The loutish and drunken behaviour of some of our sporting heroes - routinely reported in the media - has little or no effect on the drinking habits of young people, new research has found.
Researchers at the Universities of Manchester, UK, and Western Sydney, Australia, say their findings - published in Drug and Alcohol Review - rubbish the idea that sports stars act as role models for those who follow sport.
"The perceived drinking habits of sports stars and its relationship to the drinking levels of young people has never been examined empirically, despite these sporting heroes often being touted as influential role models for young people," said lead researcher Dr Kerry O'Brien, a lecturer in Manchester's School of Psychological Sciences.
"Our research shows that young people, both sporting participants and non-sporting participants, don't appear to be influenced by the drinking habits of high-profile sportspeople as depicted in the mass media."
Dr O'Brien and his colleagues, pointing to previous research, suggest that sport and sports stars are much more likely to influence the drinking behaviour of fans when used as marketing tools by the alcohol industry, such as through sponsorship deals.
The research team asked more than 1,000 young sportspeople at elite and amateur level and non-sportspeople to report the perceived drinking behaviour of high-profile sport stars compared with their friends, and then report their own drinking behaviour using the World Health Organisations Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test.
The researchers found that both sporting and non-sporting study participants believed that sports stars actually drank significantly less than themselves but that their own friends drank considerably more.
After accounting for other potential factors, sports stars' drinking was not predictive of young sportspeople's own drinking, and was actually predictive of lower levels of drinking in non-sportspeople - the more alcohol non-sportspeople perceived sports stars to drink, the less they actually drank themselves.
Young people's own drinking was instead strongly related to the overestimation of their friends' drinking and, in sportspeople only, to sport-specific cultural habits, such as the drinking with competitors after games.
Dr O'Brien added: "Sport administrators, like the Football Association, are very quick to condemn and punish individual sport stars for acting as poor role models when they are caught displaying drunken and loutish behaviour.
But there is much stronger evidence for a relationship between alcohol-industry sponsorship, advertising and marketing within sport and hazardous drinking among young people than there is for the influence of sports stars drinking.
"We are not suggesting that sports stars should not be encouraged to drink responsibly but it's disingenuous to place the blame on them for setting the bad example.
"It is time that sport administrators consider their own social responsibilities when weighing up the costs and benefits of using their sports and sport stars to market alcohol on behalf of the alcohol industry."
Notes:
O'Brien, K.S., Kolt, G., Webber, A., Hunter, J.A. Alcohol consumption in sport: The influence of sporting idols, friends and normative drinking practices. Drug and Alcohol Review (advanced online access) 2010.
Source:
Aeron Haworth
University of Manchester
суббота, 30 апреля 2011 г.
пятница, 29 апреля 2011 г.
Australia Harm Reduction Strategies Serve As Model For Other Countries, UNAIDS Official Says
The Australian government's efforts to curb the spread of HIV by advocating harm-reduction initiatives, such as needle-exchange programs and drug substitution therapy, for injection drug users serve as a model for other countries throughout the region, UNAIDS Asia Pacific Director Prasada Rao said recently, the AAP/Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Rao said that Australia has called on Asian states to increase harm-reduction programs and examine current drug laws, especially in those states where penalties for drug users can include the death penalty. Rao said, "Australia is a good model for harm reduction programs and also for looking at drug laws and revamping them. In fact, quite a few countries in Asia have learned their harm reduction strategies in good examples from Australia." Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance Bob McMullan said that it is still possible for countries to adopt effective prevention and harm reduction strategies to combat HIV without encouraging drug use. He said that a "very big important part of the Australian government policy" is working "strongly" with drug users. He added that "in terms of reducing the spread of HIV, we have to focus on prevention." Rao's comments came as McMullan announced an additional 640,000 Australian dollars, or about $470,000, for nongovernmental organizations working in Asia (Corben, AAP/Sydney Morning Herald, 5/3).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2009 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
Rao said that Australia has called on Asian states to increase harm-reduction programs and examine current drug laws, especially in those states where penalties for drug users can include the death penalty. Rao said, "Australia is a good model for harm reduction programs and also for looking at drug laws and revamping them. In fact, quite a few countries in Asia have learned their harm reduction strategies in good examples from Australia." Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance Bob McMullan said that it is still possible for countries to adopt effective prevention and harm reduction strategies to combat HIV without encouraging drug use. He said that a "very big important part of the Australian government policy" is working "strongly" with drug users. He added that "in terms of reducing the spread of HIV, we have to focus on prevention." Rao's comments came as McMullan announced an additional 640,000 Australian dollars, or about $470,000, for nongovernmental organizations working in Asia (Corben, AAP/Sydney Morning Herald, 5/3).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2009 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
четверг, 28 апреля 2011 г.
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.
The mesolimbic system is a system of neurons in the brain that secretes dopamine, a neurotransmitter or chemical messenger, which mediates emotion and pleasure. The release of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the mesolimbic system is traditionally associated with euphoria and considered to be the major neurochemical signature of drug addiction.
"Baseline dopamine levels were 50 percent lower and stimulated dopamine release was significantly attenuated in the brain reward systems of obesity-prone rats, compared with obesity-resistant rats. Defects in brain dopamine synthesis and release were evident in rats immediately after birth," said Emmanuel Pothos, PhD, assistant professor in the department of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics at TUSM and member of the neuroscience program faculty of the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences.
"Previous research has demonstrated that food intake leads to an increase in the release of dopamine, in the circuits that mediate the pleasurable aspects of eating," Pothos explains. "Also, chronic food deprivation resulting in decreased body weight leads to decreased dopamine levels. Therefore, increased food intake may represent a compensatory attempt to restore baseline dopamine levels."
Pothos says, "These findings have important implications in our understanding of the obesity epidemic. The notion that decreased dopamine signaling leads to increased feeding is compatible with the finding from human studies that obese individuals have reduced central dopamine receptors." He speculates that an attenuated dopamine signal may interfere with satiation, leading to overeating.
Pothos and colleagues conducted their research using obesity-prone and obesity-resistant rats. Adult obesity-prone rats consumed more food and were 20% heavier than obesity-resistant rats.
The researchers measured electrically-evoked dopamine release from nerve terminals. "We also measured regulators of dopamine synthesis and release in midbrain dopamine pathways," explains Brenda Geiger, first author and graduate student in the pharmacology and experimental therapeutics department at TUSM. "Our molecular analysis suggests that the central dopamine deficits are most likely caused by reduced expression of the genes encoding two proteins, one that is involved in dopamine synthesis, and another that is a transporter responsible for packaging dopamine into vesicles from which it is later released upon stimulation."
"Obesity has so far been approached mostly as a metabolic rather than as an addictive disorder; and obesity research has primarily focused on brain systems that regulate body weight through the maintenance of energy balance. The current study challenges this approach by focusing on brain pathways implicated in pleasure and reward. These pathways could override energy balance and induce hyperphagia and obesity by altering the reward value of food, particularly palatable high-energy food, very early in life," says Pothos, who is the study's corresponding and senior author.
According to Gerald Weissmann, MD, editor-in-chief of The FASEB Journal, "Now we know why so many people stay addicted to food: it fuels the mid-brain pleasure machinery. We eat not only for nourishment, but also for pleasure. This study provides the molecular link between eating and mental health." The FASEB Journal (fasebj) is published by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB).
This research was funded by grants from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, both institutes of the National Institutes of Health, and the Smith Family Awards for Excellence in Biomedical Research. The work was conducted in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Tufts Center for Neuroscience Research (CNR).
Geiger BM, Behr GG, Frank LE, Caldera-Siu AD, Beinfeld MC, Kokkotou EG, Pothos EN. The FASEB Journal. 2008 (August); 22 (8): 2740-2746. "Evidence for defective mesolimbic dopamine exocytosis in obesity-prone rats."
About Tufts University School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts University are international leaders in innovative medical education and advanced research. The School of Medicine and the Sackler School are renowned for excellence in education in general medicine, special combined degree programs in business, health management, public health, bioengineering and international relations, as well as basic and clinical research at the cellular and molecular level. Ranked among the top in the nation, the School of Medicine is affiliated with six major teaching hospitals and more than 30 health care facilities. The Sackler School undertakes research that is consistently rated among the highest in the nation for its impact on the advancement of medical science.
Source: Siobhan Gallagher
Tufts University, Health Sciences
The mesolimbic system is a system of neurons in the brain that secretes dopamine, a neurotransmitter or chemical messenger, which mediates emotion and pleasure. The release of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the mesolimbic system is traditionally associated with euphoria and considered to be the major neurochemical signature of drug addiction.
"Baseline dopamine levels were 50 percent lower and stimulated dopamine release was significantly attenuated in the brain reward systems of obesity-prone rats, compared with obesity-resistant rats. Defects in brain dopamine synthesis and release were evident in rats immediately after birth," said Emmanuel Pothos, PhD, assistant professor in the department of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics at TUSM and member of the neuroscience program faculty of the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences.
"Previous research has demonstrated that food intake leads to an increase in the release of dopamine, in the circuits that mediate the pleasurable aspects of eating," Pothos explains. "Also, chronic food deprivation resulting in decreased body weight leads to decreased dopamine levels. Therefore, increased food intake may represent a compensatory attempt to restore baseline dopamine levels."
Pothos says, "These findings have important implications in our understanding of the obesity epidemic. The notion that decreased dopamine signaling leads to increased feeding is compatible with the finding from human studies that obese individuals have reduced central dopamine receptors." He speculates that an attenuated dopamine signal may interfere with satiation, leading to overeating.
Pothos and colleagues conducted their research using obesity-prone and obesity-resistant rats. Adult obesity-prone rats consumed more food and were 20% heavier than obesity-resistant rats.
The researchers measured electrically-evoked dopamine release from nerve terminals. "We also measured regulators of dopamine synthesis and release in midbrain dopamine pathways," explains Brenda Geiger, first author and graduate student in the pharmacology and experimental therapeutics department at TUSM. "Our molecular analysis suggests that the central dopamine deficits are most likely caused by reduced expression of the genes encoding two proteins, one that is involved in dopamine synthesis, and another that is a transporter responsible for packaging dopamine into vesicles from which it is later released upon stimulation."
"Obesity has so far been approached mostly as a metabolic rather than as an addictive disorder; and obesity research has primarily focused on brain systems that regulate body weight through the maintenance of energy balance. The current study challenges this approach by focusing on brain pathways implicated in pleasure and reward. These pathways could override energy balance and induce hyperphagia and obesity by altering the reward value of food, particularly palatable high-energy food, very early in life," says Pothos, who is the study's corresponding and senior author.
According to Gerald Weissmann, MD, editor-in-chief of The FASEB Journal, "Now we know why so many people stay addicted to food: it fuels the mid-brain pleasure machinery. We eat not only for nourishment, but also for pleasure. This study provides the molecular link between eating and mental health." The FASEB Journal (fasebj) is published by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB).
This research was funded by grants from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, both institutes of the National Institutes of Health, and the Smith Family Awards for Excellence in Biomedical Research. The work was conducted in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Tufts Center for Neuroscience Research (CNR).
Geiger BM, Behr GG, Frank LE, Caldera-Siu AD, Beinfeld MC, Kokkotou EG, Pothos EN. The FASEB Journal. 2008 (August); 22 (8): 2740-2746. "Evidence for defective mesolimbic dopamine exocytosis in obesity-prone rats."
About Tufts University School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts University are international leaders in innovative medical education and advanced research. The School of Medicine and the Sackler School are renowned for excellence in education in general medicine, special combined degree programs in business, health management, public health, bioengineering and international relations, as well as basic and clinical research at the cellular and molecular level. Ranked among the top in the nation, the School of Medicine is affiliated with six major teaching hospitals and more than 30 health care facilities. The Sackler School undertakes research that is consistently rated among the highest in the nation for its impact on the advancement of medical science.
Source: Siobhan Gallagher
Tufts University, Health Sciences
среда, 27 апреля 2011 г.
One Drink Can Make You Blind Drunk
Drivers beware! New research published today in Applied Cognitive Psychology finds that even having just one stiff drink can make you 'blind drunk.'
The study showed that subjects who were mildly intoxicated (at half the legal intoxication limit in the US) were heavily compromised in their ability to notice an unexpected visual object when they were focused on another simple task.
The phenomenon, known as 'Inattentional blindness' - where unexpected, yet salient objects appear in the visual fields but fail to be detected while subjects are focused on another task - has been demonstrated under various conditions, but this is the first instance to show that these visual errors become even more likely under the influence of alcohol.
The experiment involved giving subjects 10 minutes to consume beverages which, unbeknownst to them either contained alcohol or did not. The subjects then watched 25 seconds of a video clip showing two teams of three people playing with a ball and were instructed to count the ball passes. Part way through the video clip, an individual dressed in a gorilla suit appeared on the screen, walked directly through the players, beat its chest and then walked away.. Subjects who were mildly intoxicated were twice as likely to miss seeing the gorilla, even though it had screen time of over a third of the video.
Although the research did not directly test driving aptitude, the implications for driving could be serious. "We rely on our ability to perceive a multitude of information when we drive (speed limit, road signs, other cars, etc.) If even a mild dose of alcohol compromises our ability to take in some of this information, in other words, limits our attention span, then it seems likely that our driving ability may also be compromised." Says study lead author Dr. Seema Clifasefi of the University of Washington.
"If you've had one drink, you may be so focused on paying attention to your speed so as not to get pulled over, that you completely miss seeing the pedestrian that walks directly in front of your car."
Contact: Polly Young
John Wiley & Sons, Inc
.
The study showed that subjects who were mildly intoxicated (at half the legal intoxication limit in the US) were heavily compromised in their ability to notice an unexpected visual object when they were focused on another simple task.
The phenomenon, known as 'Inattentional blindness' - where unexpected, yet salient objects appear in the visual fields but fail to be detected while subjects are focused on another task - has been demonstrated under various conditions, but this is the first instance to show that these visual errors become even more likely under the influence of alcohol.
The experiment involved giving subjects 10 minutes to consume beverages which, unbeknownst to them either contained alcohol or did not. The subjects then watched 25 seconds of a video clip showing two teams of three people playing with a ball and were instructed to count the ball passes. Part way through the video clip, an individual dressed in a gorilla suit appeared on the screen, walked directly through the players, beat its chest and then walked away.. Subjects who were mildly intoxicated were twice as likely to miss seeing the gorilla, even though it had screen time of over a third of the video.
Although the research did not directly test driving aptitude, the implications for driving could be serious. "We rely on our ability to perceive a multitude of information when we drive (speed limit, road signs, other cars, etc.) If even a mild dose of alcohol compromises our ability to take in some of this information, in other words, limits our attention span, then it seems likely that our driving ability may also be compromised." Says study lead author Dr. Seema Clifasefi of the University of Washington.
"If you've had one drink, you may be so focused on paying attention to your speed so as not to get pulled over, that you completely miss seeing the pedestrian that walks directly in front of your car."
Contact: Polly Young
John Wiley & Sons, Inc
.
вторник, 26 апреля 2011 г.
HIV/AIDS PSA Campaign 'Drawing Attention' Because Of Celebrities Involved, Messages, New York Times Reports
A "provocative" HIV/AIDS public service campaign airing on several media outlets is "drawing attention" nationwide because of the celebrities featured in the announcements and the "frank nature" of their messages, the New York Times reports. The campaign -- called "Look, listen, love, respect" -- has enlisted actresses Whoopi Goldberg, Amanda Peet, Rosie Perez and Susan Sarandon to deliver "candid, no-nonsense" messages linking drug use and risky sexual behavior with the spread of HIV among men who have sex with men, according to the Times. The Internet is a central focus of the campaign, which has launched a Web site, loveandrespect.us. Video clips of the commercials also can be viewed on YouTube and MySpace. The campaign is scheduled to air on two national cable television networks, Here! and Logo, as well as on local cable TV stations owned by companies such as Cablevision, Cox Communications and Time Warner. In addition, there are plans to air the announcements in clubs and bars in cities nationwide and to produce audio versions of the spots for the national Out Q channel of Sirius Satellite Radio, the Times reports. The campaign is a collaboration between the New York City-based organizations HIV Forum NYC and the Callen-Lorde Community Health Center. It is receiving financial backing from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and Cable Positive, the Times reports. Dan Carlson, co-founder of HIV Forum NYC, developed the campaign with Jay Laudato, executive director of Callen-Lorde, and Colin Weil, a writer, director and producer. According to Carlson, the campaign features female actors because they "felt these honest, direct, loving messages would be heard best if told by women we can see as our mothers, best friends, sisters." He added, "They can tell us things we may not be ready to hear from each other" (Elliott, New York Times, 1/16).
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
понедельник, 25 апреля 2011 г.
Americans favor alcohol tax increases American Medical Association poll
By a margin of two to one, voters favor a tax increase on alcohol in their states to help fund education, health care and law enforcement related to drinking, according to a new national survey by the AMA.
The survey, released April 4 by the AMA Office of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse, also reveals that 90 percent of Americans are concerned about teenage and underage drinking.
It showed that voters strongly favor raising alcohol taxes to balance state budgets over other solutions, such as raising state sales or income taxes or cutting funding for social services, Medicaid or education.
"Alcohol abuse costs Americans more than $148 billion each year in health care and social costs. Among the most vulnerable of these drinkers are teens. Research shows that alcohol use has a devastating effect on teens' developing bodies and brains. Alcohol consumption by teens may cause permanent learning and memory loss," said AMA President-elect John C. Nelson, MD, MPH.
