Binge drinking is largely associated with high school and college-aged people—teenagers and young adults who are just beginning to experiment with alcohol and don’t yet know any better. It is much less associated with older adults, and certainly not with seniors. Seniors, we tend to think, have a wealth of wisdom and experience that discourages […]
Binge Drinking ‘Cause for Alarm’ Among Seniors Read More »
Previous studies of twin siblings and families point to a strong genetic role in the development of an alcohol abuse problem. The trouble is finding out which among the 24,000 human genes are most responsible for the vulnerability.
Are Specific Genes Responsible for Alcoholism? Read More »
When consumed in substantial amounts, alcohol produces changes in the brain and body that normally help deter additional drinking. However, some people don’t seem to react as strongly to the negative effects of alcohol and therefore have greater chances of continuing their consumption to excess. In a study published in April 2014 in the journal
A Brain Region for Resisting Alcohol’s Allure Read More »
Anxiety is a healthy and normal response to certain situations, especially those involving danger or personal difficulty. The feeling of anxiousness is part of what drives a person to prepare for challenges in life. The key difference between healthy and unhealthy anxiety has to do with frequency and function – how often are the symptoms
How to Know if Your Anxiety is Healthy or Unhealthy Read More »
Energy drinks are a modern class of beverage that contain some sort of nonprescription stimulant, including substances such as caffeine, guarana or yohimbe. College students and other young adults consume these beverages with some regularity. In a study published in March 2014 in the journal Substance Abuse, researchers from six U.S. universities analyzed the potential
Energy Drinks Linked to Prescription Stimulant Abuse Read More »
As every parent knows, children tend to pick up more of what they observe than what they are told, and parents don’t get to choose which habits children will imitate. A new study reveals that parents who abuse substances are more likely to have children who do the same. The study from Sam Houston State
Children Imitate Parental Drug and Alcohol Behaviors Read More »
Jeremy Stalbird was on a troubled path for the early part of his life, but it led him “right where I’m supposed to be,” he said, helping those with drug and alcohol addictions as Residential Manager of Promises Young Adult Program. Coming up on his sixth year of sobriety, Jeremy uses his hard-earned knowledge to
An Interview with Jeremy Stalbird, Residential Manager at Promises Young Adult Program Read More »
Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome is the collective name for two distinct conditions—Wernicke’s encephalopathy and Korsakoff syndrome—that seriously damage the brain and trigger a range of short- and long-term health complications. People affected by ongoing alcoholism are known to have an unusual susceptibility to Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. In a study published in March 2014 in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical
Alcohol-Altered Genes Blamed for Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome Read More »
Neurocognitive disorder due to traumatic brain injury is a mental health condition that sometimes arises in the long-term aftermath of a physical injury that results in brain damage. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) classifies this condition along with other types of neurocognitive disorder in the reference text for mental health professionals called the Diagnostic and
Understanding Neurocognitive Disorder Due to Traumatic Brain Injury Read More »
Atypical depression is a type of depressive illness that produces symptoms not usually found in people suffering from depression. Doctors can’t directly diagnose these symptoms as a separate mental health condition; instead, they must include them as a secondary diagnosis when identifying other mental disorders. Apart from people affected by major depression, the people most
Links Between Atypical Depression and Bipolar Disorder Read More »