually lose control over their drug use and become ‘addicted’.
These individuals take more drugs than intended, seek and take drugs compulsively and persist in doing so despite the many adverse consequences, such as compromising their health, family relationships, friendships and work. Many resort to criminal behaviour to obtain the funds necessary to sustain their compulsive drug use.
Why are some individuals vulnerable to this transition from casual to compulsive drug use? Scientists have concluded that there is a genetic vulnerability to addiction, which is best known for alcoholism. However, the precise relationship between vulnerability genes and addictive behaviour remains to be established.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Pivotal Breakthrough Made In Alcohol Addiction Treatment
ScienceDaily (June 12, 2008) — Alcoholism is a devastating disease in part because of the 'symptom' of heavy drinking but more so due to the extensive harm it causes physical organs, such as the heart and liver, as well as damage to an individual's psychosocial well-being that decreases quality of life.
Remarkably, and for the first time, addiction experts led by a University of Virginia Health System team report the results of a clinical trial whereby an effective therapeutic medication, topiramate, not only decreases heavy drinking but also diminishes the physical and psychosocial harm caused by alcohol dependence.
"What we've found is that topiramate treats the alcohol addiction, not just the 'symptom' of drinking," says lead author Professor Bankole Johnson, D.Sc., M.D., Ph.D., M.Phil., FRCPsych., chairman of the UVa Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, of the nationwide 14-week trial involving 371 male and female diagnosed alcoholics.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Remarkably, and for the first time, addiction experts led by a University of Virginia Health System team report the results of a clinical trial whereby an effective therapeutic medication, topiramate, not only decreases heavy drinking but also diminishes the physical and psychosocial harm caused by alcohol dependence.
"What we've found is that topiramate treats the alcohol addiction, not just the 'symptom' of drinking," says lead author Professor Bankole Johnson, D.Sc., M.D., Ph.D., M.Phil., FRCPsych., chairman of the UVa Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, of the nationwide 14-week trial involving 371 male and female diagnosed alcoholics.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Excessive Drinking And Relapse Rapidly Cut In New Approach
ScienceDaily (June 12, 2008) — Boosting the level of a specific brain protein quickly cut excessive drinkingof alcohol in a new animal study, and also prevented relapse -- the common tendency found in sober alcoholics to easily return to heavy drinking after just one glass.
In addition, the treatment did not block other "pleasure-seeking behaviors" -- in this case, craving sweets. Interference with these normal behaviors has been a problem with drugs developed for alcoholism treatment. Nor did the brain chemical boost appear to carry any side effects, the study researchers report.
The research by scientists at theUCSF-affiliatedErnest Gallo Clinic and Research Center builds on their earlier work. In 2005, they reported the first hints that increased levels of this brain protein, known as GDNF, cut down alcohol consumption. The new study established how quickly the effect kicks in, and shows for the first time that the chemical blocks relapse and does not interfere with normal cravings. The research also pinpointed the brain site where GDNF acts to control drinking.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
In addition, the treatment did not block other "pleasure-seeking behaviors" -- in this case, craving sweets. Interference with these normal behaviors has been a problem with drugs developed for alcoholism treatment. Nor did the brain chemical boost appear to carry any side effects, the study researchers report.
The research by scientists at theUCSF-affiliatedErnest Gallo Clinic and Research Center builds on their earlier work. In 2005, they reported the first hints that increased levels of this brain protein, known as GDNF, cut down alcohol consumption. The new study established how quickly the effect kicks in, and shows for the first time that the chemical blocks relapse and does not interfere with normal cravings. The research also pinpointed the brain site where GDNF acts to control drinking.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Stress Increases Cocaine Addiction
ScienceDaily (Nov. 6, 2007) — According to the Trimbos Institute, anyone who sniffs cocaine once has a 15 to 20% likelihood of becoming addicted to this hard drug. Why does the recreational user only try it once whereas another person becomes physically and mentally dependent on the drug? Behavioural Pharmacologist Inge de Jong, attached to the LUMC (Leiden University Medical Center) and the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, sought an explanation in the effect of stress hormones.
The nervous smoker
‘Experience has shown that stress can lead to addiction,’ de Jong says. ‘Take the example of a smoker: he will light a cigarette immediately when he gets nervous. We still don’t understand the physical mechanisms by which stress contributes to the development of an addiction. Certainly for such a highly addictive substance as cocaine, which has adverse effects on health, on the ability to function in society and on criminal behaviour, it is especially important to gain a better understanding of how these mechanisms work. This may enable us to cure people of their addiction,or even better, to intervene preventively.’
