Alcoholism News

April 19, 2024

Top Headlines

A Deep Dive Into the Genetics of Alcohol Consumption

Apr. 5, 2024 — Some people have genes that protect them from alcohol abuse. An examination of databases at 23andMe reveal that those same alcohol-protective variants have associations with conditions and behaviors that may have nothing to do with ...

Even Moderate Alcohol Usage During Pregnancy Linked to Birth Abnormalities

Apr. 2, 2024 — Researchers have found that even low to moderate alcohol use by pregnant patients may contribute to subtle changes in their babies' prenatal development, including lower birth length and a shorter duration of ...

Mar. 27, 2024 — The couple that drinks together might live longer together, too, says a University of Michigan ...

Scientists Give New Insight Into a Molecular Target of Alcohol

Jan. 8, 2024 — By investigating a molecule in the brain tied to cellular communication, scientists uncover important information about the proteins that do -- and do not -- influence alcohol drinking ...

Latest Headlines

updated 4:47pm EDT

Low Social Status Increases Risk of Health Problems from Alcohol Problems

Mar. 20, 2024 — Men and women with lower income or education levels are more likely to develop medical conditions related to alcohol abuse compared to similar individuals with a higher socioeconomic status, ...

Drugs Used to Treat Type 2 Diabetes Reduce Alcohol Cravings, Use in Individuals With Obesity

Jan. 8, 2024 — An analysis of those posts, together with a remote study of individuals with obesity who reported using semaglutide and tirzepatide, found that the ...

Survey Finds Americans Struggle to Maintain Healthy Habits During the Holiday Season

Dec. 4, 2023 — The holiday season is a time for joy and celebration but many Americans admit the endless flurry of activities make it difficult to eat healthy, ...

Study Identifies Peptide as Key Mediator in Heavy Alcohol Drinking

Dec. 1, 2023 — Researchers have identified that a peptide called pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP), is involved in heavy alcohol drinking. In addition, they have discovered that this ...

Combined Use of Alcohol and THC Can Affect Rat Brains, Study Finds

Nov. 30, 2023 — The increased legalization of cannabis over the past several years can potentially increase its co-use with alcohol. Concerningly, very few studies have looked at the effects of these two drugs when ...

Lab Unlocks Keys to Alcohol Withdrawal Headache

Oct. 30, 2023 — Researchers have discovered mechanisms by which specific cells are activated in alcohol withdrawal-induced headache. The research may benefit further studies of various substance use disorder ...

Intellectual Disability More Common in Families With Substance Use Disorder

Sep. 7, 2023 — Children of a parent with alcohol or drug use disorder have a greater risk of intellectual disability, even if the problem only lies with the father, researchers report. According to the study, ...

Routinely Drinking Alcohol May Raise Blood Pressure Even in Adults Without Hypertension

July 31, 2023 — An analysis of data from seven studies involving more than 19,000 adults in the United States, Korea and Japan found a clear association between ...

Lean Body Mass, Age Linked With Alcohol Elimination Rates in Women

June 26, 2023 — Research links women's lean body mass with how quickly they eliminate alcohol from their system. Women with obesity and those who are older eliminate alcohol from their bloodstreams faster than those ...

Loneliness, Insomnia Linked to Work With AI Systems

June 12, 2023 — Employees who frequently interact with artificial intelligence systems are more likely to experience loneliness that can lead to insomnia and increased after-work drinking, according to research ...

A Closer Look at Cannabis Use and Binge Eating

Feb. 13, 2024 — New research examined how often people experiencing binge eating are also using cannabis recreationally, and whether patients who use cannabis experience more severe eating disorder symptoms or ...

Removing Largest Serving Sizes of Wine Decreases Alcohol Consumption, Study Finds

Jan. 18, 2024 — Across 21 licensed premises in England, removing the largest individual serving size of wine from the menu reduced the volume of wine sold, according to a new ...

Reduced Drug Use Is a Meaningful Treatment Outcome for People With Stimulant Use Disorders, Study Shows

Jan. 10, 2024 — Reducing stimulant use was associated with significant improvement in measures of health and recovery among people with stimulant use disorder, even if they did not achieve total abstinence. This ...

