New from SAMHSA: Medications for Opioid Use Disorders
SAMHSA has released a new publication as part of the Treatment Improvement Protocol series.
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Recommendations for NIDA's Cannabis Policy Research Agenda
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has released a new report Recommendations for NIDA's Cannabis Policy Research Agenda.
The document has been prepared by the National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse Workgroup which was formed in...
Counselling Parents and Teens about Marijuana Use in the Era of Legalisation of Marijuana
Abstract
Many states have recently made significant changes to their legislation making recreational and/or medical marijuana use by adults legal. Although these laws, for the most part, have not targeted the adolescent population, they...
Treating Alcohol Addiction with Positive Relationships
A ‘therapeutic alliance’, or in other words, a positive and trusting relationship between counsellor and patient, could be the key to successful treatment of alcohol addiction, according to a new study. Patients who reported a more positive...
Are People Smoking Less and Less?
According to new findings published in the journal Tobacco Control, more than 53 million people in 88 countries have stopped smoking between 2008 – 2014 because of tobacco control measures.
Statistically, this means that during the 4-year...
Do Cognitive Processes Influence Nicotine Addiction?
A new study suggests that the way in which the human brain responds to nicotine depends on what a smoker believes about the drug’s content in a cigarette. The investigation found that smoking a cigarette that contains nicotine, but thinking...
Sweet Flavoured Tobacco Products May Influence Adolescent Smoking Habits
Younger people consider flavoured variations of tobacco products, for example, cigarettes and e-cigarettes less harmful and more appealing, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina Lineberger...
Dying for an E-Cigarette?
The use of e-cigarettes has increased dramatically in recent years. New research suggests that besides acting as a gateway to tobacco smoking, ‘vaping’ can also potentially damage your health in other ways. A study undertaken at the Keck...
Teenage Binge Drinking and Future Offspring’s Brain Development
Frequent binge drinking during your teenage years can affect the brain functioning and development of your future offspring, according to new research published by Loyola University. Indeed, the study suggests that excessive alcohol...
Combating Alcohol Misuse: Soldiers and the Fight against Addiction
New research published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology argues that telephone-based interventions seem an effective way of helping members of the military overcome alcohol addiction. The study demonstrates that such a...
The Lasting Health Effects of Alcohol Dependency
A new study conducted in the United States and subsequently published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs suggests that those who suffered from symptoms of alcohol dependence during their youth may still experience the mental and...
75% of Teens See E-Cigarettes as a Safer Alternative to Tobacco
Almost 3 out of 4 teenagers in the United States think that e-cigarettes are less harmful or addictive than smoking tobacco, a new study has found. The researchers also found that increases in the perceived safety of what has become known...
Weaker Bones Linked to Cannabis Use
Research conducted at the University of Edinburgh has found a link between cannabis use and bone mass density. More specifically, the findings, recently published in the American Journal of Medicine, report that frequent cannabis users are...
What are the Second-Hand Effects of Alcohol Consumption?
The ‘second hand effects’ of alcohol use can be defined as the negative consequences of drinking experienced by people other than the drinker. They can include, for example, serious acts of sexual and physical violence as well as more...
Is There a Biological Link Between Anti-Depressants and the Effects of Alcohol on the Body?
The ‘self-medication hypothesis’ is commonly known to refer to a human behaviour which sees people with depression turn to alcohol as a way of coping. New research published in the journal Nature Communications has now discovered a...
Marijuana and Maternity: What Are the Effects?
Four US states currently allow r
ecreational marijuana use and twenty-four allow medical marijuana. However, little research has been carried out to uncover the drug’s effect on the development of human embryos if smoked or consumed in...
Opioid Abuse Linked to Heroin Use
New research published in the journal Addictive Behaviors has found the likelihood of 18- to 34-year-old nonmedical prescription opioid users having a prescription opioid use disorder has increased between 2002 – 2014. More specifically...
Identifying At-Risk Personalities
A new substance abuse prevention programme called Preventure uses personality tests to identify children most at risk of indulging in harmful drug-taking behaviour. The traits it has identified amongst at-risk children include: sensation...
Are Smoking Bans Having the Desired Effect?
A new study carried out by researchers at Ohio State University and subsequently published in the Journal of Health and Social Behaviour shows how smoking bans in the United States have led to a decrease in social or light smoking amongst...
Student Smokers in US at All-Time Low
Smoking, and the desire to smoke, cigarettes amongst high school students in the United States is currently at an all-time low, according to a recent article published in Preventing Chronic Disease. The study found that between 2012 – 2014...