Sensitisation
How does a person become addicted to cocaine? The more frequently an individual uses the drug, the greater the desire for it becomes, and certain physical reactions also become increasingly stronger. This effect is called sensitisation. De Jong examined how sensitisation is affected by two hormones which are produced by the adrenal glands: adrenaline and corticosterone. She also investigated whether this relation is dependent on the individual’s genetic code. ‘Certain people are by nature more sensitive than others to developing an addiction,’ according to De Jong.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
The nervous smoker
‘Experience has shown that stress can lead to addiction,’ de Jong says. ‘Take the example of a smoker: he will light a cigarette immediately when he gets nervous. We still don’t understand the physical mechanisms by which stress contributes to the development of an addiction. Certainly for such a highly addictive substance as cocaine, which has adverse effects on health, on the ability to function in society and on criminal behaviour, it is especially important to gain a better understanding of how these mechanisms work. This may enable us to cure people of their addiction,or even better, to intervene preventively.’
Sensitisation
How does a person become addicted to cocaine? The more frequently an individual uses the drug, the greater the desire for it becomes, and certain physical reactions also become increasingly stronger. This effect is called sensitisation. De Jong examined how sensitisation is affected by two hormones which are produced by the adrenal glands: adrenaline and corticosterone. She also investigated whether this relation is dependent on the individual’s genetic code. ‘Certain people are by nature more sensitive than others to developing an addiction,’ according to De Jong.
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
More research planned into whether exercise can help prevent addiction
Associated Press - June 9, 2008 10:33 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AP) - Studies in both humans and animals suggest that exercise may help prevent drug or alcohol addiction.
The government is pumping more money into research to find out.
The underlying question is whether regular physical activity spurs changes in the brain involving neurochemicals that sense and reinforce pleasure. In a Brown University study, women in a smoking-cessation program were twice as likely to kick the habit if they also exercised three times a week. They also gained only half as much weight.
Similar results were found in a study of teens and tweens. Those who said they exercise daily were half as likely to smoke, and 40% less likely to experiment with marijuana.
The possible connection between exercise and less addiction becomes important as kids become more sedentary.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Studies in both humans and animals suggest that exercise may help prevent drug or alcohol addiction.
The government is pumping more money into research to find out.
The underlying question is whether regular physical activity spurs changes in the brain involving neurochemicals that sense and reinforce pleasure. In a Brown University study, women in a smoking-cessation program were twice as likely to kick the habit if they also exercised three times a week. They also gained only half as much weight.
Similar results were found in a study of teens and tweens. Those who said they exercise daily were half as likely to smoke, and 40% less likely to experiment with marijuana.
The possible connection between exercise and less addiction becomes important as kids become more sedentary.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Genes May Determine Which Smoking Cessation Treatment Works Best
ScienceDaily (June 8, 2008) — Kicking the habit may soon become easier for the nation's 45 million smokers. For the first time, researchers have identified patterns of genes that appear to influence how well individuals respond to specific smoking cessation treatments.
Scientists at Duke University Medical Center, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, University of Pennsylvania and Brown University scanned the entire human genome in a comprehensive search for genes that could determine treatment outcome. They identified several genetic variations that seem to indicate the likelihood of success or failure of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and bupropion (Zyban).
"This takes us a big step forward in being able to tailor treatment to individual smokers to provide the therapies that are most likely to benefit them," explains Jed Rose, Ph.D., director of Duke's Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research and one of the study's authors. "In a few years, a simple blood test may provide physicians with enough information to recommend one treatment over another."
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Scientists at Duke University Medical Center, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, University of Pennsylvania and Brown University scanned the entire human genome in a comprehensive search for genes that could determine treatment outcome. They identified several genetic variations that seem to indicate the likelihood of success or failure of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and bupropion (Zyban).
"This takes us a big step forward in being able to tailor treatment to individual smokers to provide the therapies that are most likely to benefit them," explains Jed Rose, Ph.D., director of Duke's Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research and one of the study's authors. "In a few years, a simple blood test may provide physicians with enough information to recommend one treatment over another."
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Increased Risk Of Smoking, Substance Abuse In Bipolar Adolescents Confirmed
ScienceDaily (June 4, 2008) — A study from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) supports previous reports that adolescents with bipolar disorder are at increased risk for smoking and substance abuse. The article appearing in the June Drug and Alcohol Dependence -- describing the largest such investigation to date and the first to include a control group -- also indicates that bipolar-associated risk is independent of the risk conferred by other disorders affecting study participants.
"This work confirms that bipolar disorder (BPD) in adolescents is a huge risk factor for smoking and substance abuse, as big a risk factor as is juvenile delinquency," says Timothy Wilens, MD, director of Substance Abuse Services in MGH Pediatric Psychopharmacology, who led the study. "It indicates both that young people with BPD need to carefully be screened for smoking and for substance use and abuse and that adolescents known to abuse drugs and alcohol -- especially those who binge use -- should also be assessed for BPD."
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
"This work confirms that bipolar disorder (BPD) in adolescents is a huge risk factor for smoking and substance abuse, as big a risk factor as is juvenile delinquency," says Timothy Wilens, MD, director of Substance Abuse Services in MGH Pediatric Psychopharmacology, who led the study. "It indicates both that young people with BPD need to carefully be screened for smoking and for substance use and abuse and that adolescents known to abuse drugs and alcohol -- especially those who binge use -- should also be assessed for BPD."
Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com
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