Alcoholism is a disease characterized by the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite health problems and negative social consequences. The quantity, frequency, and regularity of alcohol consumption required to develop alcoholism varies greatly from person to person. Studies indicate that the proportion of men with alcohol dependence is higher than the proportion of women, although women are more vulnerable to long-term consequences of alcoholism.
New research pinpoints genetic pathways and genes that are associated with levels of alcohol consumption but not with alcohol dependence. This means that your genetic makeup may predispose you to drink more, but may not increase your genetic risk for alcoholism.
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Most people are aware of the devastating toll alcoholism can take on an individual’s well being. The disease affects every aspect of a person’s life, from their professional career to their personal relationships. In addition to the interpersonal damage, alcoholism can lead to a variety of health problems such as liver disease, increased risk of [...]
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In any given year, people with alcohol dependence (AD) commit more than 20 percent of suicides in the general population. About 80 to 90 percent of AD suicides are by men, mostly white. A new look at the relationship between alcohol and suicide has found that both attempted and complete suicides occur at greater rates [...]
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According to figures from the Scottish government, Glasgow has the highest record of alcohol-related deaths in all of Britain. The number of drinking deaths in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board area was 267% higher in 2008 than the national average of 13 per 100,000.
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More than 1 million children in the UK are living with parents who abuse alcohol and need urgent support, the charity group Turning Point has said, explaining that a lack of specialist services means youngsters are forced to carry the burden of the "family secret" alone.
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Daniel Schuler, husband of the 36-year-old woman who caused a highway crash that killed eight people, insists that his wife was not drunk and high behind the wheel, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. “My heart is clear,” Schuler said of his wife Diane, who was also killed in the accident. “She did not drink. [...]
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After a Web site published photos of him drunkenly cavorting with scantily clad women in a bar last January, Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton admitted to relapsing. He said before January, he hadn’t drank since October 6, 2005. Hamilton made headlines last season when he emerged from the depths of drug and alcohol addiction to [...]
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Scientists have been pondering why certain individuals are more predisposed to alcohol dependency than others for decades, as alcoholism can be influenced by neurobiology, personality traits, and individual and social influences. Scientists know how alcohol affects the central nervous system, but the exact mechanism of action remains obscure.
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The Australian outback town of Halls Creek recently became the latest Aboriginal town to restrict alcohol sales, and as a result, there has been a steep decrease in nighttime brawls. The New York Times’ Norimitsu Onishi writes that the “scores of Aboriginal men and women who milled around the one liquor store in the afternoon [...]
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Patrick is 44 years old, with no home, family, car, job, or possessions. He lays claim to being an artist, and does carry a box of paints and other art supplies for creating paintings. His art is intriguing, but there is something missing. Looking at the colorful swirling lines, one realizes that Patrick’s art lacks [...]
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