Scale for the Measurement of Attitudes Towards Alcohol

The aim was to analyse the characteristics of, and validate, a new instrument in Italian, ‘Scale for the measurement of attitudes towards alcohol’. The instrument is a means for assessing young people's risk profile regarding the use of alcohol and identifying the factors that contribute to determining this attitude.  

The test was initially composed of 60 items divided into three domains and administered to a sample of 41 subjects. The results revealed the necessity of adapting the test's conceptual structure: consequently, the items were reduced to 35, divided into five domains. This second version was administered to a sample of 467 students attending upper secondary schools and vocational training schools in the municipality of Siena. Following this second experiment, a third version was realized, which comprised 25 items divided into the same five domains; it was administered to 100 subjects, with an equal number of males and females and an age range of 14–30 years. Analysis of the data obtained resulted in a final structure formed of 15 items in three domains. 

The final structure of the test has good psychometric properties in terms of both reliability and validity. 

 

The ‘Scale for the measurement of attitudes towards alcohol’ can be seen as an instrument for evaluating the factors capable of conditioning the behaviour of people between 18 and 26 years of age towards alcoholic substances. 

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Request Reprint E-Mail:   clafranc@inwind.it

 

Early Treatment for Women with Alcohol Addiction (EWA) Reduces Mortality: A Randomized Controlled Trial with Long-Term Register Follow-up

To compare the mortality of female alcoholics randomly assigned to the woman-only programme ‘Early treatment for Women with Alcohol Addiction’ (EWA) versus those who received mixed gender ‘Treatment As Usual’ (TAU). 

Randomized controlled trial involving 2-year follow-up by personal interview and mortality register data through 27 years of 200 women first time treated for alcohol use disorder (AUD; EWA, n = 100 and TAU, n = 100), who were consecutively recruited during 1983–1984. Data from the Causes of Death Register were used to test for mortality differences related to group interaction predictors such as age, inpatient versus outpatient status at intake and 2-year drinking outcome.  

Significantly lower mortality was found among younger women who participated in EWA compared with those who received TAU. This difference lasted nearly 20 years after intake to treatment. For women who only needed outpatient treatment, reduced mortality was found in the EWA group, even for older women. Increased mortality was found for TAU women who did not attend the 2-year follow-up compared with those who attended; no such difference was found for EWA women. This indicates different attrition mechanisms in the two groups. Thus, previously reported treatment effects may have been underestimated. EWA was a more comprehensive programme than TAU while also being single gender.  

EWA, specifically developed to meet a broad spectrum of problems among women with AUDs, was more effective than TAU, a mixed gender programme. It was not possible to separate whether this was in part because it was a more comprehensive programme, as well as being single gender. 

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Request Reprint E-Mail:  rolf@gjestad.biz

   

Decline in Alcohol Consumption in Estonia: Combined Effects of Strengthened Alcohol Policy and Economic Downturn

To describe alcohol policy changes in parallel to consumption changes in 2005–2010 in Estonia, where alcohol consumption is among the highest in Europe. 

Review of pertinent legislation and literature.  

Alcohol consumption decreased since 2008, while alcohol excise tax, sales time restrictions and ad bans have increased since 2005. An economic downturn started in 2008. 

The precise roles of policy changes and the economic downturn in the decline of alcohol consumption, and whether the decrease will be sustained, are still unclear. 

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Request Reprint E-Mail:   taavi.lai@ut.ee

Changes in women's alcoholic, antisocial, and depressive symptomatology over 12 years: A multilevel network of individual, familial, and neighborhood influences

In a sample of 273 adult women and their families, we examined the effects of women's psychopathology history, their social support, their husbands' and children's symptomatology, family stress, and neighborhood environment on their alcohol problems, antisocial behavior, and depression over a 12-year period during their 30s and early 40s. 

Women's alcohol problems and antisocial behavior decreased but their depression symptoms increased over time. 

Women's disorder history and their partners' parallel symptomatology were associated with their symptoms. 

For women's antisocial behavior, their own history of alcoholism and their partners' alcohol problems were also significant risk factors. 

Higher levels of social support were associated with lower levels of depression in women. 

