Gender Differences Affecting Alcohol Dependence
Alcohol dependence is caused by a number of factors, including genetics, environment and personal experience. Scientists know that men and women struggle with alcohol dependence at different rates, but understanding the cause of the difference has been difficult – that is, until the results of a recent study provided new clues about the way men and women differ in genetic responses to alcohol. Full Story
Having Faith Helps in Recovery
“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States, best known as the President who led the U.S. through World War II, often referred to by his initials, FDR (1882-1945) Full Story
Young Women Find Success Following Twelve Step Program
A recent study completed using data from the Hazelden Center showed positive results for young women who followed a Twelve Step program for substance abuse that offers mutual support, including meetings for those in the early stages of drug and alcohol treatment. Frequent attendance at these meetings promoted abstinence from drinking and drug abuse over a six month period after treatment. Full Story
Alcohol and Anxiety Can Be a Dangerous Mix
Some things go together well: summer and baseball, good books and armchairs, cookies and milk. Other things don’t pair up so successfully. For people who experience high levels of anxiety in social situations, downing wine with dinner or a couple of beers to calm the nerves could prove to be a bad match.
Comorbidities are illnesses which co-exist. Understanding what connects two conditions for patients could prove instrumental in not only treating those conditions but in the development of new preventative measures and interventions.
Anxiety Linked to Substance Abuse
In a study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, a Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers sought to untangle the connection between self-medication for anxiety and future instances of substance abuse. The study involved 34,653 adult Americans considered to be representative of the general population. The study was conducted over a period of three years with an initial reporting in 2001/02 and the follow-up reporting taking place in 2004/05.
Participants in the study were divided into three categories:
Reduction in Drinking Acceptance Among UK Children
Peer pressure has long been considered a major component of alcohol use among underage drinkers. The need to be accepted by friends often encourages early initiation, even among kids who may not otherwise be interested in using alcohol. Early initiation is a serious problem, given that individuals who begin using alcohol at a young age are exposed longer to the risks that come with alcohol use, such as certain cancers and liver disease.
Positive Peer Pressure
A new study suggests attitudes among students in England may be pushing peer pressure in another direction. In a survey conducted by the NHS and published in late July, there is evidence that students are not impressed when their peers use alcohol, and in fact, may look down upon the behavior.
The survey’s results also indicate that fewer school-aged kids are using alcohol, cigarettes and drugs.
The NHS Information Centre report details information from a 2010 survey conducted among young people in England, asking them to answer questions about smoking, drinking and drug use. The results showed a decline in three major areas.
Among 11- to 15-year-olds, there was a decline from 46 percent to 32 percent of students who believed it was okay for a peer to drink alcohol once per week between 2003 and 2010. In addition, 11 percent of students surveyed in 2010 believed it was okay to get drunk once per week, compared with 20 percent in 2003.
Why Do Teens Drink?
In the 2010 survey, there were 7,300 participants who were surveyed between September and December of 2010. In the most recent survey, a new set of questions was introduced that assessed attitudes about the drinking behaviors of peers. Students were given multiple choice questions.
The most popular reasons provided for why peers drank were "to look cool in front of friends" (76 percent); "to be more sociable with friends" (65 percent); "peer pressure from friends" (62 percent); and "for the buzz" (60 percent).
The researchers noted a significant difference in responses between students who drank and those who did not. For those who drank alcohol within a week before the survey, their most popular reasons offered for why peers drank were "for the rush or buzz" and "to be more sociable." Those who did not drink were more likely to choose "to look cool in front of friends" or "pressure from their friends."
The number of students who had tried alcohol had declined significantly, from 51 percent in 2009 to 45 percent in 2010. This reflects a continuation of a steady decrease. In 2003, 61 percent of school-aged kids had tried alcohol.
Alcoholism Among the Elderly Is a Growing Trend
An American educator named John W. Gardner once commented that there is no other health problem that has been as neglected nationally as alcoholism. Doctors decline alcoholics as patients, hospitals won’t admit them and available treatment methods haven’t been widely useful.
