Addiction InboxAddiction InboxA review of news about addiction, alcoholism, drugs of abuse, and new scientific and medical treatment options. Website is based on the book, Addiction, The Search for a Cure, by Dirk Hanson. 
Articles
Profiles in Addiction Science
2007-10-29 17:27:00 Henri Begleiter and the P3 waveAt the State University of New York?s Health Science Center in Brooklyn, the late Dr. Henri Begleiter, a professor of psychiatry, began investigating the brain wave activity of alcoholics in the early 1980s. According to Dr. Ting-Kai Li, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA):?Starting with the ground-breaking finding, published in Science, that some neurophysiological anomalies in alcoholics were already present in their young offspring before any exposure to alcohol and drugs, he proposed a model that changed the thinking in the field: namely, rather than a consequence of alcoholism, this neural hyperexcitability was a predisposing factor leading to the development of alcoholism and related disorders. This innovative study was replicated throughout the world and launched him on a systematic search to elucidate the genes underlying this predisposition.?People have heard of alpha waves and theta waves, but there are ... More About: Addiction , Profiles , Profil , Addict
This Is Your Brain on Drugs
2007-10-28 19:21:00 High-tech imaging reveals the chemistry of addiction Drug intoxication produces characteristic waveform signatures in the mammalian brain. The search for specific biological markers in the brain was made possible by positron emission tomography, better known as the PET scan. The idea is simple: Doctors inject test subjects with radioactively tagged glucose, which passes the blood-brain barrier with ease. The more electrochemically active portions of the brain burn extra glucose for energy. By noting precisely where the tagged glucose has gone, and converting that information into a digital two-dimensional array, a PET scan serves as a neurobiological map of brain activity in response to specific stimuli. Functionally, PET scans are pictures of the brain, showing specific areas that ?light up? during the performance of a task, or in response to a drug.Neuroimaging techniques like nuclear magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, provide another level of detail. With MRIs, scientists could ... More About: Drugs , Brain
Making a Mockery of Drug Addiction
2007-10-26 00:45:00 Drug and alcohol treatment tarnished by celebrity dabblersNewsflash: Lindsay Lohan in drug rehab for the? third time? Fourth? Fifth?Britney Spears, in and out of Malibu rehab three times in one week--so fast she barely has time to recover from the last hangover.Mel Gibson, caught on tape uttering anti-Semitic slurs: alcohol rehab for Mel.Senator Mark Foley, caught sending sexual messages to male pages: bundled up and shipped off for alcoholism treatment.San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, caught having an affair with the wife of his campaign manager: off to rehab and alcohol counseling.Comedian Michael Richards, racist comments. Athlete Isaiah Washington, homophobic slurs: off to rehab, the both of them.Some or all of these celebrities may in fact need treatment for substance abuse. But the revolving door approach of celebrities, and the duck-for-rehab-cover practiced by prominent public figures when caught in non-drug related embarrassments, has given established drug and alcohol tre... More About: Addiction , Drug , Mock , Addict
Drug Addiction in Mexico: Severed Heads on the Beach
2007-10-21 20:12:00 Substance abuse worsens as drug war heats up?Mexico is no longer just a transit country for drugs bound for the United States. It is a country of drug users as well,? James C. McKinley Jr. concludes in an October 3 article for The New York Times (reg. required). According to the Commander of Police in Zamaro, ?Ten or 15 years ago we didn?t even see powdered cocaine, just marijuana. Then about three years ago we started to see a lot of signs of ice, crack and heroin.?Mexican immigration isn't the only issue on the burner for the two countries. Observers note that alarm over drug trafficking has reached new heights as more and more dealers shift their business south toward the beach resort areas of Acapulco and Veracruz. Mutilated bodies and severed heads are sometimes left on the beaches for the television crews, Reuters reported. There have been more than 2,000 execution-style killings so far this year, a new record for drug-related violence in Mexico.The trend so alarmed new Mexi... More About: Beach , Addiction , Drug , Heads