Children's externalizing behavior was positively correlated with their mothers' alcohol problems and antisocial behavior, whereas children's internalizing behavior was positively correlated with their mothers' depression. 

Neighborhood residential instability was associated with higher levels of alcoholic and depressive symptomatology in women. 

Intervention efforts might target women with young children by improving social support, educational or professional training opportunity, access to family counseling, and neighborhood environment.

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Request Reprint E-Mail: 

buu@umich.edu.

 

Influence of Age on the Relationship between Alcohol Consumption and Metabolic Syndrome

Relationships between alcohol consumption and risks for metabolic syndrome in general populations are very controversial. It is unknown whether age influences the relationship between alcohol intake and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome.  

The purpose of this study was to determine whether age influences the relationship between alcohol consumption and metabolic syndrome.  

Men aged ≧35 and <45 years (younger group) and those aged ≧65 years (older group), matched for alcohol intake and smoking history, were divided into four subgroups by alcohol intake [non-, light (<22 g ethanol/day), heavy (≧22 and <44 g ethanol/day) and very heavy (≧44 g ethanol/day) drinkers]. Odds ratios (ORs) versus nondrinkers for each risk factor and metabolic syndrome were compared between the younger and older groups.  

Both in the younger and older groups, ORs for high blood pressure and low HDL cholesterol were significantly high and low, respectively, in all drinker groups. In younger subjects, the OR for large waist circumference was significantly low in light drinkers, and the OR for high hemoglobin A_1c was significantly low in light and heavy drinkers, while these associations were not found in older subjects. 

The OR for metabolic syndrome was significantly low in light and heavy drinkers in the younger subjects but was not significant in any drinker groups in older subjects.  

Age influences the relationships between alcohol consumption and atherosclerotic risk factors, and there is a significant association between alcohol intake and a lower risk for metabolic syndrome in young men but not in elderly men.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:  wakabaya@hyo-med.ac.jp 

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors containing the α4 subunit are critical for the nicotine-induced reduction of acute voluntary ethanol consumption

Recently, we investigated the molecular mechanisms of the smoking cessation drug varenicline, a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) partial agonist, in its ability to decrease voluntary ethanol intake in mice. 

Previous to our study, other labs had shown that this drug can decrease ethanol consumption and seeking in rat models of ethanol intake. 

Although varenicline was designed to be a high affinity partial agonist of nAChRs containing the α4 and β2 subunits (designated as α4β2*), at higher concentrations it can also act upon α3β2*, α6*, α3β4* and α7 nAChRs. 

Therefore, to further elucidate the nAChR subtype responsible for varenicline-induced reduction of ethanol consumption, we utilized a pharmacological approach in combination with two complimentary nAChR genetic mouse models, a knock-out line that does not express the α4 subunit (α4 KO) and another line that expresses α4* nAChRs hypersensitive to agonist (the Leu9′Ala line). 

We found that activation of α4* nAChRs was necessary and sufficient for varenicline-induced reduction of alcohol consumption. 

Consistent with this result, here we show that a more efficacious nAChR agonist, nicotine, also decreased voluntary ethanol intake, and that α4* nAChRs are critical for this reduction.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:   andrew.tapper@umassmed.edu

Do men with excessive alcohol consumption and social stability have an addictive personality?

The existence of an “addictive” personality has been extensively debated. 

The current study investigated personality in male individuals with excessive alcohol consumption (n = 100) in comparison to a population-based control group (n = 131). The individuals with excessive alcohol consumption were recruited by advertisements in a regional daily newspaper and controls from a population based Swedish Twin Registry. Personality was assessed by the Karolinska Scales of Personality (KSP). 

Comparisons were made with normative data. Furthermore, by using a multivariate projection-based approach (Principal Component Analysis; PCA), hidden structures of traits and possible relationships among the individuals with excessive consumption and the controls was investigated. 

The individuals with excessive alcohol consumption as well as the controls had mean values within the normative range in all scales of the KSP. Moreover, the PCA analysis revealed no systematic between-group separation. 

Taken together, this result demonstrates that male individuals with excessive alcohol consumption do not have a personality different from that of a general population, which supports the notion of no “addictive personality”.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:   Kristina.Berglund@psy.gu.se 

Common biology of craving across legal and illegal drugs – a quantitative meta-analysis of cue-reactivity brain response

The present quantitative meta-analysis set out to test whether cue-reactivity responses in humans differ across drugs of abuse and whether these responses constitute the biological basis of drug craving as a core psychopathology of addiction. 

