Drinking and Risks to Men

Image via Wikipedia

Excessive Alcohol Use and Risks to Men’s Health

Men are more likely than women to drink excessively. Excessive drinking is associated with significant increases in short-term risks to health and safety, and the risk increases as the amount of drinking increases.

Men are also more likely than women to take other risks (e.g., drive fast or without a safety belt), when combined with excessive drinking, further increasing their risk of injury or death.

Drinking levels for men

• Approximately 62% of adult men reported drinking alcohol in the last 30 days and were more likely to binge drink than women (47%) during the same time period.
• Men average about 12.5 binge drinking episodes per person per year, while women average about 2.7 binge drinking episodes per year.
• Most people who binge drink are not alcoholics or alcohol dependent.
• It is estimated that about 17% of men and about 8% of women will meet criteria for alcohol dependence at some point in their lives.

Injuries and deaths as a result of excessive alcohol use

• Men consistently have higher rates of alcohol-related deaths and hospitalizations than women.
• Among drivers in fatal motor-vehicle traffic crashes, men are almost twice as likely as women to have been intoxicated (i.e., a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or greater).
• Excessive alcohol consumption increases aggression and, as a result, can increase the risk of physically assaulting another person.
• Men are more likely than women to commit suicide, and more likely to have been drinking prior to committing suicide.

Reproductive Health and Sexual Function

Excessive alcohol use can interfere with testicular function and male hormone production resulting in impotence, infertility, and reduction of male secondary sex characteristics such as facial and chest hair.

• Excessive alcohol use is commonly involved in sexual assault. Impaired judgment caused by alcohol may worsen the tendency of some men to mistake a women’s friendly behavior for sexual interest and misjudge their use of force.
• Also, alcohol use by men increases the chances of engaging in risky sexual activity including unprotected sex, sex with multiple partners, or sex with a partner at risk for sexually transmitted diseases.

Cancer

• Alcohol consumption increases the risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, and colon in men.

There are a number of health conditions affected by excessive alcohol use that affect both men and women.

Long-Term Health Risks

Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases, neurological impairments and social problems. These include but are not limited to—

• Neurological problems, including dementia, stroke and neuropathy.
• Cardiovascular problems (heart diseases), including myocardial infarction, cardiomyopathy, atrial fibrillation and hypertension.
• Psychiatric problems, including depression, anxiety, and suicide.
• Social problems, including unemployment, lost productivity, anti-social attitudes and family problems.
• Cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, colon, and breast. In general, the risk of cancer increases with increasing amounts of alcohol.
• Liver diseases, including—
  • Alcoholic hepatitis.
  • Cirrhosis, which is among the 15 leading causes of all deaths in the United States.
  • Among persons with Hepatitis C virus, worsening of liver function and interference with medications used to treat this condition.
• Other gastrointestinal problems, including pancreatitis and gastritis.

-

See also

• Addiction & Recovery Books
• Chicken Soup for the Recovering Soul
• Dogs Sense for Life

Online Community for People in Recovery

Hazelden: New ‘Sober24′ Online Community for People in Recovery.

See full details at Recovery Is Sexy

See also

• A Gentle Path Through the Twelve Steps
• Understanding Co-Dependency
• Compulsive Overeater – A Recovery Book

-

Interpol Targets Online Drug Sales

Image via Wikipedia

International operation combats the illegal online supply of counterfeit medicines

Press release from the; UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

Forty-five countries across the globe have taken part in an international enforcement operation targeting the online sale of counterfeit and illegal medicines to raise awareness of the dangers of buying medicines online.

Operation Pangea III ran between 5 – 12 October and resulted in 76 people either arrested or placed under investigation across the globe.

The operation is the largest internet-based enforcement action of its kind to date and involved IMPACT, the World Customs Organisation (WCO), the Permanent Forum of International Pharmaceutical Crime (PFIPC) and the Heads of Medicines Agencies Working Group of Enforcement Officers (HMA WGEO).

Coordinated by INTERPOL and carried out with the assistance of police, customs and national medicines regulators, the global operation targeted the three main components abused in the illegal website trade – the Internet Service Provider (ISP), the electronic payment system and the delivery service.

Internationally, 267,855 packages were inspected by regulators and customs resulting in the seizure of 1,014,043 illicit and counterfeit pills worth an estimated £1.62 million ($2,598,163 (US)).

During the operation, internet monitoring revealed 694 websites potentially engaged in illegal activity including offering controlled or Prescription Only Drugs.

The public will be advised through global awareness campaigns that purchasing medicines from unregulated websites significantly increases the risks of obtaining counterfeit, sub-standard and dangerous products.

The types of medicines the MHRA found included those for erectile dysfunction, weight loss, pain relief, human growth hormone, antidepressants and steroids.

MHRA Head of Enforcement, Mick Deats, said that what often looked like a professional online pharmacy could turn out to be an illicit website selling fake or illegal medication.

“These websites often look like the real deal, but if they don’t carry the internet pharmacy logo of the General Pharmaceutical Council and have a ‘bricks and mortar’ address, then they are often dealing illegally.

“This week we have recovered a range of different medicines being supplied with no prescription and stored in unacceptable conditions by persons unqualified to dispense medicines. An illegal supplier might be good at setting up a website, but that does not make them a pharmacist.

“The dangers of purchasing medicines from an unregulated source are that you just don’t know what you are taking,” he said. “The dosages could be either too high or too low, contain no pharmaceutical ingredient or a totally different ingredient to that stated.