Recently, we see that many elderly have become hidden alcoholics due to loneliness and depression. They have gone from leading productive lives to no longer having family or friends around to support them as they are left alone at home or in nursing homes, according to a recent article in Frost Illustrated.
Most of the elderly are on a variety of medications that do not mix safely with alcohol. When these patients are then hospitalized, often no one knows they are alcoholics which can lead to withdrawal signs complicating treatment.
A simple bout of pneumonia can become complicated with an unknown alcoholic as it lowers the immune system. Alcoholism also causes mineral and vitamin deficiencies that can lead to chronic brain diseases or deficits of the neurological system.
If an alcoholic is admitted, they need to be treated for such deficiencies and given supplements like B1, or thiamine and magnesium in conjunction with other nutrients they are lacking. This becomes complicated when the doctors don’t know the elderly person is an alcoholic. Social Service agencies need to be more aware of the conditions that lead to alcoholism with the elderly, and these elderly individuals also need to be encouraged to become involved in recreational activities for peer interaction.
It is important to make sure you have a neighbor or friend who regularly checks on your elderly family member and also has a key. Check with the nursing home or senior center to get your elderly loved one plugged in to recreational activities to help avoid this growing problem.
Now Is the Best Time to Improve
"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve themselves." – Anne Frank, one of the most renowned and discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust, born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, best known as the author of The Diary of Anne Frank (1929-1945)
How many times have we thought to ourselves that we’ll do this or that to get going with our recovery – tomorrow or sometime in the future? What’s wrong with working our recovery right now, today? The truth is that there’s no time like the present. Indeed, in recovery, the present is all we ever really have. That’s because we don’t live in the past or in the future. Right now is when we exist. The past is a memory and the future is not yet here. Action takes place in the present.
Thus, it stands to reason that we need to actively work our recovery in the present time. We may plan out our days in advance, and that’s an excellent strategy to keep us working our recovery, but it takes the present to be able to act.
By the same token, if we fail to act today, we are not likely to improve. Why? Very simply, we only make progress in recovery when we take the steps necessary to work on this or that aspect of our sobriety journey that we’ve identified as important – or that our counselor, therapist or sponsor has recommended we attend to.
Sometimes we fear that we don’t know what to do. Better look at that, however, because it’s just as likely that we’re kidding ourselves about something. We could very well be afraid to embark on a certain activity or action because we feel we lack the appropriate knowledge to do so. It’s also quite possible, even likely, that we’ve tried such an action before and did not succeed. That makes us doubly leering of engaging in the activity again.
But we should not allow such fear to dominate our thoughts or deter us from attempting to surmount a particular challenge or hurdle or overcome a certain obstacle. In fact, we will learn more from doing so than if we give up. Not only that, but we can’t move forward if we are unable to make sense of what didn’t work for us the last time we tried this or that approach.
It could also be that we’re uncertain what kind of improvements we should make. Maybe we’ve reached a certain plateau in our recovery and feel comfortable there. We’re not inclined to stretch ourselves at this point, preferring to remain at our comfort level. Why rock the boat, we may ask ourselves before answering that we’re just fine where we are. There’s a very good reason why we need to continue to challenge ourselves and move to the next step in our recovery journey. If we maintain a status quo, not moving forward and not moving backward, the very real danger is that we become complacent about our recovery. And when we take recovery for granted, guess what? The danger of relapse is right around the corner.
Fortunately for us, all we need to do is act today. Do something, even if it’s a small thing, to assist in our recovery efforts. It has to mean something to us. Whether it is a new meeting that we go to or the fact that we go out of our way to help a newcomer to the 12-step rooms feel welcome, it’s the action that we do – and continue to do – that will help us improve. Do this each and every day. Paraphrasing Anne Frank’s eloquent words, "Why wait when we can improve ourselves today?"