By means of activation likelihood estimation, we investigated the concurrence of brain regions activated by cue-induced craving paradigms across studies on nicotine, alcohol and cocaine addicts. 

Furthermore, we analysed the concurrence of brain regions positively correlated with self-reported craving in nicotine and alcohol studies. 

We found direct overlap between nicotine, alcohol and cocaine cue reactivity in the ventral striatum. In addition, regions of close proximity were observed in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC; nicotine and cocaine) and amygdala (alcohol, nicotine and cocaine). 

Brain regions of concurrence in drug cue-reactivity paradigms that overlapped with brain regions of concurrence in self-reported craving correlations were found in the ACC, ventral striatum and right pallidum (for alcohol). 

This first quantitative meta-analysis on drug cue reactivity identifies brain regions underlying nicotine, alcohol and cocaine dependency, i.e. the ventral striatum. The ACC, right pallidum and ventral striatum were related to drug cue reactivity as well as self-reported craving, suggesting that this set of brain regions constitutes the core circuit of drug craving in nicotine and alcohol addiction.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:    simone.kuhn@ugent.be  

Predictors of addiction treatment providers' beliefs in the disease and choice models of addiction

Addiction treatment providers working in the United States (n = 219) and the United Kingdom (n = 372) were surveyed about their beliefs in the disease and choice models of addiction, as assessed by the 18-item Addiction Belief Scale of J. Schaler (1992). 

Factor analysis of item scores revealed a three-factor structure, labeled “addiction is a disease,” “addiction is a choice,” and “addiction is a way of coping with life,” and factor scores were analyzed in separate hierarchical multiple regression analyses. 

Controlling for demographic and addiction history variables, treatment providers working in the United States more strongly believe addiction is a disease, whereas U.K.-based providers more strongly believe that addiction is a choice and a way of coping with life.

Beliefs that addiction is a disease were stronger among those who provide for-profit treatment, have stronger spiritual beliefs, have had a past addiction problem, are older, are members of a group of addiction professionals, and have been treating addiction longer. 

Conversely, those who viewed addiction as a choice were more likely to provide public/not-for-profit treatment, be younger, not belong to a group of addiction professionals, and have weaker spiritual beliefs. 

Additionally, treatment providers who have had a personal addiction problem in the past were significantly more likely to believe addiction is a disease the longer they attend a 12-step–based group and if they are presently abstinent.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:   christopher.russell@strath.ac.uk

Teaching physicians to address unhealthy alcohol use: A randomized controlled trial assessing the effect of a Web-based module on medical student performance

The authors developed and evaluated an interactive, Web-based module to train medical students in screening and brief intervention (SBI) for unhealthy alcohol use.

First-year students were randomized to module versus lecture. Change in knowledge, attitudes, and confidence were compared. Performance was assessed by objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) and analyzed by intention to treat and treatment received.

Of 141 consenting students, 64% (n = 90) completed an intervention (54% lecture vs. 70% Web assigned). Knowledge, confidence, and attitudes improved in both groups, with more improvement in Advise–Assist knowledge for Web students (14% vs. −3%, p = .003). Web students outperformed their lecture peers in both general communication (65% vs. 51% items well done, p = .004) and alcohol-specific tasks (54% vs. 41%, p = .021) on OSCE. Analysis by treatment received enhanced between-group differences.

Use of a Web-based module to teach SBI is associated with greater knowledge gain and skills performance compared with a lecture covering similar content. The module provides an efficient means for training in this area.


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Request Reprint E-Mail:  andrea.truncali@nyumc.org  

Alcohol use problem among patients in methadone maintenance treatment in Taiwan

To examine the prevalence rate and predictors of alcohol use problems among patients undergoing methadone maintenance treatment (MMT).

This was a prospective follow-up study.

Study population included 438 patients who underwent more than 6 months of MMT.

Demographic and clinical characteristics were collected for each patient prior to treatment, and treatment-related variables were collected during treatment process. Hazardous drinking, alcohol abuse, and dependence were measured using a Chinese version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and by measuring breath alcohol concentration.

