Psychology Space

Back To School: More Stressful Than Parents Think - August can be a stressful time for teens and tweens, as they prepare to face another school year - and with it, new social and academic pressures. The Partnership for a Drug-Free America recently released a survey showing that the number one reason for teenage drug and alcohol abuse is to deal with school-related pressures.
Alcohol Consumption Declining, According To Results Of New Study - Overall alcohol use particularly consumption of beer is declining in the US, according to a new study published in the August 2008 issue of The American Journal of Medicine. Researchers examined 50 years of data and found several changes in alcohol intake but no change in alcohol use disorders. Americans are drinking significantly less beer and more wine, while hard liquor use has remained fairly constant. More people now report that they are non-drinkers.
Miami Herald Examines Research On Crack Users And HIV - The Miami Herald on Tuesday profiled the efforts of two researchers at hospitals in Atlanta and Miami to break the “grim cycle” in which crack users engage in risky sexual behavior, become HIV-positive and transmit the virus to others. Lisa Metsch of the University of Miami’s
Black Girls Who Abuse Alcohol Less Likely To Use Condoms - Black girls who abuse alcohol are more likely to have unprotected sex despite having participated in interventions that stressed the importance of consistent condom use.The study by Emory University public health researchers is being presented at the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City. It analyzed the alcohol usage and self-reported sexual behavior of 439 sexually active black female girls between the ages of 15 and 21.
Anti-HIV “Drug Cocktails” Equally Effective In Patients With Or Without History Of Injection Drug Use - Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has been extremely effective at slowing the progression of HIV infection to AIDS as well as extending the lives and improving the quality of life for those with HIV. However, some doctors have been reluctant to prescribe HAART to HIV-infected injection drug users because of concern that these patients may not fully benefit from the therapy.
Alcohol Consumption Declining In USA, According To Results Of New Study - Overall alcohol use-particularly consumption of beer-is declining in the US, according to a new study published in the August 2008 issue of The American Journal of Medicine. Researchers examined 50 years of data and found several changes in alcohol intake but no change in alcohol use disorders. Americans are drinking significantly less beer and more wine, while hard liquor use has remained fairly constant. More people now report that they are non-drinkers.
Advocates Speak Out Against Ala. DA’s Prosecution Of Pregnant Women Who Used Illegal Drugs - Several advocacy groups have criticized recent prosecutions by Covington County, Ala., District Attorney Greg Gambril of women who used illegal drugs while pregnant -- making the county the “latest legal battleground” on the issue, the AP/Google.com reports.
Research Reveals Why Some Smokers Become Addicted With Their First Cigarette - New research from The University of Western Ontario reveals how the brain processes the ‘rewarding’ and addictive properties of nicotine, providing a better understanding of why some people seemingly become hooked with their first smoke. The research, led by Steven Laviolette of the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry could lead to new therapies to prevent nicotine dependence and to treat nicotine withdrawal when smokers try to quit.
Alkermes Announces Approval Of VIVITROL(R) For The Treatment Of Alcohol Dependence In Russia - Alkermes, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALKS) announced that its partner, Cilag GmbH International, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, received approval from the Russian Regulatory Authorities to market VIVITROL® (naltrexone for extended-release injectable suspension) for the treatment of alcohol dependence in Russia. The product will be manufactured by Alkermes and commercialized by Janssen-Cilag, an affiliate company of Cilag GmbH International.
Study Highlights Risky Behavior, Lack Of Care Among HIV-Infected Crack Users - Doctors who treat HIV-infected crack users refer to them as “the forgotten population.” A study being presented at this week’s International AIDS Conference in Mexico City reveals that these patients frequently lack outpatient health care, do not receive life-saving antiretroviral therapy and continue to engage in risky sexual behavior that likely contributes to HIV transmission.
New Data Shows The Alcohol Industry Cannot Be Trusted, Australia - New data obtained by the Australian Drug Foundation (ADF) shows the alcohol industry has been deliberately misleading the public about the impact of the Federal Government’s alcopop tax.
Epilepsy Drug May Help Alcoholics Recover From Dependence, Small Study Suggests - It’s a Catch-22 of the highest order. People with alcohol problems often use alcohol to get to sleep -- but it actually keeps them from getting good-quality sleep all night long. At the same time, they’re highly likely to suffer from full-blown chronic insomnia that keeps them from getting enough sleep night after night - and that condition has been shown to cut their chances of getting sober again.