The results come at a time when organizations working to solve underage drinking problems are pushing for alcohol tax increases in at least seven states.
"As with smoking, the price of alcohol matters, especially with teenagers," said Richard A. Yoast, MD, director of the AMA's Office of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse. "Just as price increases for tobacco reduce consumption and disease, higher alcohol prices are proven to reduce everything from violent crimes to rape. The difference is taxes on cigarettes have been increased frequently and significantly over the years while alcohol taxes have remained astoundingly behind the times."
The telephone survey included a random sample of 800 registered voters from April 15-18, 2004.
Source: American Medical Association
ama-assn/ama/pub/article/1615-8553.html
The survey, released April 4 by the AMA Office of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse, also reveals that 90 percent of Americans are concerned about teenage and underage drinking.
It showed that voters strongly favor raising alcohol taxes to balance state budgets over other solutions, such as raising state sales or income taxes or cutting funding for social services, Medicaid or education.
"Alcohol abuse costs Americans more than $148 billion each year in health care and social costs. Among the most vulnerable of these drinkers are teens. Research shows that alcohol use has a devastating effect on teens' developing bodies and brains. Alcohol consumption by teens may cause permanent learning and memory loss," said AMA President-elect John C. Nelson, MD, MPH.
The results come at a time when organizations working to solve underage drinking problems are pushing for alcohol tax increases in at least seven states.
"As with smoking, the price of alcohol matters, especially with teenagers," said Richard A. Yoast, MD, director of the AMA's Office of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse. "Just as price increases for tobacco reduce consumption and disease, higher alcohol prices are proven to reduce everything from violent crimes to rape. The difference is taxes on cigarettes have been increased frequently and significantly over the years while alcohol taxes have remained astoundingly behind the times."
The telephone survey included a random sample of 800 registered voters from April 15-18, 2004.
Source: American Medical Association
ama-assn/ama/pub/article/1615-8553.html
воскресенье, 24 апреля 2011 г.
New Approach Reduces Number Of Routines Needed To Detect Erythropoietins
Austrian researchers have successfully developed a new electrophoretic method for detecting MIRCERA® and other erythropoietins (EPO) in the blood. The technique, using SARCOSYL-PAGE, has specifically enhanced sensitivity for MIRCERA, but does not alter the performance characteristics of SDS-PAGE for detecting other EPOs. Details of this study, funded by a grant from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), appear in the latest issue of Drug Testing and Analysis published by Wiley-Blackwell.
MIRCERA (methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta), a PEGylated EPO, is a synthetic protein that helps the body produce red blood cells and used to treat anemia caused by kidney disease. The drug is manufactured by Hoffmann-La Roche and only available outside the U.S. due to an infringement upon Amgen's patents on recombinant EPO products and processes. In the past, EPOs have been used off-label as doping agents by athletes to enhance endurance in such sports as cycling, distance running, and rowing. WADA has banned the use of EPOs, such as MIRCERA, in all competitive sports.
"The detection of doping with recombinant EPOs is one of the most challenging topics in anti-doping control," said Dr. Christian Reichel from the Seibersdorf Laboratories at the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) and lead author of the study. Dr. Reichel and colleagues obtained blood samples from four healthy volunteers as part of the study. Each participant received a single dose of each EPO drug (NeoRecormon (66 IU/kg), Dynepo (35 IU/kg), and MIRCERA (50 g)). Samples were collected for at least 14 days (NeoRecormon, Dynepo) or up to 42 days post injection in the case of MIRCERA.
Researchers used a two-fold serial dilution of Dynepo (0.09 ng to 0.7 pg), NESP (0.07 ng to 0.5 pg), and MIRCERA (0.4 ng to 3.0 pg to compare the sensitivity of SDS-PAGE (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis) for detecting MIRCERA by Western blotting. The intensity of the Dynepo and NESP bands gradually declined according to the decrease in their concentration, but a similar behavior was not observed for the MIRCERA bands. "We presumed from the experiments that the altered Western blotting performance of MIRCERA was due to its PEGylation (treatment with polyethylene glycol to obtain a long-acting effect of the protein)," noted Dr. Reichel.
PEGs of different average molecular masses (PEG 1500, 2000, 8000, 20000, 35000) were then separated on SDS-PAGE and visualized with a PEG-specific staining method. Due to a limited solubilizing power of SDS, PEGs - regardless of molecular size - were found to migrate as broad and smeared bands on SDS-PAGE. Given the results researchers hypothesized that the decreased sensitivity of MIRCERA on Western blots was due to an SDS-based solubility problem of MIRCERA's PEG-part.
To resolve the issue researches first used a detergent with higher solubilizing power for PEGs than SDS which did not improve the band shape of MIRCERA. Researchers then used SARCOSYL or (SAR)-PAGE with excellent results on Western blots by resolving MIRCERA in a sharp band and simultaneously keeping the resolution of rhEPOs and uhEPO on the performance level of SDS-PAGE. The authors found that "SARCOSYL was not binding to polyethylene glycol and was thus leaving PEGs in their native uncharged state." Redesigning SDS-PAGE by exchanging the SDS for SARCOSYL in the sample and running buffers solved the problem.
"In the past, there needed to be four methods performed to detect banned substances. Our method allows investigators to detect MIRCERA and other EPOs using just a single method," Dr. Reichel confirmed.
This study is published in Drug Testing and Analysis.
Full Citation: "SARCOSYL-PAGE: A new method for the detection of MIRCERA and EPO-doping in blood." Christian Reichel, Friedrich Abzieher and Thomas Geisendorfer. Drug Testing and Analysis; Published Online: December 16, 2009 (DOI: DTA.97).
Source: Dawn Peters
Wiley-Blackwell
View drug information on Mircera.
MIRCERA (methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta), a PEGylated EPO, is a synthetic protein that helps the body produce red blood cells and used to treat anemia caused by kidney disease. The drug is manufactured by Hoffmann-La Roche and only available outside the U.S. due to an infringement upon Amgen's patents on recombinant EPO products and processes. In the past, EPOs have been used off-label as doping agents by athletes to enhance endurance in such sports as cycling, distance running, and rowing. WADA has banned the use of EPOs, such as MIRCERA, in all competitive sports.
"The detection of doping with recombinant EPOs is one of the most challenging topics in anti-doping control," said Dr. Christian Reichel from the Seibersdorf Laboratories at the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) and lead author of the study. Dr. Reichel and colleagues obtained blood samples from four healthy volunteers as part of the study. Each participant received a single dose of each EPO drug (NeoRecormon (66 IU/kg), Dynepo (35 IU/kg), and MIRCERA (50 g)). Samples were collected for at least 14 days (NeoRecormon, Dynepo) or up to 42 days post injection in the case of MIRCERA.
Researchers used a two-fold serial dilution of Dynepo (0.09 ng to 0.7 pg), NESP (0.07 ng to 0.5 pg), and MIRCERA (0.4 ng to 3.0 pg to compare the sensitivity of SDS-PAGE (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis) for detecting MIRCERA by Western blotting. The intensity of the Dynepo and NESP bands gradually declined according to the decrease in their concentration, but a similar behavior was not observed for the MIRCERA bands. "We presumed from the experiments that the altered Western blotting performance of MIRCERA was due to its PEGylation (treatment with polyethylene glycol to obtain a long-acting effect of the protein)," noted Dr. Reichel.
PEGs of different average molecular masses (PEG 1500, 2000, 8000, 20000, 35000) were then separated on SDS-PAGE and visualized with a PEG-specific staining method. Due to a limited solubilizing power of SDS, PEGs - regardless of molecular size - were found to migrate as broad and smeared bands on SDS-PAGE. Given the results researchers hypothesized that the decreased sensitivity of MIRCERA on Western blots was due to an SDS-based solubility problem of MIRCERA's PEG-part.
To resolve the issue researches first used a detergent with higher solubilizing power for PEGs than SDS which did not improve the band shape of MIRCERA. Researchers then used SARCOSYL or (SAR)-PAGE with excellent results on Western blots by resolving MIRCERA in a sharp band and simultaneously keeping the resolution of rhEPOs and uhEPO on the performance level of SDS-PAGE. The authors found that "SARCOSYL was not binding to polyethylene glycol and was thus leaving PEGs in their native uncharged state." Redesigning SDS-PAGE by exchanging the SDS for SARCOSYL in the sample and running buffers solved the problem.
"In the past, there needed to be four methods performed to detect banned substances. Our method allows investigators to detect MIRCERA and other EPOs using just a single method," Dr. Reichel confirmed.
This study is published in Drug Testing and Analysis.
Full Citation: "SARCOSYL-PAGE: A new method for the detection of MIRCERA and EPO-doping in blood." Christian Reichel, Friedrich Abzieher and Thomas Geisendorfer. Drug Testing and Analysis; Published Online: December 16, 2009 (DOI: DTA.97).
Source: Dawn Peters
Wiley-Blackwell
View drug information on Mircera.
суббота, 23 апреля 2011 г.
U.S. Department Of HHS Recognizes Nurse-Family Partnership Implementation With Annual SAMHSA Science & Service Award
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has named Private/Public Ventures, the implementation partner of Nurse-Family Partnership® in Pennsylvania, recipient of its 2010 SAMHSA Science and Service Award. The awards recognize community-based organizations and coalitions that successfully have implemented one or more recognized evidence-based interventions that have been shown to prevent and/or treat mental illnesses and substance abuse.
SAMHSA notes that for over 10 years, Private/Public Ventures (P/PV) partnered with Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) to grow the program throughout the Keystone state. The NFP program begins with pregnancy help through ongoing home visits from registered public health nurses to low-income, first-time moms who receive the care and support they need to have a healthy pregnancy, provide responsible and competent care for their children, and become more economically self-sufficient. An evidence-based community health care program, NFP's outcomes include long-term family improvements in health, education, and economic self-sufficiency.
Compared to NFP nationally, at intake clients in Pennsylvania present more risk factors in that there are a greater number of teens, more unmarried, less educated, and greater histories of mental illness and abuse. Despite these risk factors, Pennsylvania NFP meets or exceeds Nurse-Family Partnership goals for language development at 21 months, immunizations completed by age 2, and the number of months that the mothers are working in the year after their child is born. In addition and as reported in 2009: 90% of babies were born full-term, 95% of children received all recommended immunizations by 24 months of age, a 29% increase in mothers workforce participation from 19% at intake to 48% at program completion, 44% of mothers who completed the program and who did not have a diploma/GED at intake earned their diploma/GED and 59% of mothers initiated breast-feeding. Pennsylvania NFP also shows positive trends toward many other NFP goals.
P/PV's stated mission is to help with replication of promising programs and NFP has been a noted success in that mission. In mid-2010, P/PV and Nurse-Family Partnership ended their 10-year collaboration as planned, due to the NFP program's successful widespread adoption in Pennsylvania and other states served by P/PV.
Twenty-eight organizations received the 2010 SAMHSA Award, part of SAMHSA's strategic initiative on the prevention of substance abuse and mental illnesses. To be eligible for these non-monetary awards, an organization had to demonstrate successful implementation of a recognized evidence-based intervention, including interventions that have been published in the scientific literature and/or appear on a federal or state registry.
Source: Nurse-Family Partnership
SAMHSA notes that for over 10 years, Private/Public Ventures (P/PV) partnered with Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) to grow the program throughout the Keystone state. The NFP program begins with pregnancy help through ongoing home visits from registered public health nurses to low-income, first-time moms who receive the care and support they need to have a healthy pregnancy, provide responsible and competent care for their children, and become more economically self-sufficient. An evidence-based community health care program, NFP's outcomes include long-term family improvements in health, education, and economic self-sufficiency.
Compared to NFP nationally, at intake clients in Pennsylvania present more risk factors in that there are a greater number of teens, more unmarried, less educated, and greater histories of mental illness and abuse. Despite these risk factors, Pennsylvania NFP meets or exceeds Nurse-Family Partnership goals for language development at 21 months, immunizations completed by age 2, and the number of months that the mothers are working in the year after their child is born. In addition and as reported in 2009: 90% of babies were born full-term, 95% of children received all recommended immunizations by 24 months of age, a 29% increase in mothers workforce participation from 19% at intake to 48% at program completion, 44% of mothers who completed the program and who did not have a diploma/GED at intake earned their diploma/GED and 59% of mothers initiated breast-feeding. Pennsylvania NFP also shows positive trends toward many other NFP goals.
P/PV's stated mission is to help with replication of promising programs and NFP has been a noted success in that mission. In mid-2010, P/PV and Nurse-Family Partnership ended their 10-year collaboration as planned, due to the NFP program's successful widespread adoption in Pennsylvania and other states served by P/PV.
Twenty-eight organizations received the 2010 SAMHSA Award, part of SAMHSA's strategic initiative on the prevention of substance abuse and mental illnesses. To be eligible for these non-monetary awards, an organization had to demonstrate successful implementation of a recognized evidence-based intervention, including interventions that have been published in the scientific literature and/or appear on a federal or state registry.
Source: Nurse-Family Partnership
пятница, 22 апреля 2011 г.
Why Can't Some People Give Up Cocaine?
Drug dependency is a recurrent but treatable kind of addiction. However, not all people who are drug dependent progress in the same way once they stop taking drugs. A new study shows that, in the case of cocaine, a high score on the so-called 'scale of craving', an antisocial personality type and previous heroin abuse are the factors most commonly involved in people falling back into the habit.
Ana L??pez, lead author of the study and a researcher at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), tells SINC that the objectives of the new study were: "To understand the factors linked to treatment outcomes, in order to help people get the right kind of treatment, reduce their chances of abandoning the treatment, ensure they stop using drugs and don't fall back into the habit".
The study, published in the Spanish journal Psicolog?a Conductual, analyses the significant factors (sociodemographic, psychopathological and patterns of drug and other substance abuse) involved in patients continuing to use cocaine two years after having requested treatment.
A high score on the 'scale of craving' (which measures the level of anxiety or desire to take drugs) at the start of the treatment, an antisocial personality type, and having previously taken heroin at some point previously in life are the main factors involved in falling back into cocaine abuse. For this reason, "it is crucial to first evaluate the person's consumption history and personality type", explains the researcher.
The researchers analysed a sample of 38 people (35 men and 3 women, with an average age of 31), who sought treatment for problems related to abuse of this substance in drug treatment centres in Galicia, in northern Spain, studying them at the start of their therapy and then two years later.
The study shows that impulsiveness and the desire for new sensations are also factors involved with substance abuse. "It's no surprise that people who have tried substances such as heroin, which is broadly rejected by society, score highly for impulsiveness and sensation-seeking, and these are also features that are characteristic of an antisocial personality type", adds the researcher.
The authors also highlight that, contrary to what had been believed up until now, a patient being depressed or anxious at the start of the treatment does not necessarily mean they will have worse long-term results. "These symptoms are often actually a consequence of cocaine use, and once they stop using the drug their symptoms start to improve", says L??pez.
Although demand for treatment because of problems related to cocaine abuse has risen in drug dependency centres in Spain, there are as yet only a few studies analysing how the users progress throughout the course of the treatment, which is why this kind of research is so important.
Source: Plataforma SINC
Ana L??pez, lead author of the study and a researcher at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), tells SINC that the objectives of the new study were: "To understand the factors linked to treatment outcomes, in order to help people get the right kind of treatment, reduce their chances of abandoning the treatment, ensure they stop using drugs and don't fall back into the habit".
The study, published in the Spanish journal Psicolog?a Conductual, analyses the significant factors (sociodemographic, psychopathological and patterns of drug and other substance abuse) involved in patients continuing to use cocaine two years after having requested treatment.
A high score on the 'scale of craving' (which measures the level of anxiety or desire to take drugs) at the start of the treatment, an antisocial personality type, and having previously taken heroin at some point previously in life are the main factors involved in falling back into cocaine abuse. For this reason, "it is crucial to first evaluate the person's consumption history and personality type", explains the researcher.
The researchers analysed a sample of 38 people (35 men and 3 women, with an average age of 31), who sought treatment for problems related to abuse of this substance in drug treatment centres in Galicia, in northern Spain, studying them at the start of their therapy and then two years later.
The study shows that impulsiveness and the desire for new sensations are also factors involved with substance abuse. "It's no surprise that people who have tried substances such as heroin, which is broadly rejected by society, score highly for impulsiveness and sensation-seeking, and these are also features that are characteristic of an antisocial personality type", adds the researcher.
The authors also highlight that, contrary to what had been believed up until now, a patient being depressed or anxious at the start of the treatment does not necessarily mean they will have worse long-term results. "These symptoms are often actually a consequence of cocaine use, and once they stop using the drug their symptoms start to improve", says L??pez.
Although demand for treatment because of problems related to cocaine abuse has risen in drug dependency centres in Spain, there are as yet only a few studies analysing how the users progress throughout the course of the treatment, which is why this kind of research is so important.
Source: Plataforma SINC
четверг, 21 апреля 2011 г.
In Rape Cases In Which Alcohol Is Involved, Juries Reluctant To Convict
With the Christmas party season upon us changes in the law that were supposed to make it easier to convict men of rape might not result in more convictions in cases in which the woman was drunk, according to new research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council.
Under the current law in England and Wales, rape can only be established if it can be demonstrated that sexual intercourse took place to which there was no consent and that the defendant lacked a reasonable belief that such consent had been given. The 2003 Sexual Offences Act changed the criteria for the defendant believing he had consent from being a view he 'honestly' held to one that was 'reasonable' for him to hold - this was intended to ensure that defendants were held to a higher level of responsibility.
