Substance Abuse News

Even what many Americans consider moderate drinking is linked to an increased risk of death, disability, and chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease, according to a new study in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, published at Rutgers University. The new research, called the Alcohol Intake and Health Study -- initially commissioned by the U.S. federal government to inform development of the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines -- found a mortality risk from alcohol of 1 in 25 for people who consumed an average of 14 drinks per week. In contrast, drinking up to 7 drinks per week was associated with only minimally elevated risks for most conditions. Read more......

Social media platforms popular with teens regularly expose teens to alcohol-related content, and often, that content is created by influencers or sources in the alcohol industry. In a study, high school students reported they saw alcohol-related content most commonly on Instagram, followed by TikTok, YouTube, and SnapChat, with up to 40 percent of the alcohol-related content they viewed originating with influencers and up to 50 percent created by the alcohol industry. Teens reported high social media use. Music platforms, Instagram, and TikTok were the most popular, with more than 80 percent of participants reporting an hour or more a day on each. Read more...  ...

A "nudging" strategy in the emergency department (ED) may be a path for prescribing a medication that can blunt cravings for alcohol—and dull its effects—offering an effective treatment for people with alcohol use disorder (AUD) who might not otherwise receive it. The jumps in ordering at the nudge hospitals translated to a 12-fold increase in the likelihood of receiving a naltrexone prescription in the Phase 1 period, and a 15-fold increase during Phase 2. "Before our intervention, only a handful of experts prescribed naltrexone, and only one patient every couple months left with a prescription," Ebert explained. "It just wasn't something routinely done in the...