10 Ways Your Drinking Is Hurting Your Kids
As you watch your children grow, you begin to notice some strange behaviors. The teachers are concerned that your daughter is more aggressive than the other kids in her class. Your son has no friends and is bringing home Cs and Ds on his report card.
Genetic Characteristics May Increase Risk for Alcohol Problems
A recent study has only confirmed the effects of a low level of response, or LR, to increase the risk for alcohol abuse and heavy drinking among those with a genetic history of alcoholism. Professor of Psychiatry at the University in San Diego, CA, Marc A. Schuckit, says the effects of low LR factors of heavy drinking occurring later in life take place through a sequence of steps, according to Medical News Today.
The study examined boys and girls in the U.K. and smaller samples in the United States and on subjects that were younger as well. Studies showed a variety of results from the amount the person was likely to consume to achieve their desired result to peer influences. For some, the LR factor encourages coping with life’s problems. The entire procedure uncovered evidence regarding an individuals’ propensity for heavy drinking, thus increasing their risk for problems with alcohol.
Schuckit says the question remains as to why some adolescents drink more than others and that the low level of response is almost 60 percent genetic makeup. When you compare other countries and the way their drinking habits and differences in culture impact the use of alcohol, results can be of less importance in their culture or environment but the biological factors, such as metabolic factors and absorption of alcohol, should have consistent results across all cultures. There may be factors that are especially important such as religious or political viewpoints that affect your likelihood for alcoholism or that cause you to become more susceptible to drinking heavily.
Doctors continue to investigate these cross-cultural studies and that will help them solve the mystery of genetic influences among heavy drinkers.
Binge Drinking and Drug Use Soar in America
Binge drinking in the United States is a problem that continues to get grow. Not only does 23 percent of the population exceed the regular amount of daily drinks, but also many of the 23 percent are not even of legal age to consume. About 8 percent of underage drinkers illegally get drunk every week.
The Risks of Binge Drinking
In a recent study of states with the highest amount of binge drinkers, North Dakota took first place at 29.7 percent, while the District of Columbia followed in at 29.96 percent. Other states rounding out the top five are Wisconsin, Iowa, and Rhode Island. The state with the lowest percentage of binge drinkers is Utah with 14 percent. The average number across the United States is 23.4 percent.
Studies have shown that binge drinking can lead to many health problems. The risk of heart disease and diabetes are much higher, not to mention all the extra calories that are added to your body. If a woman finishes a bottle of wine in one sitting, that bottle can add up to four inches around the waist. The same habit for men can add up to two extra inches.
Drug Abuse Trends
While binge drinking is increasing at a high rate, another problem that is burdening the U.S. is the use of illicit drugs. In a recent report, it was found that in the past month, 6.4 percent of Americans and 10.8 percent in the past year have used marijuana.
When each individual state was looked at, it was discovered that Alaska had the highest rate of illicit drugs used in America at 13.5, and Rhode Island followed close behind with 12.6 percent. Vermont, Oregon, and Hawaii were also in the top five. The state with the lowest number of illicit drug users was Iowa with 5.29 percent. The average among all of the states is a staggering 8.3 percent.
In another report from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, it was shown that since the rates of drug use and binge drinking have risen, so has the rate of mental health disorders. Nearly 9 percent of all Americans have become dependent on illegal drugs or alcohol. In Americans over the age of 18, it was also reported that fewer than 5 percent have had a severe mental illness. Rhode Island is leading the count with 7.2 percent. Following are Hawaii and South Dakota, with the lowest reported numbers at 3.5 percent.
Illegal drugs are becoming such a big problem that tobacco is being seen as less risky. Smoking and tobacco use have fallen in the past two years, from 9.5 percent to now only 9 percent. Unfortunately more dangerous drugs, like cocaine and prescription drugs are becoming more of a problem and need greater attention and treatment.