However, researchers have found that jurors often took the view that it was 'reasonable' for a man to assume that silence represented sexual consent, even if the silence was due to the fact that the woman was totally intoxicated.
Because it is unlawful to conduct research with real juries, researchers, Emily Finch and Vanessa Munro, used trial and jury room simulations to find out how the legislation was working.
Their other main findings were:
* In situations where the woman had become involuntary drunk, many jurors continued to hold her partially responsible for what took place - either because she accepted drinks from the defendant, failed to stand her ground against pressure to drink more or did not take adequate care to ensure that her drinks were not 'spiked' (by either extra alcohol or drugs)
* Even when a woman had unknowingly drunk spiked drinks, juries were reluctant to convict defendants of rape unless they were convinced that the drink had been spiked with the specific intention of sexual assault, as opposed to 'loosening up' a reluctant partner.
* It also emerged that jurors were less inclined to equate 'taking advantage' of a drunken women with rape in situations in which the woman's normal behaviour was to drink heavily in the company of men
* By contrast, in cases where the date rape drug - Rohypnol - had been used, jurors were more inclined to hold the defendant responsible for rape, even though the effect of the drug on the woman was the same as if she were very drunk.
Vanessa Munro of King's College London, commenting on the findings said:
"These findings reflect the hold that gender stereotypes still have. They suggest that 'rape myths' can have a profound influence upon jurors. In cases in which the evidence suggests clear links between excessive alcohol consumption and sexual assault, these findings suggest that more needs to be done at both legal level and in society as a whole, to secure justice for victims of rape."
1. The research "From Sobriety to Stupefaction: Intoxication and Jury Decision-Making in Rape Trials" was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). It was undertaken by Dr. Emily Finch and Dr. Vanessa Munro and was largely carried out at the University of Reading. Dr Finch is now based at the University of East Anglia and Dr Munro is at Kings College, University of London.
2. Methodology: Because of the Contempt of Court Act it remains unlawful to interview jurors about what happened inside the jury room; hence the researchers designed an alternative methodology for investigating this problem. The findings are based on seven scripted mini-trial scenarios, based on the observation of actual rape trials, and written in consultation with legal experts and practitioners. The trials (which lasted approximately 75 minutes) were played out in real-time in front of an audience of mock jurors, with actors playing the roles of victim, defendant, prosecution witness and defence witness, and with trained barristers performing examinations and cross-examinations. Each trial was observed simultaneously by three juries, recruited via advertisements in the local press and radio. Having observed the trial unfold, each jury was led to a room and advised that they had 90 minutes in which to deliberate upon and reach a common verdict. These deliberations were recorded and then analysed.
3. The ESRC is the UK's largest funding agency for research and postgraduate training relating to social and economic issues. It provides independent, high quality, relevant research to business, the public sector and Government. The ESRC's planned total expenditure in 2006-07 is £169 million. At any one time the ESRC At any time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and research policy institutes. More at esrcsocietytoday.ac/
4. ESRC Society Today offers free access to a broad range of social science research and presents it in a way that makes it easy to navigate and saves users valuable time. As well as bringing together all ESRC-funded research (formerly accessible via the Regard website) and key online resources such as the Social Science Information Gateway and the UK Data Archive, non-ESRC resources are included, for example the Office for National Statistics. The portal provides access to early findings and research summaries, as well as full texts and original datasets through integrated search facilities. More at esrcsocietytoday.ac/
5. The ESRC confirms the quality of its funded research by evaluating research projects through a process of peer review. This research has been graded as 'outstanding'.
Contact: Annika Howard
Economic & Social Research Council
Under the current law in England and Wales, rape can only be established if it can be demonstrated that sexual intercourse took place to which there was no consent and that the defendant lacked a reasonable belief that such consent had been given. The 2003 Sexual Offences Act changed the criteria for the defendant believing he had consent from being a view he 'honestly' held to one that was 'reasonable' for him to hold - this was intended to ensure that defendants were held to a higher level of responsibility.
However, researchers have found that jurors often took the view that it was 'reasonable' for a man to assume that silence represented sexual consent, even if the silence was due to the fact that the woman was totally intoxicated.
Because it is unlawful to conduct research with real juries, researchers, Emily Finch and Vanessa Munro, used trial and jury room simulations to find out how the legislation was working.
Their other main findings were:
* In situations where the woman had become involuntary drunk, many jurors continued to hold her partially responsible for what took place - either because she accepted drinks from the defendant, failed to stand her ground against pressure to drink more or did not take adequate care to ensure that her drinks were not 'spiked' (by either extra alcohol or drugs)
* Even when a woman had unknowingly drunk spiked drinks, juries were reluctant to convict defendants of rape unless they were convinced that the drink had been spiked with the specific intention of sexual assault, as opposed to 'loosening up' a reluctant partner.
* It also emerged that jurors were less inclined to equate 'taking advantage' of a drunken women with rape in situations in which the woman's normal behaviour was to drink heavily in the company of men
* By contrast, in cases where the date rape drug - Rohypnol - had been used, jurors were more inclined to hold the defendant responsible for rape, even though the effect of the drug on the woman was the same as if she were very drunk.
Vanessa Munro of King's College London, commenting on the findings said:
"These findings reflect the hold that gender stereotypes still have. They suggest that 'rape myths' can have a profound influence upon jurors. In cases in which the evidence suggests clear links between excessive alcohol consumption and sexual assault, these findings suggest that more needs to be done at both legal level and in society as a whole, to secure justice for victims of rape."
1. The research "From Sobriety to Stupefaction: Intoxication and Jury Decision-Making in Rape Trials" was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). It was undertaken by Dr. Emily Finch and Dr. Vanessa Munro and was largely carried out at the University of Reading. Dr Finch is now based at the University of East Anglia and Dr Munro is at Kings College, University of London.
2. Methodology: Because of the Contempt of Court Act it remains unlawful to interview jurors about what happened inside the jury room; hence the researchers designed an alternative methodology for investigating this problem. The findings are based on seven scripted mini-trial scenarios, based on the observation of actual rape trials, and written in consultation with legal experts and practitioners. The trials (which lasted approximately 75 minutes) were played out in real-time in front of an audience of mock jurors, with actors playing the roles of victim, defendant, prosecution witness and defence witness, and with trained barristers performing examinations and cross-examinations. Each trial was observed simultaneously by three juries, recruited via advertisements in the local press and radio. Having observed the trial unfold, each jury was led to a room and advised that they had 90 minutes in which to deliberate upon and reach a common verdict. These deliberations were recorded and then analysed.
3. The ESRC is the UK's largest funding agency for research and postgraduate training relating to social and economic issues. It provides independent, high quality, relevant research to business, the public sector and Government. The ESRC's planned total expenditure in 2006-07 is £169 million. At any one time the ESRC At any time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and research policy institutes. More at esrcsocietytoday.ac/
4. ESRC Society Today offers free access to a broad range of social science research and presents it in a way that makes it easy to navigate and saves users valuable time. As well as bringing together all ESRC-funded research (formerly accessible via the Regard website) and key online resources such as the Social Science Information Gateway and the UK Data Archive, non-ESRC resources are included, for example the Office for National Statistics. The portal provides access to early findings and research summaries, as well as full texts and original datasets through integrated search facilities. More at esrcsocietytoday.ac/
5. The ESRC confirms the quality of its funded research by evaluating research projects through a process of peer review. This research has been graded as 'outstanding'.
Contact: Annika Howard
Economic & Social Research Council
среда, 20 апреля 2011 г.
Texas AG Abbott Issues Opinion Allowing Prosecution Of People Involved In Bexar County Needle-Exchange Program
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott (R) on Monday issued an opinion saying that three advocates involved in an effort to launch a needle-exchange program in Bexar County, Texas, "appear to be subject to prosecution" for possession of drug paraphernalia, the Austin American-Statesman reports (MacLaggan, Austin American-Statesman, 5/6). The opinion means that Bexar County officials will not move forward with the planned needle-exchange program, which would have been the first in Texas, the San Antonio Express-News reports (Allen/Finley, San Antonio Express-News, 5/6).
The Texas House in May 2007 voted 71-60 to approve a provision in a Medicaid bill (SB 10) that would have established the needle-exchange program in Bexar County, which includes San Antonio. State Rep. Ruth McClendon (D), who sponsored the provision, initially tried to add an amendment that would have created a statewide program. However, the program was limited to the San Antonio area after the broader program failed to gain support in the House.
The Bexar County Commissioners Court in August 2007 unanimously voted to move forward with a pilot initiative to establish the program. The court voted to approve spending $60,000 for a staff position and planning costs for the program. Following the vote from the County Commissioner's Court, Bexar County District Attorney Susan Reed said that the law authorizing the exchange program was faulty and that she would not hesitate to prosecute anyone who distributes needles before the program is approved by county health officials (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 1/29).
Three people with the Bexar Area Harm Reduction Coalition were charged in February for possession of drug paraphernalia, and Abbott's opinion allows prosecutors to move forward in the case (Austin American-Statesman, 5/6). Abbott in the opinion left the prosecution of the three people up to Reed's discretion. "Participants in the program may, in the discretion of the prosecutor, be prosecuted under the Texas Controlled Substances Act," the opinion said (White, AP/Google, 5/5). Police have refiled the charges as a Class A misdemeanor, which carries a punishment of up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine (San Antonio Express-News, 5/6).
Texas is the only state nationwide that does not allow needle-exchange programs, according to state Sen. Bob Deuell (R), who co-sponsored the original provision with McClendon. Deuell and McClendon both have said that they plan to reintroduce the legislation in 2009 (Austin American-Statesman, 5/6).
Aurora Sanchez -- Bexar County executive director of community and development programs, who supervised the exchange program -- said the county will continue to provide educational materials to injection drug users to prevent the spread of HIV and other bloodborne diseases (San Antonio Express-News, 5/6).
The Texas House in May 2007 voted 71-60 to approve a provision in a Medicaid bill (SB 10) that would have established the needle-exchange program in Bexar County, which includes San Antonio. State Rep. Ruth McClendon (D), who sponsored the provision, initially tried to add an amendment that would have created a statewide program. However, the program was limited to the San Antonio area after the broader program failed to gain support in the House.
The Bexar County Commissioners Court in August 2007 unanimously voted to move forward with a pilot initiative to establish the program. The court voted to approve spending $60,000 for a staff position and planning costs for the program. Following the vote from the County Commissioner's Court, Bexar County District Attorney Susan Reed said that the law authorizing the exchange program was faulty and that she would not hesitate to prosecute anyone who distributes needles before the program is approved by county health officials (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 1/29).
Three people with the Bexar Area Harm Reduction Coalition were charged in February for possession of drug paraphernalia, and Abbott's opinion allows prosecutors to move forward in the case (Austin American-Statesman, 5/6). Abbott in the opinion left the prosecution of the three people up to Reed's discretion. "Participants in the program may, in the discretion of the prosecutor, be prosecuted under the Texas Controlled Substances Act," the opinion said (White, AP/Google, 5/5). Police have refiled the charges as a Class A misdemeanor, which carries a punishment of up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine (San Antonio Express-News, 5/6).
Texas is the only state nationwide that does not allow needle-exchange programs, according to state Sen. Bob Deuell (R), who co-sponsored the original provision with McClendon. Deuell and McClendon both have said that they plan to reintroduce the legislation in 2009 (Austin American-Statesman, 5/6).
Aurora Sanchez -- Bexar County executive director of community and development programs, who supervised the exchange program -- said the county will continue to provide educational materials to injection drug users to prevent the spread of HIV and other bloodborne diseases (San Antonio Express-News, 5/6).
Reaction
Neel Lane, an attorney representing the coalition, said Abbott "reached an absurd conclusion ... that the Legislature somehow may have intended to criminalize the conduct of the people who carried out" the needle-exchange program (AP/Google, 5/5). He added that the "practical effect" of the opinion is that Reed "has the discretion to veto laws passed by the Legislature" and signed by the governor.
Cliff Herberg, first assistant district attorney for Bexar County, said the legislation "was faulty from the beginning" and "left open the possibility that needles would be distributed to underage kids." Herberg added that the Legislature "clearly didn't intend to create this program."
Sanchez said, "We were hoping the attorney general would see the value of operating the sterile needle exchange in toto, which included the distribution of sterile needles." She added, "But since it doesn't do that, it appears to me we have to wait until the legislation is changed in 2009" (San Antonio Express-News, 5/6).
State Sen. Jeff Wentworth (R), who asked the attorney general's office for its opinion, said that it is not the Legislature's intent for participants to be prosecuted and that lawmakers should address any problems with the legislation. "We're not in the business of passing bills that if people follow them, they would be charged with a crime," he said (AP/Google, 5/5).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
вторник, 19 апреля 2011 г.
Booze - How Much Is Too Much? Interactive Web Site For Students
The country's first interactive website to help students cut down on alcohol has launched at Leeds. If successful, it could be rolled out across the UK and beyond.
The e-UNICAL project will use tailored online feedback based on reported alcohol consumption to help students make informed decisions about their drinking. It aims to reduce consumption by ten per cent in two years, following feedback from the UNIQOLL student experience survey which showed that, in common with all young adults, some students had a high intake of alcohol.
"There's growing interest in the health professions in using online resources to change the way people behave," said principal investigator and project manager Bridgette Bewick from the psychological therapies research centre. "The widespread availability of low-cost IT makes the internet a great potential source for instigating change."
Three hundred student volunteers will feed information on their drinking habits into the website, and get personalised information on how many units they're consuming and the risks associated with drinking too much. Volunteers will get feedback not only on how much they are drinking compared to a sensible number of units, but also in relation to their fellow students. "Students tend to overestimate how much their peers are drinking," said Bridgette. "Giving students personalised feedback that they're in a high-risk category can act as a wake-up call." Feedback will be given on students' perceptions of how drinking is impacting on their health, their studies, and - a top priority for students - their finances.
The website, built by the University's information systems services department, will go live in March. "If the trial is successful in reducing alcohol consumption and binge drinking it will provide an effective and low-cost tool that could be used not only by the University of Leeds but also by student populations across the UK and Europe," said Bridgette. The e-UNICAL project was launched thanks to a grant from the European Advisory Research Board.
reporter.leeds.ac/514/s2.htm
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS
Leeds,
LS2 9JT,
UK
leeds.ac
The e-UNICAL project will use tailored online feedback based on reported alcohol consumption to help students make informed decisions about their drinking. It aims to reduce consumption by ten per cent in two years, following feedback from the UNIQOLL student experience survey which showed that, in common with all young adults, some students had a high intake of alcohol.
"There's growing interest in the health professions in using online resources to change the way people behave," said principal investigator and project manager Bridgette Bewick from the psychological therapies research centre. "The widespread availability of low-cost IT makes the internet a great potential source for instigating change."
Three hundred student volunteers will feed information on their drinking habits into the website, and get personalised information on how many units they're consuming and the risks associated with drinking too much. Volunteers will get feedback not only on how much they are drinking compared to a sensible number of units, but also in relation to their fellow students. "Students tend to overestimate how much their peers are drinking," said Bridgette. "Giving students personalised feedback that they're in a high-risk category can act as a wake-up call." Feedback will be given on students' perceptions of how drinking is impacting on their health, their studies, and - a top priority for students - their finances.
The website, built by the University's information systems services department, will go live in March. "If the trial is successful in reducing alcohol consumption and binge drinking it will provide an effective and low-cost tool that could be used not only by the University of Leeds but also by student populations across the UK and Europe," said Bridgette. The e-UNICAL project was launched thanks to a grant from the European Advisory Research Board.
reporter.leeds.ac/514/s2.htm
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS
Leeds,
LS2 9JT,
UK
leeds.ac
понедельник, 18 апреля 2011 г.
Qutting Smoking Could Keep You Sober And Clear Headed
After six to nine months of abstinence from alcohol, recovering alcoholics who were also chronic smokers showed a significantly lower rate of improvement in tests of memory, reasoning, judgment, and visual/spatial coordination than non-smoking recovering alcoholics in a study conducted by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC).
Not only did the smokers improve less, but their overall scores were lower than the non-smokers on most neurocognitive measures tested by the researchers.
"This suggests that continued smoking during abstinence from alcohol may adversely affect recovery," says Timothy Durazzo, PhD, the study's lead author and a research scientist in radiology at SFVAMC.
The study appears in the July, 2007 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Durazzo, who is also an assistant adjunct professor of radiology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), says the study is significant in light of previous research indicating that 60 to 80 percent of people who seek treatment for alcoholism are chronic smokers.
"It's well-established that chronic alcohol abuse leads to abnormalities in brain neurobiology and neurocognitive function, and it's also been shown that smoking itself leads to neurobiological and neurocognitive dysfunction," he says. "We wanted to learn what effect continued chronic smoking might have on changes in neurocognitive function during abstinence from alcohol. This issue had not been investigated before."
The researchers compared neurocognitive function among 13 non-smoking recovering alcoholics and 12 actively smoking recovering alcoholics recruited from two substance abuse recovery programs in San Francisco. After approximately one month of self-reported abstinence from alcohol, the subjects were tested on an array of neurocognitive abilities known to be affected by chronic alcohol abuse: auditory/verbal learning and memory; visual/spatial learning and memory; cognitive efficiency (speed and accuracy of intellectual task performance); executive skills (higher order thinking, reasoning, judgment, and planning); processing speed; working memory (short-term memory); motor functioning; and postural stability. The results were compared with those of 22 non-smoking, light drinking controls.