The prevalence rates of alcohol use problems, indicated by hazardous drinking are 31.4%. The protective predictors of alcohol use problems among MMT patients include an attendance rate of more than 90% (odds ratio [OR] = 0.54, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.30–0.97) and being older than 36 years (OR = 0.48, 95% CI = 0.27–0.86), and alcohol drinking problem at intake of study is a risk factor (OR = 5.30, 95% CI = 2.87–9.76).

High attendance rate, which is regarded as a component of clinical policy and a key component of therapeutic context, should be incorporated with brief interventions to lower alcohol use problems among MMT patients.


 
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Request E-Mail:  weichu@ntu.edu.tw 

Wine, supermarkets and British alcohol policy

• Recent concerns over cheap drink have led to a policy debate on minimum unit pricing and the banning of the 'below-cost' sale of alcohol. Such interventions target off-licenses and supermarkets, since alcohol in pubs is generally sold above proposed minimum prices.
• While pricing interventions often target high-strength beers, cider and spirits, concern has also been expressed over price promotions and three-for-two offers on wine. A dramatic increase in wine drinking has contributed significantly to the marked rise in per capita consumption of alcohol over the last forty years. In recent years alcohol awareness campaigns have drawn attention to excessive wine consumption in the home.
• Supermarkets and off-licenses have played a pivotal role in the expansion of domestic wine drinking in the UK. The modern system of wine retail and off-licenses was established by William Gladstone in 1860. The debates surrounding Gladstone's reforms have clear parallels with debates over off-licence retail and domestic wine-drinking today.
• In 1860, public debate centered on issues such as the relationship between pricing and consumption, the monopolistic power of the drinks industry, the role of licensing authorities, British drinking cultures, and the relationship between the 'on' (pubs, bars and restaurants) and 'off' (off-licence and supermarket) trades. Similar concerns remain a feature of contemporary debates on alcohol policy.
• While the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition supports banning 'below-cost' alcohol retail, political action on alcohol pricing is constrained by concerns over breaching both the spirit and rules of the free market. In Scotland, for example, minimum unit pricing was removed from the 2010 Alcohol Bill partly over fears that it breached EU rules on price competition. In 1860, free trade arguments were also central to licensing and duty reform.
• The historical record suggests that consensus for licensing and duty reform can be achieved in the face of strong industry resistance, but usually needs to carry with it the support of 'moderate' drinkers.
• While the alcohol industry has a long history of vigorously defending itself against legislative interventions, it became more fragmented after 1860. Today, the 'drinks industry' has fragmented further, allowing politicians and lobby groups to form alliances which cut across competing industry interests.
• Policy discussions tend to dwell on the negative impacts of public drinking; a more critical focus on domestic drinking may be appropriate in future.  > > > > Read More

Type 7 Adenylyl Cyclase is Involved in the Ethanol and CRF Sensitivity of GABAergic Synapses in Mouse Central Amygdala

The GABAergic system in the central amygdala (CeA) plays a major role in ethanol dependence and in the anxiogenic response to ethanol withdrawal. 

Previously, we found that both ethanol and corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) increase GABAergic transmission in mouse and rat CeA neurons, in part by enhancing the release of GABA via activation of presynaptic CRF1 receptors. CRF1 receptors are coupled to the enzyme adenylyl cyclase (AC), which produces the second messenger cyclic AMP. 

There are nine isoforms of AC, but we recently found that CRF1 receptors in the pituitary were coupled to the Type 7 AC (AC7). Therefore, using an in vitro electrophysiological approach in brain slices, here we have investigated a possible role of the AC7 signaling pathway in ethanol and CRF effects on CeA GABAergic synapses of genetically modified mice with diminished brain Adcy7 activity (HET) compared to their littermate male wild-type (WT) mice. 

We found no significant differences in basal membrane properties, mean baseline amplitude of evoked GABA_A receptor-mediated inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs), or paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) of GABA_A-IPSPs between HET and WT mice. 

In CeA neurons of WT mice, ethanol superfusion significantly augmented (by 39%) GABAA-IPSPs and decreased PPF (by 25%), suggesting increased presynaptic GABA release. 