Gender Differences Affecting Alcohol Dependence
Alcohol dependence is caused by a number of factors, including genetics, environment and personal experience. Scientists know that men and women struggle with alcohol dependence at different rates, but understanding the cause of the difference has been difficult – that is, until the results of a recent study provided new clues about the way men and women differ in genetic responses to alcohol. Full Story
Having Faith Helps in Recovery
“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States, best known as the President who led the U.S. through World War II, often referred to by his initials, FDR (1882-1945) Full Story
Young Women Find Success Following Twelve Step Program
A recent study completed using data from the Hazelden Center showed positive results for young women who followed a Twelve Step program for substance abuse that offers mutual support, including meetings for those in the early stages of drug and alcohol treatment. Frequent attendance at these meetings promoted abstinence from drinking and drug abuse over a six month period after treatment. Full Story
Alcohol and Anxiety Can Be a Dangerous Mix
Some things go together well: summer and baseball, good books and armchairs, cookies and milk. Other things don’t pair up so successfully. For people who experience high levels of anxiety in social situations, downing wine with dinner or a couple of beers to calm the nerves could prove to be a bad match.
Comorbidities are illnesses which co-exist. Understanding what connects two conditions for patients could prove instrumental in not only treating those conditions but in the development of new preventative measures and interventions.
Anxiety Linked to Substance Abuse
In a study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, a Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers sought to untangle the connection between self-medication for anxiety and future instances of substance abuse. The study involved 34,653 adult Americans considered to be representative of the general population. The study was conducted over a period of three years with an initial reporting in 2001/02 and the follow-up reporting taking place in 2004/05.
Participants in the study were divided into three categories:
Reduction in Drinking Acceptance Among UK Children
Peer pressure has long been considered a major component of alcohol use among underage drinkers. The need to be accepted by friends often encourages early initiation, even among kids who may not otherwise be interested in using alcohol. Early initiation is a serious problem, given that individuals who begin using alcohol at a young age are exposed longer to the risks that come with alcohol use, such as certain cancers and liver disease.
Positive Peer Pressure
A new study suggests attitudes among students in England may be pushing peer pressure in another direction. In a survey conducted by the NHS and published in late July, there is evidence that students are not impressed when their peers use alcohol, and in fact, may look down upon the behavior.
The survey’s results also indicate that fewer school-aged kids are using alcohol, cigarettes and drugs.
The NHS Information Centre report details information from a 2010 survey conducted among young people in England, asking them to answer questions about smoking, drinking and drug use. The results showed a decline in three major areas.
Among 11- to 15-year-olds, there was a decline from 46 percent to 32 percent of students who believed it was okay for a peer to drink alcohol once per week between 2003 and 2010. In addition, 11 percent of students surveyed in 2010 believed it was okay to get drunk once per week, compared with 20 percent in 2003.
Why Do Teens Drink?
In the 2010 survey, there were 7,300 participants who were surveyed between September and December of 2010. In the most recent survey, a new set of questions was introduced that assessed attitudes about the drinking behaviors of peers. Students were given multiple choice questions.
The most popular reasons provided for why peers drank were "to look cool in front of friends" (76 percent); "to be more sociable with friends" (65 percent); "peer pressure from friends" (62 percent); and "for the buzz" (60 percent).
The researchers noted a significant difference in responses between students who drank and those who did not. For those who drank alcohol within a week before the survey, their most popular reasons offered for why peers drank were "for the rush or buzz" and "to be more sociable." Those who did not drink were more likely to choose "to look cool in front of friends" or "pressure from their friends."
The number of students who had tried alcohol had declined significantly, from 51 percent in 2009 to 45 percent in 2010. This reflects a continuation of a steady decrease. In 2003, 61 percent of school-aged kids had tried alcohol.
Alcoholism Among the Elderly Is a Growing Trend
An American educator named John W. Gardner once commented that there is no other health problem that has been as neglected nationally as alcoholism. Doctors decline alcoholics as patients, hospitals won’t admit them and available treatment methods haven’t been widely useful.