After six to nine months of alcohol abstinence, the subjects and controls were re-tested. The smokers showed significantly less improvement than the non-smokers in cognitive efficiency, executive skills, working memory, and visual/spatial learning and memory. Overall, their performance in tests of auditory/verbal learning and memory, cognitive efficiency, executive skills, processing speed, and working memory was inferior to that of the non-smokers.
Additionally, the smokers demonstrated lower recovery in markers of neuronal integrity and cell membrane health than the non-smokers.
"This indicates that the smokers showed less recovery over time and were functionally inferior to the non-smokers at six to nine months of abstinence," observes Durazzo. The controls showed no significant change over time.
"Overall, our studies with alcoholics, both those who receive treatment and those who do not, provide converging lines of evidence suggesting that chronic cigarette smoking adversely affects recovery of both neurobiology and neurocognition in people who drink," says principal investigator Dieter Meyerhoff, Dr.rer.nat., SFVAMC radiology researcher and professor of radiology at UCSF. "These studies contribute to the growing body of data linking chronic smoking to brain injury and cognitive dysfunction."
Durazzo says that the exact mechanisms by which smoking affects cognition and brain neurobiology have yet to be determined. He observes that the distinction must be made between nicotine by itself, which is found in cigarettes and has been shown in some studies to enhance cognition over the short term, and cigarette smoke, "which contains at least four thousand different compounds, including a number of carcinogens and other toxins. We feel that it is most likely the cumulative effect of chronic exposure to the noxious compounds in the smoke that might be affecting smokers' recovery."
Durazzo cautions that because of the small number of subjects, the study results are preliminary and should not be generalized to all recovering alcoholics.
Nonetheless, he says that the long-term benefit of quitting alcohol and tobacco simultaneously is becoming more and more apparent to researchers and clinicians. "In terms of addiction, it's been shown that alcohol and nicotine reinforce each other's rewarding properties. Alcoholics tend to smoke, and smoking may serve as a potential cue or trigger for the urge to drink. So if you eliminate a trigger for alcohol craving, you may have a better chance of staying sober."
Durazzo also points out that the mortality rate associated with chronic cigarette smoking is four times greater than mortality related to alcoholism. "Simply for that reason, it may be advisable to encourage individuals seeking treatment for alcoholism to consider participating in a smoking cessation program at the same time."
Durazzo says the next step for the researchers is a comparison of physical changes in the brain - volume, metabolites (the chemical products of brain metabolism), and blood flow - in the same group of subjects during extended abstinence from alcohol. "Those data are being analyzed now," he reports, "and we hope to learn to what degree these changes relate to the differences we have observed in neurocognitive recovery in smoking and non-smoking alcoholics."
Coauthors of the study are Johannes C. Rothlind, PhD, of SFVAMC and UCSF; Stefan Gazdzinski, PhD, of UCSF and the Northern California Institute for Research and Education (NCIRE); and Peter Banys, MD, of SFVAMC and UCSF.
The research was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health that was administered by NCIRE.
NCIRE - the Veterans Health Research Institute - is the largest research institute associated with a VA medical center. Its mission is to improve the health and well-being of veterans and the general public by supporting a world-class biomedical research program conducted by the UCSF faculty at SFVAMC.
SFVAMC has the largest medical research program in the national VA system, with more than 200 research scientists, all of whom are faculty members at UCSF.
UCSF is a leading university that advances health worldwide by conducting advanced biomedical research, educating graduate students in the life sciences and health professions, and providing complex patient care.
Contact: Steve Tokar
University of California - San Francisco
Not only did the smokers improve less, but their overall scores were lower than the non-smokers on most neurocognitive measures tested by the researchers.
"This suggests that continued smoking during abstinence from alcohol may adversely affect recovery," says Timothy Durazzo, PhD, the study's lead author and a research scientist in radiology at SFVAMC.
The study appears in the July, 2007 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Durazzo, who is also an assistant adjunct professor of radiology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), says the study is significant in light of previous research indicating that 60 to 80 percent of people who seek treatment for alcoholism are chronic smokers.
"It's well-established that chronic alcohol abuse leads to abnormalities in brain neurobiology and neurocognitive function, and it's also been shown that smoking itself leads to neurobiological and neurocognitive dysfunction," he says. "We wanted to learn what effect continued chronic smoking might have on changes in neurocognitive function during abstinence from alcohol. This issue had not been investigated before."
The researchers compared neurocognitive function among 13 non-smoking recovering alcoholics and 12 actively smoking recovering alcoholics recruited from two substance abuse recovery programs in San Francisco. After approximately one month of self-reported abstinence from alcohol, the subjects were tested on an array of neurocognitive abilities known to be affected by chronic alcohol abuse: auditory/verbal learning and memory; visual/spatial learning and memory; cognitive efficiency (speed and accuracy of intellectual task performance); executive skills (higher order thinking, reasoning, judgment, and planning); processing speed; working memory (short-term memory); motor functioning; and postural stability. The results were compared with those of 22 non-smoking, light drinking controls.
After six to nine months of alcohol abstinence, the subjects and controls were re-tested. The smokers showed significantly less improvement than the non-smokers in cognitive efficiency, executive skills, working memory, and visual/spatial learning and memory. Overall, their performance in tests of auditory/verbal learning and memory, cognitive efficiency, executive skills, processing speed, and working memory was inferior to that of the non-smokers.
Additionally, the smokers demonstrated lower recovery in markers of neuronal integrity and cell membrane health than the non-smokers.
"This indicates that the smokers showed less recovery over time and were functionally inferior to the non-smokers at six to nine months of abstinence," observes Durazzo. The controls showed no significant change over time.
"Overall, our studies with alcoholics, both those who receive treatment and those who do not, provide converging lines of evidence suggesting that chronic cigarette smoking adversely affects recovery of both neurobiology and neurocognition in people who drink," says principal investigator Dieter Meyerhoff, Dr.rer.nat., SFVAMC radiology researcher and professor of radiology at UCSF. "These studies contribute to the growing body of data linking chronic smoking to brain injury and cognitive dysfunction."
Durazzo says that the exact mechanisms by which smoking affects cognition and brain neurobiology have yet to be determined. He observes that the distinction must be made between nicotine by itself, which is found in cigarettes and has been shown in some studies to enhance cognition over the short term, and cigarette smoke, "which contains at least four thousand different compounds, including a number of carcinogens and other toxins. We feel that it is most likely the cumulative effect of chronic exposure to the noxious compounds in the smoke that might be affecting smokers' recovery."
Durazzo cautions that because of the small number of subjects, the study results are preliminary and should not be generalized to all recovering alcoholics.
Nonetheless, he says that the long-term benefit of quitting alcohol and tobacco simultaneously is becoming more and more apparent to researchers and clinicians. "In terms of addiction, it's been shown that alcohol and nicotine reinforce each other's rewarding properties. Alcoholics tend to smoke, and smoking may serve as a potential cue or trigger for the urge to drink. So if you eliminate a trigger for alcohol craving, you may have a better chance of staying sober."
Durazzo also points out that the mortality rate associated with chronic cigarette smoking is four times greater than mortality related to alcoholism. "Simply for that reason, it may be advisable to encourage individuals seeking treatment for alcoholism to consider participating in a smoking cessation program at the same time."
Durazzo says the next step for the researchers is a comparison of physical changes in the brain - volume, metabolites (the chemical products of brain metabolism), and blood flow - in the same group of subjects during extended abstinence from alcohol. "Those data are being analyzed now," he reports, "and we hope to learn to what degree these changes relate to the differences we have observed in neurocognitive recovery in smoking and non-smoking alcoholics."
Coauthors of the study are Johannes C. Rothlind, PhD, of SFVAMC and UCSF; Stefan Gazdzinski, PhD, of UCSF and the Northern California Institute for Research and Education (NCIRE); and Peter Banys, MD, of SFVAMC and UCSF.
The research was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health that was administered by NCIRE.
NCIRE - the Veterans Health Research Institute - is the largest research institute associated with a VA medical center. Its mission is to improve the health and well-being of veterans and the general public by supporting a world-class biomedical research program conducted by the UCSF faculty at SFVAMC.
SFVAMC has the largest medical research program in the national VA system, with more than 200 research scientists, all of whom are faculty members at UCSF.
UCSF is a leading university that advances health worldwide by conducting advanced biomedical research, educating graduate students in the life sciences and health professions, and providing complex patient care.
Contact: Steve Tokar
University of California - San Francisco
воскресенье, 17 апреля 2011 г.
3 Esophageal, Stomach Cancer Subtypes Linked To Smoking; 1 Associated With Alcohol Use
Researchers who have been following the health of more than 120,000 residents of the Netherlands for more than two decades have found that smoking is associated with two forms of esophageal cancer as well as a form of stomach cancer, and that drinking alcohol is strongly linked to one form of esophageal cancer.
Researchers say that while their findings, presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Seventh Annual International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research, confirm risk factors previously associated with these cancers, they don't explain the rising incidence of these tumors, especially esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and gastric cardia adenocarcinoma (GCA), a cancer of the upper stomach area, where it joins the esophagus.
"The results of this study again confirm recommendations for a healthy lifestyle, namely not to smoke and to drink alcohol in moderation," said study author, Jessie Steevens, M.Sc., of the Department of Epidemiology at Maastricht University, in Maastricht. "But it also suggests that there must be other risk factors for EAC and GCA," she said. "Smoking is a risk factor for both cancers, but since a decreasing part of the population smokes, this cannot explain why the incidence is rising so rapidly for both cancers in Western countries in recent decades.
"Other factors that might be associated with the risk of these cancers include obesity, diet and nutrition, exercise, occupational exposures, medical factors and so forth, which we are beginning to study," Steevens said.
Their findings are from one of the first large cohort studies to investigate risk factors in esophageal adenocarcinoma and gastric cardia adenocarcinoma, as well as in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), which resembles head and neck cancer.
ESCC, which can occur anywhere along the esophagus, was at one time responsible for more than 90 percent of all esophageal cancers, but now EAC, which is typically found in the lower esophagus, makes up more than half of this cancer type. Esophageal cancer, in general, had been linked to alcohol and tobacco use, but this study sought to refine that risk between different cancer subtypes.
Researchers in the Netherlands Cohort Study, which began in 1986, administered lifestyle questionnaires to participants, who were healthy when they enrolled, and then followed the group to see who developed cancer. After 16 years, investigators identified 120 ESCC cases, 168 EAC cases, and 187 GCA cases among the group of 120,852 enrollees.
For esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, they found a dose-response relationship between alcohol use and cancer development. "For example, a person drinking four glasses of alcohol had five times the risk of developing the cancer compared to a person who does not drink alcohol," Steevens said.
"Another way to explain this is that a person's lifetime risk of developing ESCC is one in 250 if that person doesn't drink alcohol and the lifetime risk would be about one in 50 if the person drinks four glasses of alcohol per day," she said.
Former and current smoking was associated with an increased risk of all three cancers, although the risks of ESCC were higher than those of EAC and GCA.
"It appeared that current smokers have the highest risks, and former smokers have an intermediate risk compared with never smokers. This was true for ESCC, EAC and GCA. These are the results when no other aspects of smoking were considered, such as the amount of cigarettes smoked per day and the number of years a person smoked," Steevens said. "When we took into account the smoking duration and frequency, it appeared that the difference in risk between former smokers and current smokers could partly be explained by these other aspects of smoking. This is also logical, because a former smoker, for example, has usually smoked fewer years than a current smoker."
The mission of the American Association for Cancer Research is to prevent and cure cancer. Founded in 1907, AACR is the world's oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research. The membership includes nearly 27,000 basic, translational, and clinical researchers; health care professionals; and cancer survivors and advocates in the United States and more than 70 other countries. AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise from the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer through high-quality scientific and educational programs. It funds innovative, meritorious research grants. The AACR Annual Meeting attracts more than 17,000 participants who share the latest discoveries and developments in the field. Special Conferences throughout the year present novel data across a wide variety of topics in cancer research, treatment, and patient care. AACR publishes five major peer-reviewed journals: Cancer Research; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular Cancer Research; and Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Its most recent publication and its sixth major journal, Cancer Prevention Research, is the only journal worldwide dedicated exclusively to cancer prevention, from preclinical research to clinical trials. The AACR also publishes CR, a magazine for cancer survivors, patient advocates, their families, physicians, and scientists. CR provides a forum for sharing essential, evidence-based information and perspectives on progress in cancer research, survivorship, and advocacy.
Source: Jeremy Moore
American Association for Cancer Research
Researchers say that while their findings, presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Seventh Annual International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research, confirm risk factors previously associated with these cancers, they don't explain the rising incidence of these tumors, especially esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and gastric cardia adenocarcinoma (GCA), a cancer of the upper stomach area, where it joins the esophagus.
"The results of this study again confirm recommendations for a healthy lifestyle, namely not to smoke and to drink alcohol in moderation," said study author, Jessie Steevens, M.Sc., of the Department of Epidemiology at Maastricht University, in Maastricht. "But it also suggests that there must be other risk factors for EAC and GCA," she said. "Smoking is a risk factor for both cancers, but since a decreasing part of the population smokes, this cannot explain why the incidence is rising so rapidly for both cancers in Western countries in recent decades.
"Other factors that might be associated with the risk of these cancers include obesity, diet and nutrition, exercise, occupational exposures, medical factors and so forth, which we are beginning to study," Steevens said.
Their findings are from one of the first large cohort studies to investigate risk factors in esophageal adenocarcinoma and gastric cardia adenocarcinoma, as well as in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), which resembles head and neck cancer.
ESCC, which can occur anywhere along the esophagus, was at one time responsible for more than 90 percent of all esophageal cancers, but now EAC, which is typically found in the lower esophagus, makes up more than half of this cancer type. Esophageal cancer, in general, had been linked to alcohol and tobacco use, but this study sought to refine that risk between different cancer subtypes.
Researchers in the Netherlands Cohort Study, which began in 1986, administered lifestyle questionnaires to participants, who were healthy when they enrolled, and then followed the group to see who developed cancer. After 16 years, investigators identified 120 ESCC cases, 168 EAC cases, and 187 GCA cases among the group of 120,852 enrollees.
For esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, they found a dose-response relationship between alcohol use and cancer development. "For example, a person drinking four glasses of alcohol had five times the risk of developing the cancer compared to a person who does not drink alcohol," Steevens said.
"Another way to explain this is that a person's lifetime risk of developing ESCC is one in 250 if that person doesn't drink alcohol and the lifetime risk would be about one in 50 if the person drinks four glasses of alcohol per day," she said.
Former and current smoking was associated with an increased risk of all three cancers, although the risks of ESCC were higher than those of EAC and GCA.
"It appeared that current smokers have the highest risks, and former smokers have an intermediate risk compared with never smokers. This was true for ESCC, EAC and GCA. These are the results when no other aspects of smoking were considered, such as the amount of cigarettes smoked per day and the number of years a person smoked," Steevens said. "When we took into account the smoking duration and frequency, it appeared that the difference in risk between former smokers and current smokers could partly be explained by these other aspects of smoking. This is also logical, because a former smoker, for example, has usually smoked fewer years than a current smoker."
The mission of the American Association for Cancer Research is to prevent and cure cancer. Founded in 1907, AACR is the world's oldest and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research. The membership includes nearly 27,000 basic, translational, and clinical researchers; health care professionals; and cancer survivors and advocates in the United States and more than 70 other countries. AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise from the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer through high-quality scientific and educational programs. It funds innovative, meritorious research grants. The AACR Annual Meeting attracts more than 17,000 participants who share the latest discoveries and developments in the field. Special Conferences throughout the year present novel data across a wide variety of topics in cancer research, treatment, and patient care. AACR publishes five major peer-reviewed journals: Cancer Research; Clinical Cancer Research; Molecular Cancer Therapeutics; Molecular Cancer Research; and Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. Its most recent publication and its sixth major journal, Cancer Prevention Research, is the only journal worldwide dedicated exclusively to cancer prevention, from preclinical research to clinical trials. The AACR also publishes CR, a magazine for cancer survivors, patient advocates, their families, physicians, and scientists. CR provides a forum for sharing essential, evidence-based information and perspectives on progress in cancer research, survivorship, and advocacy.
Source: Jeremy Moore
American Association for Cancer Research
понедельник, 11 апреля 2011 г.
BMA Scotland Response To New Government Consultation On Alcohol Misuse
The BMA in Scotland welcomed the publication of the Scottish Government consultation for an alcohol misuse strategy for Scotland. Dr Peter Terry, Chairman of the BMA in Scotland said:
"As doctors we see first hand how alcohol misuse destroys lives. It is related to over 60 medical conditions including heart and liver disease, diabetes, strokes and mental health problems. Binge drinking and severe intoxication can cause muscular incoordination, blurred vision, stupor, hypothermia, convulsions, depressed reflexes, respiratory depression, hypotension and coma. Death can occur from respiratory or circulatory failure or if binge drinkers inhale their own vomit.
"As well as the detrimental impact binge drinking has on the nation's health, alcohol misuse has wider societal implications. It causes family breakdowns, is a major factor in domestic violence, ruins job prospects, is often related to crime and disorderly behaviour and it kills.