Marijuana Withdrawal
2007-10-17 19:18:00 For Some Users, Cannabis Can Be Fiercely AddictiveFor a minority of marijuana users, commonly estimated at 10 per cent, the use of pot can become uncontrollable, as with any other addictive drug. Addiction to marijuana had been submerged in the welter of polyaddictions common to active addicts. The withdrawal rigors of, say, alcohol or heroin tend to drown out the subtler, more psychological manifestations of marijuana withdrawal.What has emerged in the past ten years is a profile of marijuana withdrawal, where none existed before. The syndrome is marked by irritability, restlessness, generalized anxiety, hostility, depression, difficulty sleeping, excessive sweating, loose stools, loss of appetite, and a general ?blah? feeling. Many patients complain of feeling like they have a low-grade flu, and they describe a psychological state of existential uncertainty??inner unrest,? as one researcher calls it. The most common marijuana withdrawal symptom is low-grade anxiety. Anxiety of th... More About: Marijuana , Withdrawal
Topamax for Alcoholism: A Closer Look
2007-10-12 23:48:00 Epilepsy drug gains ground, draws fire as newest anti-craving pillA drug for seizure disorders and migraines continues to show promise as an anti-craving drug for alcoholism, the third leading cause of death in America, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reported in its current issue.371 male and female alcoholics between the ages of 18 and 65 took part in the study. The subjects received either topiramate or a placebo. Over 14 weeks, patients taking topiramate showed a significantly higher rate of abstinence for 28 consecutive days or more. (Rates of abstinence increased slightly in the placebo group as well. Both groups received some psychological counseling.)Topamax is currently only approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use against seizures and migraine. The controversial practice of ?off-label? prescribing?using a drug for indications that are not formally approved by the FDA?has become so common that Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) said it had... More About: Closer , Alcoholism
OxyContin Back in Court
2007-10-09 22:09:00 Kentucky goes after makers of ?hillbilly heroin?The attorney general for the state of Kentucky filed a lawsuit last week against Purdue Pharma L.P., makers of OxyConti n, seeking to recover damages related to widespread addiction to the painkiller commonly known as ?hillbilly heroin.?Brought to widespread attention by Rush Limbaugh?s well-publicized addiction, OxyContin is a prescription narcotic for which a thriving black market has been established. It did not take drug users long to discover that OxyContin could also be ground up and either snorted or injected for a heroin-style high. Hundreds of deaths have been attributed to the street use of this Schedule II narcotic. Kentucky state officials say the social costs associated with fighting addiction have increased dramatically since the drug?s introduction. Others states are prepared to make the same argument.Oxycodone, as the drug is known medically, is a semi-synthetic derivative of thebaine, an alkaloid found in opium. It was... More About: Back , Court , Oxycontin
Defining Alcoholism
2007-10-07 19:22:00 How much is too much?Alcohol consumption lies on a spectrum, from nondrinkers on one end to patients dying of alcohol-related liver disease on the other. Novelist Jim Harrison once claimed that his ambition was to be a ?problem drinker,? rather than an alcoholic. How do we make the distinction? Professor George Vaillant of Harvard felt obliged to study that question, an inclination that resulted in his 1983 landmark work, The Natural History of Alcoholism , revised in 1995.Dr. Vaillant was the motive force behind the Harvard Medical School?s Study of Adult Development, which began in 1940. The study was divided into three groups: the middle-class College sample, the so-called ?Core City Longitudinal Study?, and a later group, the Clinic sample, comprised solely of people w...