Recently, we see that many elderly have become hidden alcoholics due to loneliness and depression. They have gone from leading productive lives to no longer having family or friends around to support them as they are left alone at home or in nursing homes, according to a recent article in Frost Illustrated.
Most of the elderly are on a variety of medications that do not mix safely with alcohol. When these patients are then hospitalized, often no one knows they are alcoholics which can lead to withdrawal signs complicating treatment.
A simple bout of pneumonia can become complicated with an unknown alcoholic as it lowers the immune system. Alcoholism also causes mineral and vitamin deficiencies that can lead to chronic brain diseases or deficits of the neurological system.
If an alcoholic is admitted, they need to be treated for such deficiencies and given supplements like B1, or thiamine and magnesium in conjunction with other nutrients they are lacking. This becomes complicated when the doctors don’t know the elderly person is an alcoholic. Social Service agencies need to be more aware of the conditions that lead to alcoholism with the elderly, and these elderly individuals also need to be encouraged to become involved in recreational activities for peer interaction.
It is important to make sure you have a neighbor or friend who regularly checks on your elderly family member and also has a key. Check with the nursing home or senior center to get your elderly loved one plugged in to recreational activities to help avoid this growing problem.
Now Is the Best Time to Improve
"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve themselves." – Anne Frank, one of the most renowned and discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust, born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, best known as the author of The Diary of Anne Frank (1929-1945)
How many times have we thought to ourselves that we’ll do this or that to get going with our recovery – tomorrow or sometime in the future? What’s wrong with working our recovery right now, today? The truth is that there’s no time like the present. Indeed, in recovery, the present is all we ever really have. That’s because we don’t live in the past or in the future. Right now is when we exist. The past is a memory and the future is not yet here. Action takes place in the present.
Thus, it stands to reason that we need to actively work our recovery in the present time. We may plan out our days in advance, and that’s an excellent strategy to keep us working our recovery, but it takes the present to be able to act.
By the same token, if we fail to act today, we are not likely to improve. Why? Very simply, we only make progress in recovery when we take the steps necessary to work on this or that aspect of our sobriety journey that we’ve identified as important – or that our counselor, therapist or sponsor has recommended we attend to.
Sometimes we fear that we don’t know what to do. Better look at that, however, because it’s just as likely that we’re kidding ourselves about something. We could very well be afraid to embark on a certain activity or action because we feel we lack the appropriate knowledge to do so. It’s also quite possible, even likely, that we’ve tried such an action before and did not succeed. That makes us doubly leering of engaging in the activity again.
But we should not allow such fear to dominate our thoughts or deter us from attempting to surmount a particular challenge or hurdle or overcome a certain obstacle. In fact, we will learn more from doing so than if we give up. Not only that, but we can’t move forward if we are unable to make sense of what didn’t work for us the last time we tried this or that approach.
It could also be that we’re uncertain what kind of improvements we should make. Maybe we’ve reached a certain plateau in our recovery and feel comfortable there. We’re not inclined to stretch ourselves at this point, preferring to remain at our comfort level. Why rock the boat, we may ask ourselves before answering that we’re just fine where we are. There’s a very good reason why we need to continue to challenge ourselves and move to the next step in our recovery journey. If we maintain a status quo, not moving forward and not moving backward, the very real danger is that we become complacent about our recovery. And when we take recovery for granted, guess what? The danger of relapse is right around the corner.
Fortunately for us, all we need to do is act today. Do something, even if it’s a small thing, to assist in our recovery efforts. It has to mean something to us. Whether it is a new meeting that we go to or the fact that we go out of our way to help a newcomer to the 12-step rooms feel welcome, it’s the action that we do – and continue to do – that will help us improve. Do this each and every day. Paraphrasing Anne Frank’s eloquent words, "Why wait when we can improve ourselves today?"
10 Ways Your Drinking Is Hurting Your Kids
As you watch your children grow, you begin to notice some strange behaviors. The teachers are concerned that your daughter is more aggressive than the other kids in her class. Your son has no friends and is bringing home Cs and Ds on his report card.