"Past approaches to tackle the problem have led to increased consumption levels and alcohol-related problems and demonstrates a failure in the political drive to improve public health and order. I am pleased that this new consultation document seeks to reverse this approach and outlines a number of bold strategies that will, if developed in partnership and appropriately resourced, help to turn around our relationship with alcohol.
"The BMA will respond in detail to the consultation, but the content of this document appears to reflect some of the key recommendations in our own publication Alcohol Misuse: tackling the UK epidemic.
"The BMA welcomes efforts to address pricing of alcohol. Since 1997, taxes on wine and beer in the UK have only increased in line with inflation while taxes on spirits have not increased at all. There is strong and consistent evidence that price increases result in reduced consumption. The government needs to act on this evidence.
"The BMA has been calling for an end to irresponsible promotional activities such as deep discounting, loss leading and 'two-for-one' offers. This encourages excessive drinking and retailers must be more responsible about how they market alcohol, particularly those drinks that are most attractive to teenagers.
"Mass public awareness campaigns may be politically attractive and increase knowledge about alcohol misuse but they are very expensive and ultimately ineffective if unsupported by broad based policy. Targeted approaches are vital, including measures to reduce alcohol availability and thus consumption by young people and children.
"We welcome the suggestion of raising the purchase age for off sales to age 21. However, this move will only be effective if it is rigorously enforced."
In February 2008, the BMA published Alcohol Misuse: tackling the UK epidemic. Key recommendations from the report include:
- Higher taxes on alcoholic drinks and this increase should be proportionate to the amount of alcohol in the product.
- An end to irresponsible promotional activities like happy hours and two-for-one offers.
- Standard labels should be displayed on all alcoholic products that clearly state alcohol units, recommended guidelines for consumption and a warning message advising that exceeding these guidelines may cause the individual and others harm.
- The legal limit for the level of alcohol permitted while driving should be reduced from 80mg/100ml to 50mg/100ml throughout the UK.
A copy of the report is available online.
BMA Scotland
Public Affairs Office
14 Queen Street
Edinburgh
EH2 1LL
bma
"As doctors we see first hand how alcohol misuse destroys lives. It is related to over 60 medical conditions including heart and liver disease, diabetes, strokes and mental health problems. Binge drinking and severe intoxication can cause muscular incoordination, blurred vision, stupor, hypothermia, convulsions, depressed reflexes, respiratory depression, hypotension and coma. Death can occur from respiratory or circulatory failure or if binge drinkers inhale their own vomit.
"As well as the detrimental impact binge drinking has on the nation's health, alcohol misuse has wider societal implications. It causes family breakdowns, is a major factor in domestic violence, ruins job prospects, is often related to crime and disorderly behaviour and it kills.
"Past approaches to tackle the problem have led to increased consumption levels and alcohol-related problems and demonstrates a failure in the political drive to improve public health and order. I am pleased that this new consultation document seeks to reverse this approach and outlines a number of bold strategies that will, if developed in partnership and appropriately resourced, help to turn around our relationship with alcohol.
"The BMA will respond in detail to the consultation, but the content of this document appears to reflect some of the key recommendations in our own publication Alcohol Misuse: tackling the UK epidemic.
"The BMA welcomes efforts to address pricing of alcohol. Since 1997, taxes on wine and beer in the UK have only increased in line with inflation while taxes on spirits have not increased at all. There is strong and consistent evidence that price increases result in reduced consumption. The government needs to act on this evidence.
"The BMA has been calling for an end to irresponsible promotional activities such as deep discounting, loss leading and 'two-for-one' offers. This encourages excessive drinking and retailers must be more responsible about how they market alcohol, particularly those drinks that are most attractive to teenagers.
"Mass public awareness campaigns may be politically attractive and increase knowledge about alcohol misuse but they are very expensive and ultimately ineffective if unsupported by broad based policy. Targeted approaches are vital, including measures to reduce alcohol availability and thus consumption by young people and children.
"We welcome the suggestion of raising the purchase age for off sales to age 21. However, this move will only be effective if it is rigorously enforced."
In February 2008, the BMA published Alcohol Misuse: tackling the UK epidemic. Key recommendations from the report include:
- Higher taxes on alcoholic drinks and this increase should be proportionate to the amount of alcohol in the product.
- An end to irresponsible promotional activities like happy hours and two-for-one offers.
- Standard labels should be displayed on all alcoholic products that clearly state alcohol units, recommended guidelines for consumption and a warning message advising that exceeding these guidelines may cause the individual and others harm.
- The legal limit for the level of alcohol permitted while driving should be reduced from 80mg/100ml to 50mg/100ml throughout the UK.
A copy of the report is available online.
BMA Scotland
Public Affairs Office
14 Queen Street
Edinburgh
EH2 1LL
bma
IRIN Examines PEPFAR Funding Of IDU Programs
Most Popular Articles For HIV
These are the most read articles from this news category for the last 6 months:
Kidney Transplant Recipient Infected With HIV From Live Donor - Procedure Needs Reviewing
20 Mar 2011
Despite routine screening for HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) by live donors, a kidney transplant recipient became infected, according the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene...
HIV Positive Porn Actor Did Not Infect Anybody Else
06 Nov 2010
19% Of Sexually Active Gay/Bisexual Men Are HIV Positive In Parts of US Cities
25 Sep 2010
Some People Control HIV Without Drugs Due To 5 Amino Acids In A Protein
05 Nov 2010
Routine Screening For HIV Is Cost-Effective And Acceptable Say UK Experts
01 Dec 2010
_uacct = "UA-849615-1";
urchinTracker();
These are the most read articles from this news category for the last 6 months:
Kidney Transplant Recipient Infected With HIV From Live Donor - Procedure Needs Reviewing
20 Mar 2011
Despite routine screening for HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) by live donors, a kidney transplant recipient became infected, according the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene...
HIV Positive Porn Actor Did Not Infect Anybody Else
06 Nov 2010
19% Of Sexually Active Gay/Bisexual Men Are HIV Positive In Parts of US Cities
25 Sep 2010
Some People Control HIV Without Drugs Due To 5 Amino Acids In A Protein
05 Nov 2010
Routine Screening For HIV Is Cost-Effective And Acceptable Say UK Experts
01 Dec 2010
_uacct = "UA-849615-1";
urchinTracker();
Alcohol Dependence And Hispanics
A large survey conducted by researchers at The University of Texas School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus, which examined alcohol abuse and dependence among Hispanic male populations in the United States, will be expanded to Mexican males living along the U.S.-Mexico border. The expansion is supported by a $1.5 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Researchers will survey 1,500 Mexican-American males living on the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California to examine their alcohol consumption and behavior. This research will then be compared with the sample of 1,500 Mexican Americans in Los Angeles and Houston who were surveyed as part of previous research.
"The border population is particularly interesting because it is exposed to underage drinking options, with Mexico's legal drinking age being 18," says Raul Caetano, M.D., Ph.D., regional dean of the UT School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus. "Along with age, we will be considering other factors such as religious affiliation, the Mexican culture's influence, the cost of drinking and male/female behavior comparisons."
The researchers will explore the difference in the Mexican border population as compared to that of the non-border population. The acculturation of the non-border population will also be considered as a factor when examining Catholic or Protestant religious affiliation.
The original survey was funded by a $5 million grant from the NIH and examined various Hispanic populations in the United States and their rate of alcohol consumption. In the first survey, the Mexican-American and Puerto Rican populations had higher rates of alcohol dependence than South Central and Cuban Americans. For instance, Mexican and Puerto Ricans men had a 15 percent rate of alcohol dependence, whereas Cubans and South Central Americans showed 5 percent and 9 percent dependence, respectively. As a whole, the U.S. male population has 5 percent alcohol dependence.
The fieldwork for the new survey will be carried out by the Public Policy Research Institute of Texas A&M University through a contract with the UT School of Public Health and will be conducted within the next six months.
Source: Natalie Camarata
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Researchers will survey 1,500 Mexican-American males living on the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California to examine their alcohol consumption and behavior. This research will then be compared with the sample of 1,500 Mexican Americans in Los Angeles and Houston who were surveyed as part of previous research.
"The border population is particularly interesting because it is exposed to underage drinking options, with Mexico's legal drinking age being 18," says Raul Caetano, M.D., Ph.D., regional dean of the UT School of Public Health Dallas Regional Campus. "Along with age, we will be considering other factors such as religious affiliation, the Mexican culture's influence, the cost of drinking and male/female behavior comparisons."
The researchers will explore the difference in the Mexican border population as compared to that of the non-border population. The acculturation of the non-border population will also be considered as a factor when examining Catholic or Protestant religious affiliation.
The original survey was funded by a $5 million grant from the NIH and examined various Hispanic populations in the United States and their rate of alcohol consumption. In the first survey, the Mexican-American and Puerto Rican populations had higher rates of alcohol dependence than South Central and Cuban Americans. For instance, Mexican and Puerto Ricans men had a 15 percent rate of alcohol dependence, whereas Cubans and South Central Americans showed 5 percent and 9 percent dependence, respectively. As a whole, the U.S. male population has 5 percent alcohol dependence.
The fieldwork for the new survey will be carried out by the Public Policy Research Institute of Texas A&M University through a contract with the UT School of Public Health and will be conducted within the next six months.
Source: Natalie Camarata
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Pennsylvania Department Of Health To Promote Anti-Chewing Tobacco Message At Little League Baseball World Series
Sports fans attending the
Little League Baseball World Series in Williamsport, Aug. 18-27, will also
be part of the commonwealth's latest efforts to educate the public about
the dangers of tobacco products, especially chewing tobacco.
"Many people are not aware of the dangers of chewing tobacco," said
state Health Secretary Dr. Calvin B. Johnson. "There is a common
misconception that because there is no smoke, it is safer than cigarettes.
The reality is that holding an average-sized dip or chew in your mouth for
30 minutes gives you as much nicotine as smoking four cigarettes.
"We are determined to educate people about this reality: there are no
such things as safe tobacco products -- they all can lead to devastating
and potentially fatal health outcomes."
The Department of Health is also using this opportunity to launch a new
Web site on Aug. 18, WhereIsPete, which will tease an
upcoming anti-chewing tobacco advertising campaign that is set to air in
mid-September.
These latest anti-tobacco activities are a joint effort between the
Pennsylvania Department of Health and Oral Health America's National Spit
Tobacco Education Program (NSTEP), and will provide educational materials
to people about the dangers of chewing tobacco at the games and during
other events surrounding the Little League World Series, which is expected
to attract nearly 200,000 spectators during the week.
"We are pleased that the Pennsylvania Department of Health and its
regional partners are helping to educate Pennsylvanians on the deadly risks
associated with using tobacco products," Robert J. Klaus, president and CEO
of Oral Health America, said. "The power of educating people so they do not
start using these addictive products and the availability of the
1-800-QUIT-NOW line is an effective resource for anyone who wants to quit
using tobacco products."
The "QUIT-NOW" hotline also provides free literature and educational
materials that can be ordered by youth organization leaders, teachers, and
coaches.
The West Branch Drug and Alcohol Abuse Commission and members from the
Susquehanna Valley Tobacco Coalition will also be partnering with the
Pennsylvania Department of Health and NSTEP to carry the messaging to
attendees.
In addition, the Susquehanna Valley Tobacco Coalition will participate
in the Williamsport Chamber of Commerce's 2nd Annual Grand Slam Parade on
Aug. 17 and will distribute anti-tobacco materials and WhereIsPete
promotional items to spectators along the parade route.
Outreach at the Little League Baseball World Series is just one of the
many components of Pennsylvania's ongoing campaign to encourage individuals
to quit -- or never start -- using tobacco products, and to curb the retail
sale of tobacco to minors. For more information on how to quit smoking or
stop using other tobacco products, call Pennsylvania's Free Quitline at
1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669), or visit state.pa.us, keyword:
Health.
Pennsylvania Department of Health
state.pa.us
Little League Baseball World Series in Williamsport, Aug. 18-27, will also
be part of the commonwealth's latest efforts to educate the public about
the dangers of tobacco products, especially chewing tobacco.
"Many people are not aware of the dangers of chewing tobacco," said
state Health Secretary Dr. Calvin B. Johnson. "There is a common
misconception that because there is no smoke, it is safer than cigarettes.
The reality is that holding an average-sized dip or chew in your mouth for
30 minutes gives you as much nicotine as smoking four cigarettes.
"We are determined to educate people about this reality: there are no
such things as safe tobacco products -- they all can lead to devastating
and potentially fatal health outcomes."
The Department of Health is also using this opportunity to launch a new
Web site on Aug. 18, WhereIsPete, which will tease an
upcoming anti-chewing tobacco advertising campaign that is set to air in
mid-September.
These latest anti-tobacco activities are a joint effort between the
Pennsylvania Department of Health and Oral Health America's National Spit
Tobacco Education Program (NSTEP), and will provide educational materials
to people about the dangers of chewing tobacco at the games and during
other events surrounding the Little League World Series, which is expected
to attract nearly 200,000 spectators during the week.
"We are pleased that the Pennsylvania Department of Health and its
regional partners are helping to educate Pennsylvanians on the deadly risks
associated with using tobacco products," Robert J. Klaus, president and CEO
of Oral Health America, said. "The power of educating people so they do not
start using these addictive products and the availability of the
1-800-QUIT-NOW line is an effective resource for anyone who wants to quit
using tobacco products."
The "QUIT-NOW" hotline also provides free literature and educational
materials that can be ordered by youth organization leaders, teachers, and
coaches.
The West Branch Drug and Alcohol Abuse Commission and members from the
Susquehanna Valley Tobacco Coalition will also be partnering with the
Pennsylvania Department of Health and NSTEP to carry the messaging to
attendees.
In addition, the Susquehanna Valley Tobacco Coalition will participate
in the Williamsport Chamber of Commerce's 2nd Annual Grand Slam Parade on
Aug. 17 and will distribute anti-tobacco materials and WhereIsPete
promotional items to spectators along the parade route.
Outreach at the Little League Baseball World Series is just one of the
many components of Pennsylvania's ongoing campaign to encourage individuals
to quit -- or never start -- using tobacco products, and to curb the retail
sale of tobacco to minors. For more information on how to quit smoking or
stop using other tobacco products, call Pennsylvania's Free Quitline at
1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669), or visit state.pa.us, keyword:
Health.
Pennsylvania Department of Health
state.pa.us
Alcohol, When Consumed In Moderation, Reduces The Risk Of Death, And Not Just That Due To Cardiovascular Disease
A study performed by the Research Laboratories of the Catholic University of Campobasso (Italy) confirms the beneficial effects that moderate consumption of alcohol has on our health. But this time it is not just cardiovascular disease that gets advantage from this: drinking in moderation reduces all-cause mortality.
The research, published on the American journal Archives of Internal Medicine, assembled 34 scientific studies conducted during the last years worldwide using the statistic procedure of meta-analysis, that allows us to match different studies to achieve general results. In this way it has been possible to examine data concerning over a million of people, for which alcohol drinking habits were associated with all-cause mortality.
The conclusions researchers from the Catholic University of Campobasso came to clearly show that drinking in moderation (a couple of wine or beer glasses a day) has beneficial effects on health. But that is not all: while the greatest part of the studies conducted on this issue have looked at cardiovascular disease, a term that includes clinical events of various severity, the study published on the Archives of Internal Medicine shows a positive effect of alcohol on an unquestionably hard parameter as overall mortality.
"Alcohol as a life insurance" Not exactly. The key word is moderation. The Italian research also confirms that excessive consumption of alcohol is absolutely harmful, and the risk of death for those who drink in excess does not decrease at all. On the contrary: the risk definitely increases.
"Our data" says Augusto Di Castelnuovo, lead author of the study "show that consumption of little amounts of alcohol leads to a reduction of mortality up to 18%. But after a certain number of glasses things radically change: who drinks too much not only loses this advantage, but increases his own risk of death in relation to the amount of alcohol consumed".
The study shows very important differences between men and women. Whereas men report a beneficial effect after consuming 2-4 doses maximum (a dose refers to one glass of wine or beer), women should be aware: for them, the protection guaranteed from alcohol consumption disappears just after two glasses a day.
"It might be" says Licia Iacoviello, Head of the Laboratory of Genetic and Environmental Epidemiology, where the research has been performed "a fact linked to the metabolism. We know that women metabolize alcohol in a different way and the blood concentration reaches higher levels. Therefore, consuming more than two doses might lead to several harmful effects, such as liver diseases or increased risk of certain forms of tumour."
The meta-analysis conducted by the Catholic University found that the protection given by a moderate consumption of alcohol for American men is lower than the one observed for Europeans. For women, instead, the situation is substantially the same both in USA and Europe. An explanation might be found in the different ways in consuming alcohol. Europeans are more inclined to drink wine rather than other beverages and use to do it while having meals. Two habits different from Americans'. In relation to women, the way they consume alcohol is roughly the same in both continents, thus they respond identically. However, the debate is still open and more research is needed.
Another significant data emerging from the study is related to the so called "confounding factors". During the past years, it has been thought that the protecting effect of alcohol might be ascribed to other factors. It might be, in fact, that people enjoying alcohol drinks in moderation are more concerned about their own health: it may turn out that they are more likely to do sport or to consume healthier food.
In other words it might be that they have a better lifestyle and this could be the cause, not necessarily alcohol, that keeps them in good health.