Defining Alcoholism
2007-10-07 19:22:00 How much is too much?Alcohol consumption lies on a spectrum, from nondrinkers on one end to patients dying of alcohol-related liver disease on the other. Novelist Jim Harrison once claimed that his ambition was to be a ?problem drinker,? rather than an alcoholic. How do we make the distinction? Professor George Vaillant of Harvard felt obliged to study that question, an inclination that resulted in his 1983 landmark work, The Natural History of Alcoholism , revised in 1995.Dr. Vaillant was the motive force behind the Harvard Medical School?s Study of Adult Development, which began in 1940. The study was divided into three groups: the middle-class College sample, the so-called ?Core City Longitudinal Study?, and a later group, the Clinic sample, comprised solely of people w...
Nicotine Addiction in the U.K.
2007-10-05 21:55:00 Study group urges harm reduction strategy for heavy smokersBritain's Royal College of Physicians (RCP) called upon the government to treat cigarette smoking like any other drug addiction, and faulted its members for failing to offer sufficient help to heavy smokers trying to kick the habit.Because of that failure, the Academy called for greater access to nicotine substitution products, and the development of safer and more effective nicotine delivery systems for smokers who cannot quit.The Academy?s report, "Harm Reduction in Nico tine Addict ion : Helping People Who Can?t Quit," called for a sweeping overhaul of the country?s nicotine marketing structure "so that harm reduction strategies are in place."The report?s principle suggestion: "Change nicotine product regulation to make it easier to produce and market medicinal nicotine products."Jean King, Cancer Research UK's director of tobacco control, said the report highlighted the "stark fact" that cigarettes are freely available, w... More About: Coti
Nicotine Addiction in the U.K.
2007-10-05 21:55:00 Study group urges harm reduction strategy for heavy smokersBritain's Royal College of Physicians (RCP) called upon the government to treat cigarette smoking like any other drug addiction, and faulted its members for failing to offer sufficient help to heavy smokers trying to kick the habit.Because of that failure, the Academy called for greater access to nicotine substitution products, and the development of safer and more effective nicotine delivery systems for smokers who cannot quit.The Academy?s report, "Harm Reduction in Nico tine Addict ion : Helping People Who Can?t Quit," called for a sweeping overhaul of the country?s nicotine marketing structure "so that harm reduction strategies are in place."The report?s principle suggestion: "Change nicotine product regulation to make it easier to produce and market medicinal nicotine products."Jean King, Cancer Research UK's director of tobacco control, said the report highlighted the "stark fact" that cigarettes are freely available, w... More About: Coti
Shining New Light on Addiction
2007-09-29 23:27:00 SAD phototherapy may help with alcoholismIt?s that time of year again.For many people, the advent of seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is only, and literally, a matter of time. Since the autumnal equinox at 9.51 a.m. GMT on September 23, when daytime lost its annual circadian struggle with nighttime, the amount of daily sunlight slowly but surely diminishes by as much as several minutes a day. And for a few months, it will only get worse. For dwellers in the northern latitudes, the long dark has begun.To be precise, seasonal affective disorder is not typically considered to be a separate or unique disorder, but rather a symptom of unipolar or general depression, the ?garden-variety? form of depression. Both general depression and its seasonal variant involve symptoms such as lethargy, weight gain, carbohydrate craving, oversleeping and joylessness.The addition of strong light in certain frequencies?a form of phototherapy?helps some people combat this seasonal form of depression.... More About: Addiction , Light , Shining , Addict
Shining New Light on Addiction
2007-09-29 23:27:00 SAD phototherapy may help with alcoholismIt?s that time of the year again.For many people, autumn is a bracing and enjoyable time of the year. But for an unlucky minority of people, the advent of seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is only, and literally, a matter of time. Since the autumnal equinox at 9.51 a.m. GMT on September 23, when daytime lost its annual circadian struggle with nighttime, the amount of daily sunlight slowly but surely diminishes by as much as several minutes a day. And for a few months, it will only get worse. For dwellers in the northern latitudes, the long dark has begun.To be precise, seasonal affective disorder is not typically considered to be a separate or unique disorder, but rather a symptom of unipolar or general depression, the ?garden-variety? form of depression. Both general depression and its seasonal variant involve symptoms such as lethargy, weight gain, carbohydrate craving, oversleeping and joylessness.The addition of strong light in certai... More About: Addiction , Light , Shining , Addict
Bulimia as Food Addiction