However, these effects were absent in HET mice. CRF superfusion also significantly augmented IPSPs (by 38%) and decreased PPF (by 23%) in WT CeA neurons, and still elicited a significant but smaller (by 13%) increase of IPSP amplitude, but no effect on PPF, in HET mice. 

These electrophysiological data suggest that AC7 plays an important role in ethanol and CRF modulation of presynaptic GABA release in CeA and thus may underlie ethanol-related behaviors such as anxiety and dependence.

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Predictors for the Efficacy of Naltrexone Treatment in Alcohol Dependence: Sweet Preference

To analyse the possible associations between sweet preference and the efficacy of naltrexone treatment of alcohol dependence.

 

The preference for different concentrations of sucrose was evaluated in 78 participants diagnosed with alcohol dependence after treatment for 32 weeks with naltrexone or placebo without prior detoxification. 

A significant difference between naltrexone and placebo groups was found in the association between the preference for higher sucrose concentrations and relapses to heavy drinking. Higher sweet preference was significantly related to successful treatment measures in the naltrexone group but not in the placebo group. 

Sweet preference has a strong correlation to treatment outcomes with naltrexone, and sweet preference might be used as a predictor for better treatment results in alcoholics. Our study offers one possible new explanation of the clinical observation that naltrexone is not effective for every patient. 

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Request Reprint E-Mail: hannu.alho@thl.fi

   

Alcohol-related amnesia and dementia: Animal models have revealed the contributions of different etiological factors on neuropathology, neurochemical dysfunction and cognitive impairment

Chronic alcoholism is associated with impaired cognitive functioning. Over 75% of autopsied chronic alcoholics have significant brain damage and over 50% of detoxified alcoholics display some degree of learning and memory impairment.

However, the relative contributions of different etiological factors to the development of alcohol-related neuropathology and cognitive impairment are questioned. 

One reason for this quandary is that both alcohol toxicity and thiamine deficiency result in brain damage and cognitive problems. 

Two alcohol-related neurological disorders, alcohol-associated dementia and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome have been modeled in rodents. 

These pre-clinical models have elucidated the relative contributions of ethanol toxicity and thiamine deficiency to the development of dementia and amnesia. 

What is observed in these models—from repeated and chronic ethanol exposure to thiamine deficiency—is a progression of both neural and cognitive dysregulation. 

Repeated binge exposure to ethanol leads to changes in neural plasticity by reducing GABAergic inhibition and facilitating glutamatergic excitation, long-term chronic ethanol exposure results in hippocampal and cortical cell loss as well as reduced hippocampal neurotrophin protein content critical for neural survival, and thiamine deficiency results in gross pathological lesions in the diencephalon, reduced neurotrophic protein levels, and neurotransmitters levels in the hippocampus and cortex. 

Behaviorally, after recovery from repeated or chronic ethanol exposure there is impairment in working or episodic memory that can recover with prolonged abstinence. 

In contrast, after thiamine deficiency there is severe and persistent spatial memory impairments and increased perseverative behavior. 

The interaction between ethanol and thiamine deficiency does not produce more behavioral or neural pathology, with the exception of reduction of white matter, than long-term thiamine deficiency alone.


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Request Reprint E-Mail:   lsavage@binghamton.edu 

Moderating effects of a craving intervention on the relation between negative mood and heavy drinking following treatment for alcohol dependence.

Negative affect is a significant predictor of alcohol relapse, and the relation between negative affect and drinking has been shown to be strongly mediated by alcohol craving. 

Thus, targeting craving during treatment could potentially attenuate the relation between negative affect and drinking. 

The current study is a secondary analysis of data from the COMBINE study, a randomized clinical trial that combined pharmacotherapy with behavioral intervention in the treatment of alcohol dependence. 

Our goal in the current study was to examine whether a treatment module that targeted craving would predict changes in negative mood during the 16-week combined behavioral intervention (n = 776) and the relation among changes in mood, craving, and changes in heavy drinking during treatment and 1 year posttreatment. 

Changes in negative mood were significantly associated with changes in heavy drinking during treatment (f2 = 0.78). Participants (n = 432) who received the craving module had significantly fewer heavy drinking days during treatment (d = 0.31), and receiving the module moderated the relation between negative mood and heavy drinking during treatment (f2 = 0.92) and 1 year posttreatment (f2 = 0.03). 