"We've carefully examined this aspect" Di Castelnuovo continues. "Our data suggest that, even considering all main confounding factors (as dietary habits, physical activity or the health of people studied), a moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages keeps on showing a real positive effect."
"The core of this study is not just about alcohol" says Giovanni de Gaetano, director of the Research Laboratories at the Catholic University "it is also the way we drink that makes the difference: little amounts, preferably during meals, this appears to be the right way. This is another feature of the Mediterranean diet, where alcohol, wine above all, is the ideal partner of a dinner or lunch, but that's all: the rest of the day must be absolutely alcohol-free. The message carried by scientific studies like ours is simple: alcohol can be a respectful guest on our table, but it is good just when it goes with a healthy lifestyle, where moderation leads us toward a consumption inspired by quality not by quantity".
Contact: Antonio Mascioli
Catholic University
The research, published on the American journal Archives of Internal Medicine, assembled 34 scientific studies conducted during the last years worldwide using the statistic procedure of meta-analysis, that allows us to match different studies to achieve general results. In this way it has been possible to examine data concerning over a million of people, for which alcohol drinking habits were associated with all-cause mortality.
The conclusions researchers from the Catholic University of Campobasso came to clearly show that drinking in moderation (a couple of wine or beer glasses a day) has beneficial effects on health. But that is not all: while the greatest part of the studies conducted on this issue have looked at cardiovascular disease, a term that includes clinical events of various severity, the study published on the Archives of Internal Medicine shows a positive effect of alcohol on an unquestionably hard parameter as overall mortality.
"Alcohol as a life insurance" Not exactly. The key word is moderation. The Italian research also confirms that excessive consumption of alcohol is absolutely harmful, and the risk of death for those who drink in excess does not decrease at all. On the contrary: the risk definitely increases.
"Our data" says Augusto Di Castelnuovo, lead author of the study "show that consumption of little amounts of alcohol leads to a reduction of mortality up to 18%. But after a certain number of glasses things radically change: who drinks too much not only loses this advantage, but increases his own risk of death in relation to the amount of alcohol consumed".
The study shows very important differences between men and women. Whereas men report a beneficial effect after consuming 2-4 doses maximum (a dose refers to one glass of wine or beer), women should be aware: for them, the protection guaranteed from alcohol consumption disappears just after two glasses a day.
"It might be" says Licia Iacoviello, Head of the Laboratory of Genetic and Environmental Epidemiology, where the research has been performed "a fact linked to the metabolism. We know that women metabolize alcohol in a different way and the blood concentration reaches higher levels. Therefore, consuming more than two doses might lead to several harmful effects, such as liver diseases or increased risk of certain forms of tumour."
The meta-analysis conducted by the Catholic University found that the protection given by a moderate consumption of alcohol for American men is lower than the one observed for Europeans. For women, instead, the situation is substantially the same both in USA and Europe. An explanation might be found in the different ways in consuming alcohol. Europeans are more inclined to drink wine rather than other beverages and use to do it while having meals. Two habits different from Americans'. In relation to women, the way they consume alcohol is roughly the same in both continents, thus they respond identically. However, the debate is still open and more research is needed.
Another significant data emerging from the study is related to the so called "confounding factors". During the past years, it has been thought that the protecting effect of alcohol might be ascribed to other factors. It might be, in fact, that people enjoying alcohol drinks in moderation are more concerned about their own health: it may turn out that they are more likely to do sport or to consume healthier food.
In other words it might be that they have a better lifestyle and this could be the cause, not necessarily alcohol, that keeps them in good health.
"We've carefully examined this aspect" Di Castelnuovo continues. "Our data suggest that, even considering all main confounding factors (as dietary habits, physical activity or the health of people studied), a moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages keeps on showing a real positive effect."
"The core of this study is not just about alcohol" says Giovanni de Gaetano, director of the Research Laboratories at the Catholic University "it is also the way we drink that makes the difference: little amounts, preferably during meals, this appears to be the right way. This is another feature of the Mediterranean diet, where alcohol, wine above all, is the ideal partner of a dinner or lunch, but that's all: the rest of the day must be absolutely alcohol-free. The message carried by scientific studies like ours is simple: alcohol can be a respectful guest on our table, but it is good just when it goes with a healthy lifestyle, where moderation leads us toward a consumption inspired by quality not by quantity".
Contact: Antonio Mascioli
Catholic University
NASA Safety Review Finds No Evidence Of Improper Alcohol Use By Astronauts Before Space Flight
A NASA safety review
released Wednesday found no evidence to support claims that astronauts were
impaired by alcohol when they flew in space. NASA chief of Safety and
Mission Assurance Bryan O'Connor conducted the monthlong review to evaluate
allegations included in the Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee's
report, which was released in late July.
"I have said many times during the past weeks that NASA takes these
allegations very seriously -- just as we would any issues that could impact
the safety of our missions," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin told a news
conference at NASA Headquarters. "But at the same time, I also have said
that the stories cited in the report seem improbable to those of us
familiar with the astronauts' rigorous and very public activities during
the hours leading up to a space flight."
O'Connor's review covered the past 20 years of space flight and
includes:
-- approximately 90 interviews with participants and witnesses to the
last few days before shuttle and Soyuz launches, including current and
former astronauts, flight surgeons, research and operations support nurses,
shuttle suite technicians, closeout crew technicians and the managers and
staff of crew quarters, including managers familiar with the crew quarters
in Kazakhstan;
-- a review of more than 40,000 records dating back to 1984, including
mishap and close call reports, anonymous safety reports, safety hotline
reports and disciplinary actions involving alcohol and drugs. These records
cover 94 shuttle missions and 10 Soyuz missions;
-- a review of relevant policies, procedures and near-launch timelines
and staffing; and
-- an inspection of crew quarters at Johnson Space Center in Houston
and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
O'Connor interviewed almost 80 percent of active astronauts and all
current operational flight surgeons. None of them corroborated allegations
of preflight alcohol use or claims that management disregarded flight
surgeon concerns about alcohol impairment and astronauts' fitness to fly.
"My review represents a good deal more investigation than normally
would be done in response to an anonymous safety concern," O'Connor said.
"As a result, I am confident there are enough safeguards in place to
prevent an impaired crewmember from being strapped into a spacecraft."
NASA is moving forward with a wide range of improvements based on other
recommendations from the Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee's
report.
Working with members of the astronaut corps, NASA is developing a
formal astronaut code of conduct, or "Expected Astronaut Principles of
Behavior," which will be a document that outlines expectations. The
agency's medical managers also are studying how changes and initiatives
advocated by the committee would fit into NASA health care procedures in a
way that improves their effectiveness.
And NASA has accepted recommendations concerning the analysis and use
of behavioral health data to improve astronaut selection criteria.
NASA will convene expert working groups to advise the agency on
possible changes to its psychological testing. Additional training for
flight surgeons in behavioral health assessments is planned, and
evaluations will be added to annual flight physicals for all astronauts.
Continuity of care in NASA clinics will be evaluated. The agency will
ensure better clinical communication through regular meetings between
behavioral health providers and flight surgeons.
In addition, NASA plans to improve procedures and instructions used in
the administration of health care services for its behavioral health
clinic. Briefings by flight surgeons to crewmembers are being re-emphasized
to ensure astronauts fully understand the nature and purpose of all
health-related testing and data collection. Senior NASA leaders also are
holding meetings with flight surgeons and astronauts to ensure they
understand the multiple pathways to communicate safety and health concerns.
NASA
nasa
released Wednesday found no evidence to support claims that astronauts were
impaired by alcohol when they flew in space. NASA chief of Safety and
Mission Assurance Bryan O'Connor conducted the monthlong review to evaluate
allegations included in the Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee's
report, which was released in late July.
"I have said many times during the past weeks that NASA takes these
allegations very seriously -- just as we would any issues that could impact
the safety of our missions," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin told a news
conference at NASA Headquarters. "But at the same time, I also have said
that the stories cited in the report seem improbable to those of us
familiar with the astronauts' rigorous and very public activities during
the hours leading up to a space flight."
O'Connor's review covered the past 20 years of space flight and
includes:
-- approximately 90 interviews with participants and witnesses to the
last few days before shuttle and Soyuz launches, including current and
former astronauts, flight surgeons, research and operations support nurses,
shuttle suite technicians, closeout crew technicians and the managers and
staff of crew quarters, including managers familiar with the crew quarters
in Kazakhstan;
-- a review of more than 40,000 records dating back to 1984, including
mishap and close call reports, anonymous safety reports, safety hotline
reports and disciplinary actions involving alcohol and drugs. These records
cover 94 shuttle missions and 10 Soyuz missions;
-- a review of relevant policies, procedures and near-launch timelines
and staffing; and
-- an inspection of crew quarters at Johnson Space Center in Houston
and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
O'Connor interviewed almost 80 percent of active astronauts and all
current operational flight surgeons. None of them corroborated allegations
of preflight alcohol use or claims that management disregarded flight
surgeon concerns about alcohol impairment and astronauts' fitness to fly.
"My review represents a good deal more investigation than normally
would be done in response to an anonymous safety concern," O'Connor said.
"As a result, I am confident there are enough safeguards in place to
prevent an impaired crewmember from being strapped into a spacecraft."
NASA is moving forward with a wide range of improvements based on other
recommendations from the Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee's
report.
Working with members of the astronaut corps, NASA is developing a
formal astronaut code of conduct, or "Expected Astronaut Principles of
Behavior," which will be a document that outlines expectations. The
agency's medical managers also are studying how changes and initiatives
advocated by the committee would fit into NASA health care procedures in a
way that improves their effectiveness.
And NASA has accepted recommendations concerning the analysis and use
of behavioral health data to improve astronaut selection criteria.
NASA will convene expert working groups to advise the agency on
possible changes to its psychological testing. Additional training for
flight surgeons in behavioral health assessments is planned, and
evaluations will be added to annual flight physicals for all astronauts.
Continuity of care in NASA clinics will be evaluated. The agency will
ensure better clinical communication through regular meetings between
behavioral health providers and flight surgeons.
In addition, NASA plans to improve procedures and instructions used in
the administration of health care services for its behavioral health
clinic. Briefings by flight surgeons to crewmembers are being re-emphasized
to ensure astronauts fully understand the nature and purpose of all
health-related testing and data collection. Senior NASA leaders also are
holding meetings with flight surgeons and astronauts to ensure they
understand the multiple pathways to communicate safety and health concerns.
NASA
nasa
Drinkaware Response To BMJ Research About Alcohol And Heart Disease
Reacting to the British Medical Journal research released yesterday (Wednesday 23rd February 2011) which says individuals who drink alcohol in moderation are less likely to develop heart disease compared to non-drinkers, Chris Sorek, Chief Executive of alcohol awareness charity Drinkaware, says:
"This isn't the first piece of research to suggest alcohol has a protective effect against heart disease, but to say that moderate drinking is good for health could be misleading for consumers as the term 'moderate' can mean different things to different people. The report suggests an intake of 15g of alcohol a day for a woman, equivalent to 1.88 units - a double gin and tonic, and 30g of alcohol a day for men, equivalent to 3.75 units - just over a pint and a half of 4% beer.
"To help consumers avoid the risks associated with drinking to excess, we need to help them know how many units are in their favourite drinks. Drinkaware advises people not to regularly drink more than the daily unit guidelines of 3-4 units of alcohol for men (equivalent to a pint and a half of 4% beer) and 2-3 units of alcohol for women (equivalent to a 175ml glass of wine).
"For information on how alcohol can affect your health and wellbeing, and to see how many units are in popular drinks, visit here."
Source:
Drinkaware
"This isn't the first piece of research to suggest alcohol has a protective effect against heart disease, but to say that moderate drinking is good for health could be misleading for consumers as the term 'moderate' can mean different things to different people. The report suggests an intake of 15g of alcohol a day for a woman, equivalent to 1.88 units - a double gin and tonic, and 30g of alcohol a day for men, equivalent to 3.75 units - just over a pint and a half of 4% beer.
"To help consumers avoid the risks associated with drinking to excess, we need to help them know how many units are in their favourite drinks. Drinkaware advises people not to regularly drink more than the daily unit guidelines of 3-4 units of alcohol for men (equivalent to a pint and a half of 4% beer) and 2-3 units of alcohol for women (equivalent to a 175ml glass of wine).
"For information on how alcohol can affect your health and wellbeing, and to see how many units are in popular drinks, visit here."
Source:
Drinkaware
Multiracial Youths More Likely To Engage In Violent Behavior, Substance Abuse
Multiracial adolescents in middle school are significantly more likely to engage in such problem behaviors as violence and substance use than single-race young people, according to a new study.
Researchers from the University of Washington and the University of Chicago also found that perceived racial discrimination in school and in home neighborhoods puts adolescents at risk for these problems. However, the study suggests that a strong, positive ethnic identity can shield some multiracial youth from behavior problems. The study was published in the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry.
Among the findings, the study found that multiracial adolescents were significantly more likely than white, black or Asian-American youth to have smoked cigarettes. The odds were 38 percent less for whites, 32 percent less for blacks and 51 percent less for Asian-Americans. Similarly, whites, blacks and Asian-Americans were 45, 30 and 65 percent less likely, respectively, to have ever consumed alcohol than multiracial youngsters.
Multiracial youngsters also were significantly more likely to have used marijuana and to have become drunk or high on drugs than white or Asian-Americans. There was little difference in these behaviors between multiracial and black youth.
When it came to violent behaviors such as carrying a weapon, being in a fight and threatening to stab someone, multiracial youth again were significantly more likely to report having engaged in these activities than were whites or Asian-Americans. Fewer differences were found between multiracial and black youths, although the multiracial adolescents reported significantly higher rates of hurting someone badly in a fight (39 percent) and having carried a gun (46 percent).
Overall, multiracial youth also reported a significantly higher mean frequency of engaging in violent behavior compared to each of the three single-race groups. All of these findings were adjusted for age, gender and socioeconomic status.
"Adolescence is a difficult period for all children because two things are usually happening," said Richard Catalano, director of the UW's Social Development Research Group in the School of Social Work and a co-author of the study. "Parents are giving children more independence and they are moving from elementary to middle school where they are meeting new kids every 50 minutes.
"This is also when drug and alcohol use begin, and rates of delinquency and violence increase. Being a minority is tough and many youngsters are experiencing discrimination. We suspected this, and now we know that there are higher levels of discrimination and problem behaviors among multiracial youngsters."
Lead author of the study was Yoonsun Choi, who did much of the research while she was earning her doctorate in social work at the UW. She is now an assistant professor in the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago. Other co-authors are Tracy Harachi, UW associate professor of social work, and Mary Gillmore, a former UW professor of social work, who recently moved to Arizona State University.
The researchers surveyed more than 2,000 Seattle middle-school students, comparing behaviors of multiracial, white, black and Asian-American youth. White students were the largest group, accounting for nearly 30 percent of the participants, while there were nearly equal numbers of multiracial, black and Asian students. Data from the small number of Hispanic and American Indian adolescents in the middle schools surveyed did not permit meaningful comparisons. The students averaged 12.7 years of age when surveyed and girls made up slightly more than half of the sample.
Among the students who identified themselves as multiracial, there were 25 different combinations of racial or ethnic backgrounds including 10 combinations of three racial backgrounds and five combinations of four backgrounds. About 80 percent of the multiracial students included some background.
"When it comes to multiracial youngsters, you have to take into account the experiences they are having with discrimination," Catalano said. "Discrimination felt by these children no doubt contributed to involvement in problem behaviors. Formation of identity is more difficult for multiracial children who have to figure out where they fit in and belong."
Harachi noted that while multiracial children are at higher risk for substance abuse and violent behavior, in most cases the majority of the multiracial youth were not involved in these problems.
"But there are growing numbers of multiracial children, and we need to know more about them," she said. "These behaviors don't start in adolescence, they begin earlier and are salient issues for these children. We need to grab on to problems earlier and address issues related to race and ethnicity early in their development."
Funding for the research came from the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Child and Human Development and the federal Office of Minority Programs.
Contact: Joel Schwarz
University of Washington
Researchers from the University of Washington and the University of Chicago also found that perceived racial discrimination in school and in home neighborhoods puts adolescents at risk for these problems. However, the study suggests that a strong, positive ethnic identity can shield some multiracial youth from behavior problems. The study was published in the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry.
Among the findings, the study found that multiracial adolescents were significantly more likely than white, black or Asian-American youth to have smoked cigarettes. The odds were 38 percent less for whites, 32 percent less for blacks and 51 percent less for Asian-Americans. Similarly, whites, blacks and Asian-Americans were 45, 30 and 65 percent less likely, respectively, to have ever consumed alcohol than multiracial youngsters.
Multiracial youngsters also were significantly more likely to have used marijuana and to have become drunk or high on drugs than white or Asian-Americans. There was little difference in these behaviors between multiracial and black youth.
When it came to violent behaviors such as carrying a weapon, being in a fight and threatening to stab someone, multiracial youth again were significantly more likely to report having engaged in these activities than were whites or Asian-Americans. Fewer differences were found between multiracial and black youths, although the multiracial adolescents reported significantly higher rates of hurting someone badly in a fight (39 percent) and having carried a gun (46 percent).
Overall, multiracial youth also reported a significantly higher mean frequency of engaging in violent behavior compared to each of the three single-race groups. All of these findings were adjusted for age, gender and socioeconomic status.
"Adolescence is a difficult period for all children because two things are usually happening," said Richard Catalano, director of the UW's Social Development Research Group in the School of Social Work and a co-author of the study. "Parents are giving children more independence and they are moving from elementary to middle school where they are meeting new kids every 50 minutes.