Fathers' Parental Leave Might Protect Men Against Alcohol-Related Morbidity

Oct. 6, 2023 — Men who have been on parental leave have a significantly reduced risk of being hospitalized due to alcohol consumption, according to a new study from ...

Heavy Drinking, Handgun-Carrying Linked Among Rural Youth

Aug. 23, 2023 — Alcohol use and subsequent handgun carrying were positively associated during adolescence and young adulthood among individuals who grew up in rural areas, similar to findings in urban areas. ...

Researchers Uncover Why Light-to-Moderate Drinking Is Tied to Better Heart Health

June 12, 2023 — A new study offers an explanation for why light-to-moderate alcohol consumption may be associated with lower risk of heart disease. For the first time, researchers found that alcohol, in light to ...

Mouse Models of Adolescent Binge Drinking Reveal Key Long-Lasting Brain Changes

June 9, 2023 — Heavy alcohol consumption may cause permanent dysregulation of neurons, or brain cells, in adolescents, according to a new study in mice. The findings suggest that exposure to binge-levels of alcohol ...

How Alcohol Consumption Contributes to Chronic Pain

Apr. 21, 2023 — A team showed how both alcohol intake and alcohol withdrawal can lead to increased pain and ...

Drinking Alcohol While Breastfeeding Impacts Health of Newborns

Apr. 19, 2023 — What are the consequences of mothers consuming alcohol while breastfeeding? A research team at the University of California, Riverside, performed a mouse study to find ...

A Protective Probiotic Blunts the Ill Effects of Alcohol in Mice

Apr. 11, 2023 — A probiotic treatment reduced the negative effects of alcohol consumption in ...

How Heavy Alcohol Consumption Increases Brain Inflammation

Mar. 7, 2023 — Recent findings point toward a potential new drug target for treating alcohol use ...

Pill for Skin Disease May Also Curb Excessive Drinking, Study Shows

Feb. 21, 2023 — Researchers have identified a pill used to treat a common skin disease as an 'incredibly promising' treatment for alcohol use disorder. On average, people in a proof-of-concept study who ...

Mothers' Alcohol Consumption Before and During Pregnancy Is Linked to Changes in Children's Face Shapes

Feb. 16, 2023 — Researchers have used artificial intelligence to discover a link between alterations in the shape of children's faces and the amount of alcohol their mothers drank, before and during pregnancy. ...

Mocktails or Cocktails? Having a Sense of Purpose in Life Can Keep Binge Drinking at Bay

Jan. 31, 2023 — A new study reveals that having a sense of purpose in daily life can influence college students' decisions on day-to-day alcohol ...

Mothers' Alcohol Use Changed During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Dec. 20, 2022 — Mothers drank alcohol less frequently as the COVID-19 pandemic progressed, according to a small study of Ohio women, but another result was more concerning to researchers. Findings showed that the ...

Uptick in Prevalence of Simultaneous Cannabis and Alcohol Use in the U.S. After States Legalize Recreational Cannabis Use

Dec. 12, 2022 — Simultaneous cannabis and alcohol use, defined as using both substances at the same time so their effects overlap, increased in adults from 2008 to 2019, according to new research. Shifts in cannabis ...

Many Genes Linked to Alcohol and Tobacco Use Are Shared Among Diverse Ancestries

Dec. 7, 2022 — A large genetic study has identified more than 2,300 genes predicting alcohol and tobacco use after analyzing data from more than 3.4 million people. Researchers said a majority of these genes were ...

Legalization of Recreational Cannabis Linked With Increased Alcohol Drinking, Study Finds

Nov. 28, 2022 — States that legalized recreational cannabis saw a slight population-level uptick in alcohol consumption that was largely driven by young adults and men, according to new ...

Drinking During Pregnancy Changes Baby's Brain Structure

Nov. 22, 2022 — A new MRI study revealed that consumption of alcohol even in low to moderate amounts during pregnancy can change the baby's brain structure and delay brain ...

Local Alcohol Availability Related to Child Maltreatment

Nov. 21, 2022 — The number of stores selling alcohol in a neighborhood is linked to cases of child abuse and neglect in the same area, a new study ...