Moderating effects of the craving module were mediated by changes in craving during treatment. Within-subject analyses indicated significant pre- to postmodule reductions in negative mood. 

Additionally, postmodule craving significantly mediated the association between negative mood and heavy drinking during treatment and at posttreatment. 

The craving module of the combined behavioral intervention may weaken the relation between negative affect and heavy drinking by fostering greater decreases in craving during treatment.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:  kate19@u.washington.edu   

Emergency Department Visits Involving Underage Alcohol Use in Combination with Other Drugs

●● Of the estimated 188,981 alcohol-related emergency department (ED) visits made by patients aged 12 to 20 in 2008, 70.0 percent involved alcohol only, and 30.0 percent involved alcohol in combination with other drugs
 
●● Illicit drug use was indicated in more than two thirds (68.4 percent), and pharmaceutical drugs were involved in more than one half (55.1 percent) of ED visits involving alcohol in combination with other drugs among patients aged 12 to 20
 
●● Among adolescents aged 12 to 17, 3 in 10 (30.2 percent) alcohol-related ED visits made by females involved other drugs, whereas more than 2 in 10 (22.9 percent) of such
visits were made by males; among young adults aged 18 to 20, about one third of such visits made by both males (31.9 percent) and females (33.3 percent) involved other drugs
 
●● Of patients aged 12 to 20 who made alcohol related ED visits involving other drugs, nearly two thirds (64.5 percent) had no evidence of follow-up care



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Overestimation of Drinking Norms and its Association with Alcohol Consumption in Apprentices

To investigate associations of normative misperceptions and drinking behaviors in apprentices, complementing the previous literature on university students.

 

A survey in a defined region of northern Germany was carried out among 1124 apprentices attending vocational schools. Using items from the short form of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C), drinking behaviors and normative perceptions of drinking in the reference group of same-gender apprentices were assessed. Demographic, smoking- and drinking-related predictors for normative misperceptions were explored.  

Personal drinking behavior was positively correlated with perceived norms, both for drinking frequency (males: Kendall's τ = 0.33, P < 0.01; females: τ = 0.22, P < 0.01) and drinking quantity (males: Kendall's τ = 0.39, P < 0.01; females: τ = 0.25, P < 0.01). Alcohol use disorders according to AUDIT-C cut-offs were more prevalent in subjects who overestimated drinking quantity in their reference group than in those who correctly estimated or underestimated drinking quantity (male: P < 0.01; relative risk (RR) 1.78; female: P < 0.01; RR 1.65). Concerning drinking frequency, this difference was only found in males (P < 0.01; RR 1.49). Male gender and higher alcohol use were positively associated with normative misperceptions of both drinking quantity and frequency. 

Interventions correcting alcohol use misperceptions might be effective in reducing problem drinking in adolescents with heterogeneous educational levels. 

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Request Reprint E-Mail severin.haug@isgf.uzh.ch

 

Paradoxical Changes in Alcohol Consumption and CAGE Ratings Between 1996 and 2006 in the General Population of Geneva

To assess changes between 1996 and 2006 in alcohol use and dependence in the general  population of Geneva, Switzerland. 

Postal surveys of alcohol consumption patterns in representative samples of the general population were compared. The four-item CAGE (Cut down, Annoyed, Guilty, Eye-opener) screener was used to estimate alcohol dependence.

 

There were 742 participants in 1996 (response rate 75%) and 1487 in 2006 (76%). The proportions of daily drinkers (1996: 18%; 2006: 10%; P < 0.001), and of heavy drinkers (>14 drinks/week) decreased between 1996 (13%) and 2006 (7%; P < 0.001). 

However, decreases in heavy drinking were limited to men aged 30+ and women aged 30–49. The average number of drinks/week decreased from 6.4 in 1996 to 5.0 in 2006 (P < 0.001). Perception of safe drinking levels decreased between 1996 (4 drinks/day) and 2006 (3 drinks/day, P < 0.001). 