2007-09-28 03:31:00 Serotonin-mediated brain activity drives the binge-and-purge cycle Bulimia , the binge-and-purge disorder that tends to afflict young women, seems especially linked to serotonin abnormalities. Bulimics gorge themselves and then induce vomiting--a debilitating cycle that often leads to severe health consequences.Richard and Judith Wurtman, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) identified a subset of bulimics who binge severely and almost exclusively on high-carbohydrate foods. These bulimics tended to be mildly obese, severely depressed--and came from families with a strong history of alcohol abuse. Other researchers have reported that a significant number of bulimics are themselves abusers of alcohol and other drugs. What is being suggested is that carbohydrate-craving obesity and bulimia may turn out to be two additional forms of drug addiction. They may be variations on the addictive theme, and the underlying cause may be the same--irregularities in the reward system n... More About: Food , Addiction , Addict
Bulimia as Food Addiction
2007-09-28 03:31:00 Serotonin-mediated brain activity drives the binge-and-purge cycle Bulimia , the binge-and-purge disorder that tends to afflict young women, seems especially linked to serotonin abnormalities. Bulimics gorge themselves and then induce vomiting--a debilitating cycle that often leads to severe health consequences.Richard and Judith Wurtman, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) identified a subset of bulimics who binge severely and almost exclusively on high-carbohydrate foods. These bulimics tended to be mildly obese, severely depressed--and came from families with a strong history of alcohol abuse. Other researchers have reported that a significant number of bulimics are themselves abusers of alcohol and other drugs. What is being suggested is that carbohydrate-craving obesity and bulimia may turn out to be two additional forms of drug addiction. They may be variations on the addictive theme, and the underlying cause may be the same--irregularities in the reward system n... More About: Food , Addiction , Addict
Serotonin and Dopamine: A Primer
2007-09-21 16:45:00 The Molecules of Reward Serotonin and dopamine are part of a group of compounds called biogenic amines. In addition to serotonin and dopamine, the amines include noradrenaline, acetylcholine, and histamine. This class of chemical messengers is produced, in turn, from basic amino acids like tyrosine, tryptophan, and choline. The amines are of great interest, because both mood-altering drugs and addictive drugs show a very straightforward affinity for receptors sites designed for endogenous amines.Addictive drugs have molecules that are the right shape for the amine receptors. Drugs like LSD and Ecstasy target serotonin systems. Serotonin systems control feeding and sleeping behaviors in living creatures from slugs to chimps. Serotonin, also known as 5-HT, occurs in nuts, fruit, and snake venom. It is found in the intestinal walls, large blood vessels, and the central nervous system of most vertebrates. The body normally synthesizes 5-hydroxytryptamine, as serotonin is formally known,... More About: Rime , Toni , Prim
Serotonin and Dopamine: A Primer
2007-09-21 16:45:00 The Molecules of Reward Serotonin and dopamine are part of a group of compounds called biogenic amines. In addition to serotonin and dopamine, the amines include noradrenaline, acetylcholine, and histamine. This class of chemical messengers is produced, in turn, from basic amino acids like tyrosine, tryptophan, and choline. The amines are of great interest, because both mood-altering drugs and addictive drugs show a very straightforward affinity for receptors sites designed for endogenous amines.Addictive drugs have molecules that are the right shape for the amine receptors. Drugs like LSD and Ecstasy target serotonin systems. Serotonin systems control feeding and sleeping behaviors in living creatures from slugs to chimps. Serotonin, also known as 5-HT, occurs in nuts, fruit, and snake venom. It is found in the intestinal walls, large blood vessels, and the central nervous system of most vertebrates. The body normally synthesizes 5-hydroxytryptamine, as serotonin is formally known,... More About: Rime , Toni , Prim
Alcohol and HDL levels
2007-09-17 00:10:00 Should Middle-aged Men Stop Drinking ?Heavy drinking and age don't always mix very well, despite the alleged beneficial health effects of taking just a single drink per day. Now comes news that, for men in their 50s, even high levels of the protective HDL type of cholesterol will not shield them from the ravages of high blood pressure if they are heavy drinkers.A recent Japanese study of more than 21,000 men suggests that even HDL cholesterol, the so-called ?good? cholesterol, does not protect drinkers from high blood pressure once they reach their 50s.High blood pressure is a known side effect of excessive drinking, but in 20-something drinkers, healthy levels of HDL, or high-density lipoprotein, help protect young men from developing high blood pressure due to excessive intake of alcohol. According to the paper, published in the September issue of Alcohol ism: Clinical and Experimental Research, ?The blood pressure of middle-aged men is elevated by alcohol drinking independently o...