"This is also when drug and alcohol use begin, and rates of delinquency and violence increase. Being a minority is tough and many youngsters are experiencing discrimination. We suspected this, and now we know that there are higher levels of discrimination and problem behaviors among multiracial youngsters."
Lead author of the study was Yoonsun Choi, who did much of the research while she was earning her doctorate in social work at the UW. She is now an assistant professor in the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago. Other co-authors are Tracy Harachi, UW associate professor of social work, and Mary Gillmore, a former UW professor of social work, who recently moved to Arizona State University.
The researchers surveyed more than 2,000 Seattle middle-school students, comparing behaviors of multiracial, white, black and Asian-American youth. White students were the largest group, accounting for nearly 30 percent of the participants, while there were nearly equal numbers of multiracial, black and Asian students. Data from the small number of Hispanic and American Indian adolescents in the middle schools surveyed did not permit meaningful comparisons. The students averaged 12.7 years of age when surveyed and girls made up slightly more than half of the sample.
Among the students who identified themselves as multiracial, there were 25 different combinations of racial or ethnic backgrounds including 10 combinations of three racial backgrounds and five combinations of four backgrounds. About 80 percent of the multiracial students included some background.
"When it comes to multiracial youngsters, you have to take into account the experiences they are having with discrimination," Catalano said. "Discrimination felt by these children no doubt contributed to involvement in problem behaviors. Formation of identity is more difficult for multiracial children who have to figure out where they fit in and belong."
Harachi noted that while multiracial children are at higher risk for substance abuse and violent behavior, in most cases the majority of the multiracial youth were not involved in these problems.
"But there are growing numbers of multiracial children, and we need to know more about them," she said. "These behaviors don't start in adolescence, they begin earlier and are salient issues for these children. We need to grab on to problems earlier and address issues related to race and ethnicity early in their development."
Funding for the research came from the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Child and Human Development and the federal Office of Minority Programs.
Contact: Joel Schwarz
University of Washington
Alcohol Consumption Can Cause Cell Death Leading To Abnormalities
New
insight has been obtained regarding how alcohol during pregnancy might
affect fetal development, according to research performed at the
Medical College of Georgia Schools of Medicine and Graduate Studies,
funded by the March of Dimes.
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, affects 1
in 1,000 babies. Pregnant and sexually active women who are not using
effective birth control are recommended to refrain from drinking. Most
notably, babies who are the victims of this deases have classic facial
malformations, including a flat and high upper lip, small eye openings,
and a short nose. These facial clues could provide insight into the
mechanism of this process, as well as how much alcohol imposed at what
point in development might cause these changes.
Dr. Erhard
Bieberich, biochemist in the Medical College of Georgia Schools of
Medicine and Graduate Studies, has focused work on the mechanism that
cause problems for children with FAS. Strong evidence has shown that,
in just the first few weeks of fetal development, usually a period
before a woman knows that she is pregnant at all, a few glasses of wine
in an hour could increase cell death. Death of cells that might further
develop to form the face, brain, or spinal cord could lead to
developmental problems in these areas. "It's well known that when you
drink, you get a buzz. But a couple
of hours later, that initial impact, at least, is gone," states
Bieberich. "But, your fetus may have experienced
irreversible damage."
In development, there is always a set of
cells that die once they have served their purpose, and a set of cells
that move on to form other types of cells. "There is always a very
delicate balance between newly formed cells and
dying cells," says Bieberich. "It's a very active period of that
balance, because usually you develop a surplus of tissue then later
melt it back down to acquire a specific shape." The classic example of
this phenomenon is the absense of webbed fingers in newborns, while the
fetus maintains skin between the fingers for some time. "The
digits form because the inter-digital tissue dies. If it did not die,
we would have paddles instead of hands with fingers," Bieberich
says.
According
to the team, damage may result from the accelerated death
of neural crest cells, which help form various types of connective
tissue, including bone, cartilage, and parts of the cardiovascular
system. At the same time, neural tube cells form the brain and spinal
cord. This means that the visible damage shown in facial abnormalities
may be a signal that future problems could be present in learning,
memory, vision, hearing, or other areas. The cell death can result from
disruption of the metabolism of the lipids that help control the
initially undifferentiated cells, due to alcohol.
The
team compares cell loss in mice following various levels of alcohol
consumption to the usual birth and death of cells in normal
development. The focus lies in the neural crest cells, which among
their other functions form the upper part of the skull. Some of these
cells will remain in the brain, and are often controlled by the same
factors as the neural tube cells, which might lead to the cognitive and
memory problems. While this type of damage may be difficult to identify
in mice of this age, it has been shown that damage to the neural crest
gene can cause problems in both skull and brain development.
These
measurements will help women understand the true risks of alcohol
consumption during pregnancy, and help develop a method to reduce the
damage. Dr. Bierberich hopes for better education: "You have to make
people aware of the science behind the risk," he says. "We are not
saying that every pregnant woman who drinks
three or four glasses of wine in a short period will have a baby with
birth defects, but it elevates the risk."
For more information about the Medical College of Georgia and the
Bieberich Group, please see mcg/
.
Written by Anna Sophia McKenney
insight has been obtained regarding how alcohol during pregnancy might
affect fetal development, according to research performed at the
Medical College of Georgia Schools of Medicine and Graduate Studies,
funded by the March of Dimes.
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, affects 1
in 1,000 babies. Pregnant and sexually active women who are not using
effective birth control are recommended to refrain from drinking. Most
notably, babies who are the victims of this deases have classic facial
malformations, including a flat and high upper lip, small eye openings,
and a short nose. These facial clues could provide insight into the
mechanism of this process, as well as how much alcohol imposed at what
point in development might cause these changes.
Dr. Erhard
Bieberich, biochemist in the Medical College of Georgia Schools of
Medicine and Graduate Studies, has focused work on the mechanism that
cause problems for children with FAS. Strong evidence has shown that,
in just the first few weeks of fetal development, usually a period
before a woman knows that she is pregnant at all, a few glasses of wine
in an hour could increase cell death. Death of cells that might further
develop to form the face, brain, or spinal cord could lead to
developmental problems in these areas. "It's well known that when you
drink, you get a buzz. But a couple
of hours later, that initial impact, at least, is gone," states
Bieberich. "But, your fetus may have experienced
irreversible damage."
In development, there is always a set of
cells that die once they have served their purpose, and a set of cells
that move on to form other types of cells. "There is always a very
delicate balance between newly formed cells and
dying cells," says Bieberich. "It's a very active period of that
balance, because usually you develop a surplus of tissue then later
melt it back down to acquire a specific shape." The classic example of
this phenomenon is the absense of webbed fingers in newborns, while the
fetus maintains skin between the fingers for some time. "The
digits form because the inter-digital tissue dies. If it did not die,
we would have paddles instead of hands with fingers," Bieberich
says.
According
to the team, damage may result from the accelerated death
of neural crest cells, which help form various types of connective
tissue, including bone, cartilage, and parts of the cardiovascular
system. At the same time, neural tube cells form the brain and spinal
cord. This means that the visible damage shown in facial abnormalities
may be a signal that future problems could be present in learning,
memory, vision, hearing, or other areas. The cell death can result from
disruption of the metabolism of the lipids that help control the
initially undifferentiated cells, due to alcohol.
The
team compares cell loss in mice following various levels of alcohol
consumption to the usual birth and death of cells in normal
development. The focus lies in the neural crest cells, which among
their other functions form the upper part of the skull. Some of these
cells will remain in the brain, and are often controlled by the same
factors as the neural tube cells, which might lead to the cognitive and
memory problems. While this type of damage may be difficult to identify
in mice of this age, it has been shown that damage to the neural crest
gene can cause problems in both skull and brain development.
These
measurements will help women understand the true risks of alcohol
consumption during pregnancy, and help develop a method to reduce the
damage. Dr. Bierberich hopes for better education: "You have to make
people aware of the science behind the risk," he says. "We are not
saying that every pregnant woman who drinks
three or four glasses of wine in a short period will have a baby with
birth defects, but it elevates the risk."
For more information about the Medical College of Georgia and the
Bieberich Group, please see mcg/
.
Written by Anna Sophia McKenney
Cannabis Should Be A 'Class B' Drug, Says Unite/MHNA
Any decision to keep cannabis as a class C drug was criticised as 'deeply regrettable' by Unite/Mental Health Nurses Association.
Unite/MHNA said that a reported decision by The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs that the drug should remain on the class C list 'flies in the face of established medical facts and common sense'.
Unite/MHNA said that it wanted cannabis reclassified as a class B drug - a category for more dangerous drugs - which is the same stance as that adopted by Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.
Unite/MHNA Chair, Andy Lauder said: 'There are now much stronger strains of cannabis, such as skunk, entering the UK in response to so-called market forces.'
'We utterly reject the reported recommendation from the advisory council that cannabis should remain a class C drug. It has been proved time and time again by well-respected medical studies that there are strong links between significant cannabis use and those suffering from mental health problems, or have a disposition to mental illness.'
'The image that cannabis is harmless, or relatively harmless and can be passed around without side effects at smart middle-class dinner parties is very far from the grim reality that mental health professionals have to deal with on a daily basis in psychiatric wards in hospitals across the country, where patients are recovering from psychotic breakdowns induced from excessive cannabis use.'
The government asked the council to review cannabis's legal status amid concerns over stronger forms of it. The council refused to confirm or deny any decision. Its chairman Professor Sir Michael Rawlins said a report would be sent to Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith later this month
Notes
Unite/CPHVA press releases can be seen on the CPHVA website
Unite (Amicus section) is the third largest union in the NHS. It has seven professional sections: the Community Practitioners' and Health Visitors' Association, the Mental Health Nurses Association, the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists, the Society of Sexual Health Advisers, the Medical Practitioners' Union, College of Healthcare Chaplains, and the Hospital Physicists Association.
Unite was formed by an amalgamation of Amicus and the Transport and General Workers' Union in May 2007.
unitetheunion
Unite/MHNA said that a reported decision by The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs that the drug should remain on the class C list 'flies in the face of established medical facts and common sense'.
Unite/MHNA said that it wanted cannabis reclassified as a class B drug - a category for more dangerous drugs - which is the same stance as that adopted by Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.
Unite/MHNA Chair, Andy Lauder said: 'There are now much stronger strains of cannabis, such as skunk, entering the UK in response to so-called market forces.'
'We utterly reject the reported recommendation from the advisory council that cannabis should remain a class C drug. It has been proved time and time again by well-respected medical studies that there are strong links between significant cannabis use and those suffering from mental health problems, or have a disposition to mental illness.'
'The image that cannabis is harmless, or relatively harmless and can be passed around without side effects at smart middle-class dinner parties is very far from the grim reality that mental health professionals have to deal with on a daily basis in psychiatric wards in hospitals across the country, where patients are recovering from psychotic breakdowns induced from excessive cannabis use.'
The government asked the council to review cannabis's legal status amid concerns over stronger forms of it. The council refused to confirm or deny any decision. Its chairman Professor Sir Michael Rawlins said a report would be sent to Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith later this month
Notes
Unite/CPHVA press releases can be seen on the CPHVA website
Unite (Amicus section) is the third largest union in the NHS. It has seven professional sections: the Community Practitioners' and Health Visitors' Association, the Mental Health Nurses Association, the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists, the Society of Sexual Health Advisers, the Medical Practitioners' Union, College of Healthcare Chaplains, and the Hospital Physicists Association.
Unite was formed by an amalgamation of Amicus and the Transport and General Workers' Union in May 2007.
unitetheunion
iPhone Quit-Smoking Apps Don't Make The Grade
A new study finds that iPhone software applications designed to help people quit smoking fall short of the mark because they do not meet accepted standards.
Among other things, the study, which appears online and in the March issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that the 47 "apps" reviewed rarely helped users get assistance through counseling, hotlines or anti-smoking medications. About half of the apps supported hypnosis, which has questionable effectiveness.
"They were pretty poor. There wasn't one I thought I could recommend to a smoker," said study lead author Lorien Abroms, a professor of health communication and marketing at George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.
Even so, apps do hold potential to be a valuable tool to help people stop smoking, Abroms said. Researchers have already shown that text messages provide helpful motivation to people who are trying to quit, and she believes smartphones might be even more useful because they are capable of providing a fuller multimedia experience. "You've got a great tool in your pocket," she said.
The iPhone apps reviewed by Abroms and colleagues - including both free and paid applications that were available in 2009 - did not make the grade, although they did some of the right things.
"They'd give you personalized motivation, and at least a quarter of them would ask you how much you smoke and when you plan to quit, and then they'd give you personalized feedback about the money you'd save and what you'd gain," she said. "What they did terribly is that they didn't recommend or refer to a quit line."
Also, she said, "on the whole, they didn't mention using nicotine replacement therapy, which has been proven to help people quit smoking. And very few apps helped you to get social support or reminded you to get it, which is also crucial to quitting smoking."
Abroms added that about half of the apps in the study embraced hypnosis. She said there is no evidence that hypnosis helps people quit smoking.
Frances Stillman, an associate professor of health, behavior and society at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said the study findings make sense because they focus on the availability of proven techniques. She believes that behavioral therapy, along with anti-smoking medications when necessary, is the ideal approach to smoking cessation, although "it's not a one-size-fits-all thing."
It is important, she said, to connect people to the right resources, "understanding that it may take them a number of tries before they finally quit for good."
What's next for apps? Abroms said the Legacy Foundation, which advocates against smoking, has released a promising iPhone app. She said she hopes other public health groups will follow.
Abroms LC, et al. iPhone apps for smoking cessation: a content analysis. Am J Prev Med 40(3), 2011.
Source:
Health Behavior News Service
Among other things, the study, which appears online and in the March issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that the 47 "apps" reviewed rarely helped users get assistance through counseling, hotlines or anti-smoking medications. About half of the apps supported hypnosis, which has questionable effectiveness.
"They were pretty poor. There wasn't one I thought I could recommend to a smoker," said study lead author Lorien Abroms, a professor of health communication and marketing at George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.
Even so, apps do hold potential to be a valuable tool to help people stop smoking, Abroms said. Researchers have already shown that text messages provide helpful motivation to people who are trying to quit, and she believes smartphones might be even more useful because they are capable of providing a fuller multimedia experience. "You've got a great tool in your pocket," she said.
The iPhone apps reviewed by Abroms and colleagues - including both free and paid applications that were available in 2009 - did not make the grade, although they did some of the right things.
"They'd give you personalized motivation, and at least a quarter of them would ask you how much you smoke and when you plan to quit, and then they'd give you personalized feedback about the money you'd save and what you'd gain," she said. "What they did terribly is that they didn't recommend or refer to a quit line."
Also, she said, "on the whole, they didn't mention using nicotine replacement therapy, which has been proven to help people quit smoking. And very few apps helped you to get social support or reminded you to get it, which is also crucial to quitting smoking."
Abroms added that about half of the apps in the study embraced hypnosis. She said there is no evidence that hypnosis helps people quit smoking.
Frances Stillman, an associate professor of health, behavior and society at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said the study findings make sense because they focus on the availability of proven techniques. She believes that behavioral therapy, along with anti-smoking medications when necessary, is the ideal approach to smoking cessation, although "it's not a one-size-fits-all thing."
It is important, she said, to connect people to the right resources, "understanding that it may take them a number of tries before they finally quit for good."
What's next for apps? Abroms said the Legacy Foundation, which advocates against smoking, has released a promising iPhone app. She said she hopes other public health groups will follow.
Abroms LC, et al. iPhone apps for smoking cessation: a content analysis. Am J Prev Med 40(3), 2011.
Source:
Health Behavior News Service
Children Unhappy At School Turn To Sex And Alcohol
Young children who don't like school are more likely to be involved in underage drinking and sexual activity. A study reported in BioMed Central's open access journal Substance Abuse, Treatment, Prevention and Policy, has found that pupils' general wellbeing and specific satisfaction with school were both associated with the incidence of risky behaviors.
Professor Mark Bellis worked with a team of researchers from the Centre for Public Health, Liverpool John Moores University, to carry out the study in more than 3500 11-14 year olds from 15 schools in the North West of England. He said, "As young as 13 years old, children who drink alcohol are much more likely to have had sex. The more they drink, the higher the risks of early sexual behavior. However, here we have looked at the relationships, not just between alcohol consumption and sexual behavior, but also at how these behaviors relate to their feelings about school and home life".
The authors assessed general wellbeing by asking children about how happy they were with the way they looked, how well they got on with their parents, whether they felt they could be assertive and whether they often felt remorse. School-related wellbeing was assessed by questions about liking school, how their teachers treat them, and involvement with school rules.
According to the authors, the study found that children stating a dislike of school had 2.5-fold higher odds of having any sexual relationship. Dislike of school also strongly predicted alcohol use.
Speaking about the results, Professor Bellis said, "Our study identifies that the children who drink and are sexually active are also more likely to be unhappy with their school and home lives. Such children can become disengaged from both family and educational support and risk progressing to sexually transmitted infections, teenage pregnancies or becoming an alcohol related casualty at an accident and emergency unit".
"This study paints a clear picture that the children we most need to support are often the hardest to reach through conventional educational and parental routes."
