Addiction
Drinking Alone During Adolescence an Early Warning of Future Problems
Adolescents who get someone to buy them alcohol for a weekend party or who sneak around with their friends to drink are facing some increased risks. Adolescents who try alcohol before reaching age 15 have been shown to face poor health futures, with two to three times greater risk of becoming substance dependent. A new study finds that when adolescents engage in solitary drinking their risks are even greater.
Study Examines Alcohol Advertising Appearing in Magazines
When it comes to advertising the alcohol industry does its own regulating. Television advertising is ruled by a set of regulations that discourages alcohol marketers from running ads during times that the underage population is most likely to watch television. While not a foolproof system, the regulations do seek to reduce child and teen exposure to alcohol images. When it comes to other types of advertising, however, it may be more difficult to determine the audience.
Exploring Genetics of Addiction May One Day Lead to Cure
You are made of about 100 trillion cells. The sheer magnitude of this number is striking, representing each of the individual components that make up all of your organs, the majority of them specialized to a particular role and working in tandem with the rest of your body to keep you functioning. Every single one of these cells also contains a copy of your genetic instructions, which are like a basic blueprint for creating you. The tiny variations in the master code—brought about through fresh mutation or an old one inherited from your parents—are what make each of us unique. However, just as these mutations can be fortuitous, they are also known to contribute to a wide range of medical and psychological conditions, and addiction is just one of them.
Online Games Teach Teens Alcohol Risks
Early alcohol initiation is of great concern for many reasons. Those that begin drinking during adolescence are more likely to develop a dependence on alcohol when compared with those that begin drinking in adulthood. There are short-term risks, such as assault, injury and vehicle crashes, and long-term risks like sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy and organ damage.
When Impulsive Teen Behaviors Become Self-Destructive
Transitioning from one period of life to another is always tough. Consider the emotional unsteadiness of an empty nest or retirement for older people. For teens, transitioning from childhood into adulthood can be especially challenging. Teens are not re-adjusting their identity, they are forming one. And in the midst of figuring out who they are as an individual their bodies are also undergoing all kinds of physiological changes.
Teens at Risk of Extreme Binge Drinking
Drinking alcohol has always been a part of American life but unfortunately it’s also become a teen pastime. Having that first drink is a rite of passage for far too many young people. Research shows that the younger a person begins to drink, the more issues they’ll have with alcohol use disorders.
Using Alcohol to Combat Stress
Stress is a part of everyday life. For many, responses to stress include irritability and a sense of being overwhelmed. Healthy ways to deal with stress include a balanced diet, exercise and adequate sleep. In some cases people self-medicate when either specific events or ongoing circumstances become too much to bear. During the holidays as family tensions and financial concerns tend to rear their heads this self-destructive behavior can become harmful. And what begins as an attempt at celebration can end with too much alcohol.
Peer Pressure for School Kids to Take Drugs Still Pervasive
Look at a school class photograph and you will see that teens don’t like to be unique. Most of the teens in any group picture will have similar hairstyles, wear similar clothing and even strike similar poses. They’re in the midst of discovering their identity, but until then there’s safety in the herd, which can work for or against your teen.
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Mental Health Checklist for Parents With Teens
Hormonal children are no more stable than a hormonal adult, perhaps worse. They’re on an emotional roller coaster that can change at a moment’s notice. But at what point should watchful parents take action?
Understanding “Other” (or Unknown) Substance-Related Disorders
“Other” (or unknown) substance-related disorders are a group of conditions listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which serves as the main U.S. reference text for diagnosing mental illnesses. The manual includes these conditions in order to provide mental health practitioners with a way to diagnose significant substance-related problems that don’t fit the definitions for any individually recognized substance-related disorder.
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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.