Alcohol and HDL levels
2007-09-17 00:10:00 Should Middle-aged Men Stop Drinking ?Heavy drinking and age don't always mix very well, despite the alleged beneficial health effects of taking just a single drink per day. Now comes news that, for men in their 50s, even high levels of the protective HDL type of cholesterol will not shield them from the ravages of high blood pressure if they are heavy drinkers.A recent Japanese study of more than 21,000 men suggests that even HDL cholesterol, the so-called ?good? cholesterol, does not protect drinkers from high blood pressure once they reach their 50s.High blood pressure is a known side effect of excessive drinking, but in 20-something drinkers, healthy levels of HDL, or high-density lipoprotein, help protect young men from developing high blood pressure due to excessive intake of alcohol. According to the paper, published in the September issue of Alcohol ism: Clinical and Experimental Research, ?The blood pressure of middle-aged men is elevated by alcohol drinking independently o...
The Morphine Scandal
2007-09-12 16:19:00 Patients in Pain Due to "Opium Phobia" ?Opium has been recently made from white poppies, cultivated for the purpose, in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Connecticut.... comparatively large quantities are regularly sent East from California and Arizona, where its cultivation is becoming an important branch of industry, ten acres of poppies being said to yield, in Arizona, twelve hundred pounds of opium.?--Massachusetts Government Health Report, 1871 By the mid-1800s, as many people know, opium could be legally purchased in the United States as laudanum, patent medicines, and various elixirs. Less well known is the fact that opium was a godsend during the bloody years of the Civil War. Maimed and disabled soldiers found relief in morphine, the potent alkaloid of opium named after Morph eus, the Greek god of dreams. Used against constant, intractable pain, opium and its derivatives were among the most humane medical drugs ever discovered. How could a physician withhold them?Today, after cou... More About: Scandal , Morphine , Canda
The Morphine Scandal
2007-09-12 16:19:00 Patients in Pain Due to "Opium Phobia" ?Opium has been recently made from white poppies, cultivated for the purpose, in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Connecticut.... comparatively large quantities are regularly sent East from California and Arizona, where its cultivation is becoming an important branch of industry, ten acres of poppies being said to yield, in Arizona, twelve hundred pounds of opium.?--Massachusetts Government Health Report, 1871 By the mid-1800s, as many people know, opium could be legally purchased in the United States as laudanum, patent medicines, and various elixirs. Less well known is the fact that opium was a godsend during the bloody years of the Civil War. Maimed and disabled soldiers found relief in morphine, the potent alkaloid of opium named after Morph eus, the Greek god of dreams. Used against constant, intractable pain, opium and its derivatives were among the most humane medical drugs ever discovered. How could a physician withhold them?Today, after cou... More About: Scandal , Morphine , Canda
Smoking in New York City
2007-08-27 20:00:00 A Borough-By-Borough Survey New York City has 240,000 fewer smokers than it did in 2002, according to a recent report released by the city?s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. City health official Jennifer Ellis told the New York Times that the data represent the sharpest fall-off in cigarette smoking since the department began the surveys in 1993.The report cited bans on smoking in public places, higher taxes on tobacco products, and a multi-million dollar local advertising campaign as the ingredients that helped lead to the overall reduction in the number of smokers. Based on a citywide survey of adults, Who?s Still Smoking states that as many as 800,000 smokers attempted to quit in the past year, but less than one-fifth of them succeeded.However, quit rates over the 5-year period varied markedly from borough to borough. Staten Island proved to be the home of the city?s most stubborn and recalcitrant smokers: While the citywide smoking rate dropped by almost 20 per cent, Sta... More About: New York City
Smoking in New York City