Genetic Characteristics May Increase Risk for Alcohol Problems
A recent study has only confirmed the effects of a low level of response, or LR, to increase the risk for alcohol abuse and heavy drinking among those with a genetic history of alcoholism. Professor of Psychiatry at the University in San Diego, CA, Marc A. Schuckit, says the effects of low LR factors of heavy drinking occurring later in life take place through a sequence of steps, according to Medical News Today.
The study examined boys and girls in the U.K. and smaller samples in the United States and on subjects that were younger as well. Studies showed a variety of results from the amount the person was likely to consume to achieve their desired result to peer influences. For some, the LR factor encourages coping with life’s problems. The entire procedure uncovered evidence regarding an individuals’ propensity for heavy drinking, thus increasing their risk for problems with alcohol.
Schuckit says the question remains as to why some adolescents drink more than others and that the low level of response is almost 60 percent genetic makeup. When you compare other countries and the way their drinking habits and differences in culture impact the use of alcohol, results can be of less importance in their culture or environment but the biological factors, such as metabolic factors and absorption of alcohol, should have consistent results across all cultures. There may be factors that are especially important such as religious or political viewpoints that affect your likelihood for alcoholism or that cause you to become more susceptible to drinking heavily.
Doctors continue to investigate these cross-cultural studies and that will help them solve the mystery of genetic influences among heavy drinkers.
Binge Drinking and Drug Use Soar in America
Binge drinking in the United States is a problem that continues to get grow. Not only does 23 percent of the population exceed the regular amount of daily drinks, but also many of the 23 percent are not even of legal age to consume. About 8 percent of underage drinkers illegally get drunk every week.
The Risks of Binge Drinking
In a recent study of states with the highest amount of binge drinkers, North Dakota took first place at 29.7 percent, while the District of Columbia followed in at 29.96 percent. Other states rounding out the top five are Wisconsin, Iowa, and Rhode Island. The state with the lowest percentage of binge drinkers is Utah with 14 percent. The average number across the United States is 23.4 percent.
Studies have shown that binge drinking can lead to many health problems. The risk of heart disease and diabetes are much higher, not to mention all the extra calories that are added to your body. If a woman finishes a bottle of wine in one sitting, that bottle can add up to four inches around the waist. The same habit for men can add up to two extra inches.
Drug Abuse Trends
While binge drinking is increasing at a high rate, another problem that is burdening the U.S. is the use of illicit drugs. In a recent report, it was found that in the past month, 6.4 percent of Americans and 10.8 percent in the past year have used marijuana.
When each individual state was looked at, it was discovered that Alaska had the highest rate of illicit drugs used in America at 13.5, and Rhode Island followed close behind with 12.6 percent. Vermont, Oregon, and Hawaii were also in the top five. The state with the lowest number of illicit drug users was Iowa with 5.29 percent. The average among all of the states is a staggering 8.3 percent.
In another report from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, it was shown that since the rates of drug use and binge drinking have risen, so has the rate of mental health disorders. Nearly 9 percent of all Americans have become dependent on illegal drugs or alcohol. In Americans over the age of 18, it was also reported that fewer than 5 percent have had a severe mental illness. Rhode Island is leading the count with 7.2 percent. Following are Hawaii and South Dakota, with the lowest reported numbers at 3.5 percent.
Illegal drugs are becoming such a big problem that tobacco is being seen as less risky. Smoking and tobacco use have fallen in the past two years, from 9.5 percent to now only 9 percent. Unfortunately more dangerous drugs, like cocaine and prescription drugs are becoming more of a problem and need greater attention and treatment.
Need Help Finding an Intervention Specialist?
We can refer you to an experienced interventionist who can help you help your loved one.
The Addiction Primer: Everything You Need to Know to Get Help for a Loved One
A very inexpensive yet indispensable guide for anyone struggling with a loved one's addiction. Chapters on intervention, what to expect from rehab, and information on how addiction impacts the family.