No Difference In Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy Between HIV-infected Injection Drug Users And Non-users - An article published in a special HIV/AIDS issue of JAMA on August 6 reports that there is little difference in the survival rates between injection drug users (IDUs) and non-injection drug users (non-IDUs) who receive highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for four to five years. This research, conducted by Julio S. G. Montaner, M.D., F.R.C.P.C., (University of British Columbia and St.
Odds Of Experiencing Sexual Aggression 19 Times Greater On Days Of Binge Drinking For College Women - According to researchers at the University at Buffalo’s Research Institute on Addictions (RIA), the odds of 18-19 year old college women experiencing sexual aggression are 19 times greater when they binge drink than when they don’t drink. Binge drinking or heavy drinking was defined as drinking four or more drinks on a drinking occasion. The analysis that led to this finding was based on daily reports of 179 young college women during an eight-week study.
Differing Reaction In The Brain To Self-Administered Cocaine - New research has uncovered a fundamental cellular mechanism that may drive pathological drug-seeking behavior. The study, published by Cell Press in the July 31 issue of the journal Neuron, examines the brain’s reward circuitry and details strikingly distinct influences of self-administered cocaine compared to natural rewards or passive cocaine injection.
Drinking In Excess Associated With Increased Risk For Metabolic Syndrome - Those who drink in excess of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines (i.e., men who usually drink more than two drinks per day or women who usually drink more than one drink per day) or those who binge drink are at increased risk for the metabolic syndrome, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).
HIV/AIDS Advocates Protest Stigma, Discrimination Ahead Of AIDS Conference - HIV/AIDS advocates in Mexico City have begun protesting the problems of stigma, discrimination and a lack of access to antiretroviral drugs in Latin America ahead of next week’s XVII International AIDS Conference in Mexico City, Agence France-Presse reports (Rosenthal, Agence France-Presse, 7/29).According to
Alcohol Binges Early In Pregnancy Increase Risk Of Infant Oral Clefts - A new study by researchers at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health, shows that pregnant women who binge drink early in their pregnancy increase the likelihood that their babies will be born with oral clefts.
Drug Use By Europe’s Young People Leads To Risky Sexual Behaviour - High levels of alcohol and drug consumption by young people in Europe is leading to an increase in unsafe sexual practices and a consequent rise in sexually-transmitted disease infections, according to a recently published study by the European Institute of Studies on Prevention (IREFREA).
A Long Lasting Impression: New Study Finds Persistent Brain Changes In Response To Cocaine Depend On The Expectation Of Reward - Drug addiction dramatically shifts a person’s attention, priorities, and behaviors towards a focus almost entirely on seeking out and taking drugs. Now, an animal study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, has identified some of the specific long-term adaptations in the brain’s reward system that may contribute to this shift.
Drug Has Potential To Prevent Alcoholics From Relapsing - An experimental drug that blocks the euphoric feelings associated with drinking may prevent alcoholics from relapsing. The finding, the result of a mouse study at Oregon Health & Science University, could lead to human clinical trials within the next year. “We showed we could block behavior in mice that resembles this increased euphoria even after the animals had been given a lot of alcohol,” said Tamara Phillips, Ph.D.
UCSF Study Shows That Cocaine Addiction Is Linked To Voluntary Drug Use And Cellular Memory - Rats that voluntarily use cocaine show a persistent cellular memory in the brain’s reward center even after several months of abstinence from the drug, while their involuntary counterparts had no such memory, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco. The researchers conclude that the pharmacologic effects of cocaine alone are not enough to cause long-lasting cellular memories in the brain’s reward circuit.
MicroRNA Implicated As Molecular Factor In Alcohol Tolerance - In recent years, a class of small molecules known as microRNA have been found to play an important role in regulating gene products in most animal and plant species. A new study now indicates that microRNA may influence the development of alcohol tolerance, a hallmark of alcohol abuse and dependence. Researchers supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) report the findings in the July 31 issue of the journal Neuron.
Obesity Predisposition Traced To The Brain’s Reward System - The tendency toward obesity is directly related to the brain system that is involved in food reward and addictive behaviors, according to a new study. Researchers at Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM) and colleagues have demonstrated a link between a predisposition to obesity and defective dopamine signaling in the mesolimbic system in rats. Their report appears in the August 2008 issue of The FASEB Journal.
Drinking Can Be Triggered By The Right Place And The Right Time - 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.