2007-08-27 20:00:00 A Borough-By-Borough Survey New York City has 240,000 fewer smokers than it did in 2002, according to a recent report released by the city?s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. City health official Jennifer Ellis told the New York Times that the data represent the sharpest fall-off in cigarette smoking since the department began the surveys in 1993.The report cited bans on smoking in public places, higher taxes on tobacco products, and a multi-million dollar local advertising campaign as the ingredients that helped lead to the overall reduction in the number of smokers. Based on a citywide survey of adults, Who?s Still Smoking states that as many as 800,000 smokers attempted to quit in the past year, but less than one-fifth of them succeeded.However, quit rates over the 5-year period varied markedly from borough to borough. Staten Island proved to be the home of the city?s most stubborn and recalcitrant smokers: While the citywide smoking rate dropped by almost 20 per cent, Sta... More About: New York City
Book Review (Part Three): Women Under the Influence
2007-08-24 23:39:00 Rehab and the Working MotherAccording to Columbia University?s National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, more than 2.5 million women abuse or are dependent on illegal drugs. Women are almost 50 per cent more likely to be prescribed a narcotic or sedative, and teenage girls are more likely than teenage boys to abuse prescription drugs, with dramatic increases among 12 to 17 year old girls.Statistics cited in Women Under the Influence, produced by the Center, show that while women convicted of drug-related offenses represent the fastest growing subset of America?s prison population, their representation in the drug rehab community has not kept pace. Fully three-fourths of these incarcerated women are mothers, and that fact is at the heart of the difficulties women face when they seek treatment.Put simply, millions of women who need treatment for addiction to alcohol and illegal drugs do not receive it. This has been true throughout American history. Women were not admitted to ... More About: Book Review , Review , Book , Part
Book Review (Part Three): Women Under the Influence
2007-08-24 23:39:00 Rehab and the Working MotherAccording to Columbia University?s National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, more than 2.5 million women abuse or are dependent on illegal drugs. Women are almost 50 per cent more likely to be prescribed a narcotic or sedative, and teenage girls are more likely than teenage boys to abuse prescription drugs, with dramatic increases among 12 to 17 year old girls.Statistics cited in Women Under the Influence, produced by the Center, show that while women convicted of drug-related offenses represent the fastest growing subset of America?s prison population, their representation in the drug rehab community has not kept pace. Fully three-fourths of these incarcerated women are mothers, and that fact is at the heart of the difficulties women face when they seek treatment.Put simply, millions of women who need treatment for addiction to alcohol and illegal drugs do not receive it. This has been true throughout American history. Women were not admitted to ... More About: Book Review , Review , Book , Part
The Myth of Controlled Drinking
2007-08-21 23:29:00 Forward into the Past: White-Knuckle AlcoholicsFor the past two decades, social psychologist Stanton Peele has questioned the necessity of abstinence for alcoholics, claiming, in The Meaning of Addiction and in Diseasing Of America: Addiction Treatment Out Of Control, that the ?myth? of instant relapse is not well supported by statistical research.Bulling his way past hundreds of published scientific studies about the neurobiology of addiction, Peele continues to insist that the disease concept of alcoholism has no basis in current science. Believing that people?s personal values determine whether or not they become addicts, Peele has also written that ?no data of any sort support the idea that addiction is a characteristic of some mood-altering substances and not of others.??Those with better things to do,? Peele writes, ?are protected from addiction.?Andrew Weil, a well-known drug authority and author of The Natural Mind, has also objected to the ?grossly materialistic conception... More About: Drinking , Myth
The Myth of Controlled Drinking