The prevalence of alcohol dependence, defined as a CAGE score ≥2, increased among women (1996: 6%; 2006: 14%; P = 0.001), but not among men (1996: 18%, 2006: 19%). Two of the CAGE items were endorsed more frequently by women in 2006 than in 1996: ‘guilty’ (1996: 9%; 2006: 15%; P = 0.018) and ‘should cut down’ (1996: 12%; 2006: 18%; P = 0e significantly over time (2006: 21% of men, 9% of women).  

Alcohol consumption, heavy drinking and perceived levels of safe drinking decreased over these 10 years, but not drink driving or alcohol dependence. Paradoxically, alcohol dependence even increased among women, driven by CAGE items ‘guilty’ and ‘should cut down’, suggesting that changes in CAGE scores reflected changes in the social acceptability of drinking rather than changes in dependence.

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Request Reprint E-Mail:     jean-francois.etter@unige.ch

  

A gradient of childhood self-control predicts health, wealth, and public safety

Policy-makers are considering large-scale programs aimed at self-control to improve citizens’ health and wealth and reduce crime. Experimental and economic studies suggest such programs could reap benefits. Yet, is self-control important for the health, wealth, and public safety of the population?

Following a cohort of 1,000 children from birth to the age of 32 y, we show that childhood self-control predicts physical health, substance dependence, personal finances, and criminal offending outcomes, following a gradient of self-control. 

Effects of children's self-control could be disentangled from their intelligence and social class as well as from mistakes they made as adolescents. 

In another cohort of 500 sibling-pairs, the sibling with lower self-control had poorer outcomes, despite shared family background. 

Interventions addressing self-control might reduce a panoply of societal costs, save taxpayers money, and promote prosperity. 

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Impact on alcohol-related mortality of a rapid rise in the density of private liquor outlets in British Columbia: a local area multi-level analysis

To study relationships between rates of alcohol-related deaths and (i) the density of liquor outlets and (ii) the proportion of liquor stores owned privately in British Columbia (BC) during a period of rapid increase in private stores.

Multi-level regression analyses assessed the relationship between population rates of private liquor stores and alcohol-related mortality after adjusting for potential confounding.

The 89 local health areas of BC, Canada across a 6-year period from 2003 to 2008, for a longitudinal sample with n = 534.

Population rates of liquor store density, alcohol-related death and socio-economic variables obtained from government sources.

The total number of liquor stores per 1000 residents was associated significantly and positively with population rates of alcohol-related death (P < 0.01). A conservative estimate is that rates of alcohol-related death increased by 3.25% for each 20% increase in private store density. The percentage of liquor stores in private ownership was also associated independently with local rates of alcohol-related death after controlling for overall liquor store density (P < 0.05). Alternative models confirmed significant relationships between changes in private store density and mortality over time.

The rapidly rising densities of private liquor stores in British Columbia from 2003 to 2008 was associated with a significant local-area increase in rates of alcohol-related death.



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Request Reprint E-Mail:   timstock@uvic.ca

Alcohol News - 4/2011

The Telegraph (Denmark) - Why is Denmark the cancer capital of the world?

One reason why Danish people seem to be particularly susceptible to cancer is that its record of diagnosing the disease is so good, meaning that more cases are picked up by the country's doctors than in most other parts of the world. But there are also lifestyle factors which could be having an influence on the figures reported by the World Cancer Research Fund from the World Health Organisation.

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Radio Sweden (Sweden) - Criticism of motorist alcohol devices

Sweden has a programme where people convicted of driving while under the influence of alcohol can keep their licences, if they agree to having an ignition interlock device in their car for two years. Motorists have to blow into a tube in the device, which then is supposed to measure their alcohol level.

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Helsinki Times (Finland) - Finland's Risikko not to push for curbs on image alcohol ads

Paula Risikko (cons), the health and social services minister, does not intend to pursue a ban on image-based alcohol advertising, the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) reported Friday.

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YLE.fi (Finland) - Alcohol Now Plagues Youth and Pensioners

The young and the elderly now receive treatment for illnesses caused by alcohol in greater numbers than before. However, alcohol-related ailments still strike middle-aged men most frequently, says a report by the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL).

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Sydney Morning Herald (Australia) - NSW police warn about alcohol crime

NSW police have issued a stern warning about alcohol-related crime on Australia Day after a string of violent attacks on officers.