Notes:
Wellbeing, alcohol use and sexual activity in young teenagers: findings from a cross-sectional survey in school children in North West England
Penelope A Phillips-Howard, Mark A Bellis, Linford B Briant, Hayley Jones, Jennifer Downing, Imogen E Kelly, Timothy Bird and Penny A Cook
Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy (in press)
Source:
Graeme Baldwin
BioMed Central
Professor Mark Bellis worked with a team of researchers from the Centre for Public Health, Liverpool John Moores University, to carry out the study in more than 3500 11-14 year olds from 15 schools in the North West of England. He said, "As young as 13 years old, children who drink alcohol are much more likely to have had sex. The more they drink, the higher the risks of early sexual behavior. However, here we have looked at the relationships, not just between alcohol consumption and sexual behavior, but also at how these behaviors relate to their feelings about school and home life".
The authors assessed general wellbeing by asking children about how happy they were with the way they looked, how well they got on with their parents, whether they felt they could be assertive and whether they often felt remorse. School-related wellbeing was assessed by questions about liking school, how their teachers treat them, and involvement with school rules.
According to the authors, the study found that children stating a dislike of school had 2.5-fold higher odds of having any sexual relationship. Dislike of school also strongly predicted alcohol use.
Speaking about the results, Professor Bellis said, "Our study identifies that the children who drink and are sexually active are also more likely to be unhappy with their school and home lives. Such children can become disengaged from both family and educational support and risk progressing to sexually transmitted infections, teenage pregnancies or becoming an alcohol related casualty at an accident and emergency unit".
"This study paints a clear picture that the children we most need to support are often the hardest to reach through conventional educational and parental routes."
Notes:
Wellbeing, alcohol use and sexual activity in young teenagers: findings from a cross-sectional survey in school children in North West England
Penelope A Phillips-Howard, Mark A Bellis, Linford B Briant, Hayley Jones, Jennifer Downing, Imogen E Kelly, Timothy Bird and Penny A Cook
Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy (in press)
Source:
Graeme Baldwin
BioMed Central
Deaths From Combining Drugs And/or Alcohol Skyrocket
Asking patients to monitor their own medications can be fatal, as exemplified by the recent death of actor Heath Ledger. In the first large-scale study of home medication consumption, sociologists at the University of California, San Diego have found a 3,196 percent increase in fatal domestic medication errors involving alcohol and/or street drugs.
Their study examines nearly 50 million U.S. death certificates from 1983 to 2004, and focuses on a subset of 200,000 deaths from medication errors. The study appears in the July 28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, an official journal of the American Medical Association.
"The decades-long shift in the location of medication consumption from clinical to domestic settings," the authors say, "is linked to a dramatic increase in fatal medication errors."
"Increasingly," says principal author David P. Phillips, professor of sociology at UC San Diego, "people take their medications at home, away from hospitals and clinics. But most studies of fatal medication errors have focused on those clinical settings. We wanted to know three things: how many of these fatal errors happen at home; how many involve alcohol and/or street drugs; and are these numbers going up?"
Phillips and his co-authors Gwendolyn E.C. Barker and Megan M. Eguchi, all at UC San Diego, examined trends in four types of fatal medication errors. They note that the increase in fatal errors varies by astonishing amounts based on where the errors occur and the particular combinations of drugs.
Type 1 errors deaths at home from combining medications with alcohol and/or street drugs skyrocketed by 3,196 percent.
In sharp contrast, type 4 errors non-domestic fatal errors not involving alcohol or street drugs show the smallest increase, just 5 percent.
The intermediate types of errors increased by intermediate amounts. Type 2 errors domestic medication fatalities not involving alcohol or street drugs increased by 564 percent. Type 3 errors non-domestic medication fatalities involving alcohol and/or street drugs increased by 555 percent.
"Thus," the sociologists say, "domestic fatal medication errors, combined with alcohol and/or street drugs, have become an increasingly important health problem."
In addition to possible changes in policy and clinical practice, Phillips says, "it also seems advisable to expand research on medication errors. Much of this research has focused on elderly patients and clinical settings. The present findings suggest that more research should be devoted to middle-aged patients and domestic settings."
The study was supported in part by a grant from the Marian E. Smith Foundation.
Ledger, the actor, was cast as the Joker in the current hit movie "The Dark Knight," shortly before dying, on January 22, 2008, from an accidental prescription-drug overdose at age 28.
University of California, San Diego
University Communications, 0938 9500 Gilman Dr.
LaJolla, CA 92093
United States
ucsd
Their study examines nearly 50 million U.S. death certificates from 1983 to 2004, and focuses on a subset of 200,000 deaths from medication errors. The study appears in the July 28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, an official journal of the American Medical Association.
"The decades-long shift in the location of medication consumption from clinical to domestic settings," the authors say, "is linked to a dramatic increase in fatal medication errors."
"Increasingly," says principal author David P. Phillips, professor of sociology at UC San Diego, "people take their medications at home, away from hospitals and clinics. But most studies of fatal medication errors have focused on those clinical settings. We wanted to know three things: how many of these fatal errors happen at home; how many involve alcohol and/or street drugs; and are these numbers going up?"
Phillips and his co-authors Gwendolyn E.C. Barker and Megan M. Eguchi, all at UC San Diego, examined trends in four types of fatal medication errors. They note that the increase in fatal errors varies by astonishing amounts based on where the errors occur and the particular combinations of drugs.
Type 1 errors deaths at home from combining medications with alcohol and/or street drugs skyrocketed by 3,196 percent.
In sharp contrast, type 4 errors non-domestic fatal errors not involving alcohol or street drugs show the smallest increase, just 5 percent.
The intermediate types of errors increased by intermediate amounts. Type 2 errors domestic medication fatalities not involving alcohol or street drugs increased by 564 percent. Type 3 errors non-domestic medication fatalities involving alcohol and/or street drugs increased by 555 percent.
"Thus," the sociologists say, "domestic fatal medication errors, combined with alcohol and/or street drugs, have become an increasingly important health problem."
In addition to possible changes in policy and clinical practice, Phillips says, "it also seems advisable to expand research on medication errors. Much of this research has focused on elderly patients and clinical settings. The present findings suggest that more research should be devoted to middle-aged patients and domestic settings."
The study was supported in part by a grant from the Marian E. Smith Foundation.
Ledger, the actor, was cast as the Joker in the current hit movie "The Dark Knight," shortly before dying, on January 22, 2008, from an accidental prescription-drug overdose at age 28.
University of California, San Diego
University Communications, 0938 9500 Gilman Dr.
LaJolla, CA 92093
United States
ucsd
Needle-Exchange Programs 'Save' Lives, Money, Editorial Says
The "simple truth about needle-exchange programs is that they save lives and save money," a San Antonio Express-News editorial says. It continues, "Numerous research studies and practical experience with such programs around the nation demonstrate the savings," adding, "The same studies and practical experience also refute the primary rationale for opposing needle-exchange programs -- the notion that they increase" injection drug use.
This notion was the "buzz saw advocates of safe, cost-effective needle-exchange ran into during the last legislative session" in Texas, according to the editorial. However, the "same bipartisan group of lawmakers who pushed the legislation" allowing for the establishment of needle-exchange programs in the state "plans to reintroduce similar measures in the upcoming session," it says, adding that there "can be little doubt that given the opportunity for floor votes in the Senate and House, Texas will join the 49 other states in making needle-exchange programs legal."
"Along with protecting law enforcement and health care workers who frequently come into physical contact with the [IDU] community, the case for needle change is overwhelming," the editorial says, concluding, "This time, a measure that saves lives and taxpayer dollars deserves a simple up or down vote in the Legislature" (San Antonio Express-News, 12/14).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
This notion was the "buzz saw advocates of safe, cost-effective needle-exchange ran into during the last legislative session" in Texas, according to the editorial. However, the "same bipartisan group of lawmakers who pushed the legislation" allowing for the establishment of needle-exchange programs in the state "plans to reintroduce similar measures in the upcoming session," it says, adding that there "can be little doubt that given the opportunity for floor votes in the Senate and House, Texas will join the 49 other states in making needle-exchange programs legal."
"Along with protecting law enforcement and health care workers who frequently come into physical contact with the [IDU] community, the case for needle change is overwhelming," the editorial says, concluding, "This time, a measure that saves lives and taxpayer dollars deserves a simple up or down vote in the Legislature" (San Antonio Express-News, 12/14).
Reprinted with kind permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
Animal Studies Show Sugar Can Be Addictive
A Princeton University scientist presented new evidence demonstrating that sugar can be an addictive substance, wielding its power over the brains of lab animals in a manner similar to many drugs of abuse.
Professor Bart Hoebel and his team in the Department of Psychology and the Princeton Neuroscience Institute have been studying signs of sugar addiction in rats for years. Until now, the rats under study have met two of the three elements of addiction. They have demonstrated a behavioral pattern of increased intake and then showed signs of withdrawal. His current experiments captured craving and relapse to complete the picture.
"If bingeing on sugar is really a form of addiction, there should be long-lasting effects in the brains of sugar addicts," Hoebel said. "Craving and relapse are critical components of addiction, and we have been able to demonstrate these behaviors in sugar-bingeing rats in a number of ways."
At the annual meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology in Scottsdale, Ariz., Hoebel reported on profound behavioral changes in rats that, through experimental conditions, have been trained to become dependent on high doses of sugar.
"We have the first set of comprehensive studies showing the strong suggestion of sugar addiction in rats and a mechanism that might underlie it," Hoebel said. The findings eventually could have implications for the treatment of humans with eating disorders, he said.
Lab animals, in Hoebel's experiments, that were denied sugar for a prolonged period after learning to binge worked harder to get it when it was reintroduced to them. They consumed more sugar than they ever had before, suggesting craving and relapse behavior. Their motivation for sugar had grown. "In this case, abstinence makes the heart grow fonder," Hoebel said.
The rats drank more alcohol than normal after their sugar supply was cut off, showing that the bingeing behavior had forged changes in brain function. These functions served as "gateways" to other paths of destructive behavior, such as increased alcohol intake. And, after receiving a dose of amphetamine normally so minimal it has no effect, they became significantly hyperactive. The increased sensitivity to the psychostimulant is a long-lasting brain effect that can be a component of addiction, Hoebel said.
The data to be presented by Hoebel is contained in a research paper that has been submitted to The Journal of Nutrition. Visiting researchers Nicole Avena, who earned her Ph.D. from Princeton in 2006, and Pedro Rada from the University of Los Andes in Venezuela wrote the paper with Hoebel.
Hoebel has been interested in the brain mechanisms that control appetite and body weight since he was an undergraduate at Harvard University studying with the renowned behaviorist B.F. Skinner. On the Princeton faculty since 1963, he has pioneered studies into the mental rewards of eating. Over the past decade, Hoebel has led work that has now completed an animal model of sugar addiction.
Hoebel has shown that rats eating large amounts of sugar when hungry, a phenomenon he describes as sugar-bingeing, undergo neurochemical changes in the brain that appear to mimic those produced by substances of abuse, including cocaine, morphine and nicotine. Sugar induces behavioral changes, too. "In certain models, sugar-bingeing causes long-lasting effects in the brain and increases the inclination to take other drugs of abuse, such as alcohol," Hoebel said.
Hoebel and his team also have found that a chemical known as dopamine is released in a region of the brain known as the nucleus accumbens when hungry rats drink a sugar solution. This chemical signal is thought to trigger motivation and, eventually with repetition, addiction.
The researchers conducted the studies by restricting rats of their food while the rats slept and for four hours after waking. "It's a little bit like missing breakfast," Hoebel said. "As a result, they quickly eat some chow and drink a lot of sugar water." And, he added, "That's what is called binge eating -- when you eat a lot all at once -- in this case they are bingeing on a 10 percent sucrose solution, which is like a soft drink."
Hungry rats that binge on sugar provoke a surge of dopamine in their brains. After a month, the structure of the brains of these rats adapts to increased dopamine levels, showing fewer of a certain type of dopamine receptor than they used to have and more opioid receptors. These dopamine and opioid systems are involved in motivation and reward, systems that control wanting and liking something. Similar changes also are seen in the brains of rats on cocaine and heroin.
In experiments, the researchers have been able to induce signs of withdrawal in the lab animals by taking away their sugar supply. The rats' brain levels of dopamine dropped and, as a result, they exhibited anxiety as a sign of withdrawal. The rats' teeth chattered, and the creatures were unwilling to venture forth into the open arm of their maze, preferring to stay in a tunnel area. Normally rats like to explore their environment, but the rats in sugar withdrawal were too anxious to explore.
The findings are exciting, Hoebel said, but more research is needed to understand the implications for people. The most obvious application for humans would be in the field of eating disorders.
"It seems possible that the brain adaptations and behavioral signs seen in rats may occur in some individuals with binge-eating disorder or bulimia," Hoebel said. "Our work provides links between the traditionally defined substance-use disorders, such as drug addiction, and the development of abnormal desires for natural substances. This knowledge might help us to devise new ways of diagnosing and treating addictions in people."
Source: Kitta MacPherson
Princeton University
Professor Bart Hoebel and his team in the Department of Psychology and the Princeton Neuroscience Institute have been studying signs of sugar addiction in rats for years. Until now, the rats under study have met two of the three elements of addiction. They have demonstrated a behavioral pattern of increased intake and then showed signs of withdrawal. His current experiments captured craving and relapse to complete the picture.
"If bingeing on sugar is really a form of addiction, there should be long-lasting effects in the brains of sugar addicts," Hoebel said. "Craving and relapse are critical components of addiction, and we have been able to demonstrate these behaviors in sugar-bingeing rats in a number of ways."
At the annual meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology in Scottsdale, Ariz., Hoebel reported on profound behavioral changes in rats that, through experimental conditions, have been trained to become dependent on high doses of sugar.
"We have the first set of comprehensive studies showing the strong suggestion of sugar addiction in rats and a mechanism that might underlie it," Hoebel said. The findings eventually could have implications for the treatment of humans with eating disorders, he said.
Lab animals, in Hoebel's experiments, that were denied sugar for a prolonged period after learning to binge worked harder to get it when it was reintroduced to them. They consumed more sugar than they ever had before, suggesting craving and relapse behavior. Their motivation for sugar had grown. "In this case, abstinence makes the heart grow fonder," Hoebel said.
The rats drank more alcohol than normal after their sugar supply was cut off, showing that the bingeing behavior had forged changes in brain function. These functions served as "gateways" to other paths of destructive behavior, such as increased alcohol intake. And, after receiving a dose of amphetamine normally so minimal it has no effect, they became significantly hyperactive. The increased sensitivity to the psychostimulant is a long-lasting brain effect that can be a component of addiction, Hoebel said.
The data to be presented by Hoebel is contained in a research paper that has been submitted to The Journal of Nutrition. Visiting researchers Nicole Avena, who earned her Ph.D. from Princeton in 2006, and Pedro Rada from the University of Los Andes in Venezuela wrote the paper with Hoebel.
Hoebel has been interested in the brain mechanisms that control appetite and body weight since he was an undergraduate at Harvard University studying with the renowned behaviorist B.F. Skinner. On the Princeton faculty since 1963, he has pioneered studies into the mental rewards of eating. Over the past decade, Hoebel has led work that has now completed an animal model of sugar addiction.
Hoebel has shown that rats eating large amounts of sugar when hungry, a phenomenon he describes as sugar-bingeing, undergo neurochemical changes in the brain that appear to mimic those produced by substances of abuse, including cocaine, morphine and nicotine. Sugar induces behavioral changes, too. "In certain models, sugar-bingeing causes long-lasting effects in the brain and increases the inclination to take other drugs of abuse, such as alcohol," Hoebel said.
Hoebel and his team also have found that a chemical known as dopamine is released in a region of the brain known as the nucleus accumbens when hungry rats drink a sugar solution. This chemical signal is thought to trigger motivation and, eventually with repetition, addiction.
The researchers conducted the studies by restricting rats of their food while the rats slept and for four hours after waking. "It's a little bit like missing breakfast," Hoebel said. "As a result, they quickly eat some chow and drink a lot of sugar water." And, he added, "That's what is called binge eating -- when you eat a lot all at once -- in this case they are bingeing on a 10 percent sucrose solution, which is like a soft drink."
Hungry rats that binge on sugar provoke a surge of dopamine in their brains. After a month, the structure of the brains of these rats adapts to increased dopamine levels, showing fewer of a certain type of dopamine receptor than they used to have and more opioid receptors. These dopamine and opioid systems are involved in motivation and reward, systems that control wanting and liking something. Similar changes also are seen in the brains of rats on cocaine and heroin.
In experiments, the researchers have been able to induce signs of withdrawal in the lab animals by taking away their sugar supply. The rats' brain levels of dopamine dropped and, as a result, they exhibited anxiety as a sign of withdrawal. The rats' teeth chattered, and the creatures were unwilling to venture forth into the open arm of their maze, preferring to stay in a tunnel area. Normally rats like to explore their environment, but the rats in sugar withdrawal were too anxious to explore.
The findings are exciting, Hoebel said, but more research is needed to understand the implications for people. The most obvious application for humans would be in the field of eating disorders.
"It seems possible that the brain adaptations and behavioral signs seen in rats may occur in some individuals with binge-eating disorder or bulimia," Hoebel said. "Our work provides links between the traditionally defined substance-use disorders, such as drug addiction, and the development of abnormal desires for natural substances. This knowledge might help us to devise new ways of diagnosing and treating addictions in people."
Source: Kitta MacPherson
Princeton University
Подписаться на:
Комментарии (Atom)