2007-08-21 23:29:00 Forward into the Past: White-Knuckle AlcoholicsFor the past two decades, social psychologist Stanton Peele has questioned the necessity of abstinence for alcoholics, claiming, in The Meaning of Addiction and in Diseasing Of America: Addiction Treatment Out Of Control, that the ?myth? of instant relapse is not well supported by statistical research.Bulling his way past hundreds of published scientific studies about the neurobiology of addiction, Peele continues to insist that the disease concept of alcoholism has no basis in current science. Believing that people?s personal values determine whether or not they become addicts, Peele has also written that ?no data of any sort support the idea that addiction is a characteristic of some mood-altering substances and not of others.??Those with better things to do,? Peele writes, ?are protected from addiction.?Andrew Weil, a well-known drug authority and author of The Natural Mind, has also objected to the ?grossly materialistic conception... More About: Drinking , Troll , Myth
Book Review (Part Two): "Women Under the Influence"
2007-08-16 00:05:00 The Rise of the Binge Grrls?Women get drunk faster, become addicted more quickly, and develop alcohol-related diseases?such as hypertension and liver, brain and heart damage?more rapidly than men.? --The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia UniversityToday, about one out of every four American girls has had one or more alcoholic drinks by the age of 13, according to ?Women Under the Influence,? a book by Columbia?s National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse. In the 1960s, only 7 percent of girls reported having consumed alcohol by that age.80 per cent of college women living in sororities engage in regular bouts of binge drinking, compared to 35 per cent of non-sorority college women. While most women are moderate drinkers, the Center estimates that at least six million girls and women meet the DSM-IV criteria for alcohol abuse and dependence.When it comes to alcohol, the study turned a few common assumptions upside down. For example, the more education... More About: Book Review , Review , Book , Part
Book Review (Part Two): "Women Under the Influence"
2007-08-16 00:05:00 The Rise of the Binge Grrls?Women get drunk faster, become addicted more quickly, and develop alcohol-related diseases?such as hypertension and liver, brain and heart damage?more rapidly than men.? --The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia UniversityToday, about one out of every four American girls has had one or more alcoholic drinks by the age of 13, according to ?Women Under the Influence,? a book by Columbia?s National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse. In the 1960s, only 7 percent of girls reported having consumed alcohol by that age.80 per cent of college women living in sororities engage in regular bouts of binge drinking, compared to 35 per cent of non-sorority college women. While most women are moderate drinkers, the Center estimates that at least six million girls and women meet the DSM-IV criteria for alcohol abuse and dependence.When it comes to alcohol, the study turned a few common assumptions upside down. For example, the more education... More About: Book Review , Review , Book , Part
Book Review (Part 1): "Women Under the Influence"
More articles from this author:2007-08-12 06:33:00 Women and Cigarettes: ?The Virginia Slims Woman is Catching up to the Marlboro Man.??Compared to boys and men, girls and women become addicted to alcohol, nicotine, and illegal and prescription drugs at lower levels of use and in shorter periods of time, develop substance-related diseases like lung cancer more quickly, suffer more severe brain damage from alcohol and drugs like Ecstasy, and often pay the ultimate price sooner. Yet 92 per cent of women in need of treatment for alcohol and drug problems do not receive it. Stigma, shame, and ignorance hide the scope of the problem and the severity of the consequences.? --Joseph A. Califano, Jr.?Women Under the Influence,? with a Foreword by former Health, Education and Welfare Secretary Joseph Califano, appeared in print last year, but is well worth a second look. The result of studies undertaken at Columbia University?s National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, and collectively written by that group, ?Women Under th... More About: Women , Book Review , Review , Book , Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
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