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USA Today (USA) - Alcohol industry grapples with nutrition labeling

"In the year 2011, it's sort of bizarre that alcohol's the only consumable product sold in the United States that you can't tell what's inside the bottle," says Guy Smith, executive vice president in North America for Diageo, the world's leading distilled spirits, beer and wine company.

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Canada.com (Canada) - Debate over combat sports, alcohol sales re-emerge

Now that plans to hold mixed martial arts fights at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre have been scrapped, the issue of allowing alcohol sales at these events has re-emerged.

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BusinessWeek (China) - New Clue to How Chinese Remedy Curbs Drinking

Taking kudzu root extract to curb drinking leads to an increase in blood ethanol levels, which might lessen the desire for more alcohol, researchers report.

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Opposing Views - New Study: Alcohol Damages Memory

A study in the June issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research uses Internet-based technology to find that heavy alcohol consumption has a negative impact on day-to-day memory.

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Mirror.co.uk (UK) - Price of pint of beer 'to go up by 30p'

The price of a pint of beer could rise by as much as 30p as spiralling costs come to a head, experts predicted today.

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Newsweek (Turkey) - Turkey’s Teetotalers

The founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, was so fond of raki that he died of liver disease. But alcohol is becoming the latest battleground in Turkey’s culture wars. New regulations introduced this month by the conservative, Islamic-leaning AK Party government have caused a storm of protest from the imbibing elite.

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The Guardian (UK) - On alcohol pricing, the coalition should learn from Scotland's experience

The news that the coalition intends to set a minimum price for alcohol will come as some surprise north of the border, where, for some, the wee dram has been replaced by a much cheaper can of strong cider – resulting in the fastest rising rate of liver disease in the world.

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Vancouver Sun (Canada) - Study says alcohol problems in B.C. linked to rise in private liquor stores

Alcohol-related deaths and alcohol consumption appear to be going up in British Columbia along with the number of private liquor stores, a University of Victoria study released Tuesday says.

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MedPage Today - Afib Risk Rises With Alcohol Intake

Although drinking moderate amounts of alcohol is believed to have cardiovascular benefits, it may also increase the risk of atrial fibrillation, a meta-analysis showed.

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BusinessWeek (Netherlands) - Genetics Could Play Role in Teen Drinking

Researchers collected DNA from 282 teens in the Netherlands who had consumed alcohol at least once in their lives. The teens were also asked about their reasons for drinking and the degree of alcohol-related problems they had experienced.

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Daily Mail - How those Friday night glasses of wine could be quietly killing you

Are you one of the many who try not to drink alcohol during the week, but save it for the weekend? No doubt you think it helps you function better — surely it’s also healthier than drinking daily.

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Irish Independent - Cigarettes and alcohol blamed for men dying younger

A new report has unlocked the mystery of why men die so much younger than women - and smoking and drinking habits are two of the biggest culprits.

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Injunctive norms for alcohol-related consequences and protective behavioral strategies: Effects of gender and year in school

Perceived drinking norms have received increased attention as one determinant of high levels of college alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems. 

Excessive drinking is widely visible on college campuses, and students may therefore assume that it is peer-supported (Kitts, 2003). 

Research into peer relations indicates that the perceived approval of important others predicts drinking behavior (Neighbors, Lee, Lewis, Fossos, & Larimer, 2007). Neither the use of alcohol-related protective behavioral strategies nor alcohol-related negative consequences have been investigated in terms of their perceived approval. 

The purpose of this study was to extend previous research on injunctive norms and assess self-other discrepancies in levels of approval for campus drinking patterns, negative alcohol-related consequences, and protective behavioral strategies. 

Undergraduate volunteers (n = 324, 61% female, 67% Caucasian) completed an online survey of drinking patterns; they rated comfort with overall campus drinking, and the acceptability of alcohol-related consequences and protective strategies for themselves and their close friends. 

As predicted, students expressed lower acceptance of consequences than their friends, and higher acceptance of alcohol-related protective strategies. We observed main effects of gender and year in school. 

Males and upperclassmen expressed higher acceptance of negative consequences for both self and others, and lower acceptance of protective strategies for both self and others. Implications for prevention programs are discussed.


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