“Illegal suppliers have no quality control or standards to abide by and people who purchase medicine from these sources will never know where the tablets they are putting in their mouths have actually originated from or what they contain. If customers could see the filthy conditions in which some of these medicines were being transported, stored and handled, they wouldn’t touch them,” he added.

“This international operation is the best way to deal with an international problem and is a great example of the collaboration needed to tackle this type of crime.

“Partnering with law enforcement as well as working with industry, payment providers and other stakeholders has proved to be a successful approach in disrupting criminal activity while raising public awareness to this issue.

“We will continue to use all powers at our disposal to take action against those engaged in this illicit activity and confiscate the proceeds of their crimes.”

Further information about purchasing medicines safely online can be found on the MHRA website: Risks of buying medicines over the internet

 

See also

• Codependent No More: How to Start Caring for Yourself – an Audible MP3 book
• A Woman’s Spirit

FDA Okays Vivitrol for Opiate Addiction

FDA Okays Vivitrol for Opiate Addiction

In a 12-1 vote, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of Vivitrol to treat addiction to opiates like heroin and prescription painkillers, ABC News reported Oct. 13.

Vivitrol, a form of naltrexone manufactured by Alkermes, is already used to treat about 10,000 patients a year for alcoholism. Though available in pill form, it is usually administered as a monthly shot, and can be prescribed by physicians.

Naltrexone works by blocking opioid receptors in the brain, ensuring that patients will not feel any effects if they attempt to use while being treated. Over time, their cravings diminish. By contrast, methadone is used as a replacement drug for opiates — users can still be addicted to it — and buprenorphine blocks some receptors, but not all. 

The FDA said it based its approval of Vivitrol on studies showing that 36 percent of those treated remained in treatment for six months, compared to 23 percent of those on a placebo. Possible side effects include depression, suicide, liver damage and a reaction at the injection site serious enough to require surgery. 

Vivitrol was approved for use to treat alcoholism in 2006, but according to an Oct. 12 CNN blog post, insurance companies generally do not pay for it. Shots cost about $1,000 each, and treatment can take over a year. According to doctors interviewed by CNN, Vivitrol is not meant to be used alone, but as part of a larger treatment plan.  

"Addiction is a serious problem in this country, and can have devastating effects on individuals who are drug-dependent, and on their family members and society," said Dr. Janet Woodcock, who directs the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "This drug approval represents a significant advancement in addiction treatment."

From Join Together

See also

• Addiction & Recovery Books
• Blackout Girl
• An Officer and a Junkie

Higher Alcohol Tax Reduces Deaths

Increasing Alcohol Taxes Saves Lives, Reduces Crime

Doubling taxes on alcohol products could lead to substantial reductions in alcohol-related deaths, STD rates, and crime, Health.com reported Sept. 24.

Health policy researchers at the University of Florida in Gainesville analyzed data from 50 studies examining the relationship between alcohol taxes, mortality, and risky behaviors. (The studies took place between 1955 and 2004, and most were conducted in the U.S.)

Statistical estimates based on the findings showed a 50 percent alcohol tax increase could effectively

• reduce alcohol-related mortality by 35 percent,
• automobile fatalities by 11 percent,
• STD rates by 6 percent,
• violence by 2 percent, and
• crime by 1.4 percent.
• The only measure in which higher taxes did not significantly reduce alcohol-related harms was for suicide.

"What is surprising is the consistency of the effect across a broad range of health outcomes that kind of don’t have anything to do with each other," said Alexander C. Wagenaar, Ph.D., professor of epidemiology and health outcomes at the university and lead author of the research.

One of the included studies took place in Alaska, which instituted tax increases on alcohol in 1983 and 2002. Both rate hikes corresponded with a drop in alcohol-related deaths in the state, including a 29 percent drop after the 1983 increase.

Although the increases would be small in terms of dollars, Wagenaar continued, they might be enough to reduce intake among heavy drinkers on tight budgets, college students, and social drinkers. "Studies show that all these groups respond to price," he said.

The study was published online in the American Journal of Public Health on Sept. 23, 2010.

From Join Together

See also

• Chicken Soup for the Soul
• Days of Healing, Days of Joy A Recovery Book

Guilt Advertising Promotes More Drinking

Guilt-Based Anti-Alcohol Ads Can Backfire, Study Finds

Using shame or guilt to try to prevent overconsumption of alcohol can actually cause people to drink more, researchers say.

Researcher Adam Duhachek of the Indiana Kelley School of Business and colleagues said that ads that link alcohol abuse to negative consequences like blackouts and automobile crashes in order to elicit feelings of shame or guilt can trigger a defensive coping mechanism. This can lead viewers to believe that bad things related to drinking can only happen to others and can actually increase irresponsible drinking, researchers said.

"The public health and marketing communities expend considerable effort and capital on these campaigns but have long suspected they were less effective than hoped," said Duhachek. "But the situation is worse than wasted money or effort. These ads ultimately may do more harm than good because they have the potential to spur more of the behavior they’re trying to prevent."

A better approach might be to educate the public about the negatives associated with drinking but link that message to one of empowerment, said Duhachek. "If you’re going to communicate a frightening scenario, temper it with the idea that it’s avoidable," he said.

The study will be published in the Journal of Marketing Research.

From Join Together

-

HOPE Probation Program is Effective

Hawaii’s HOPE Probation Program Demonstrates Effectiveness of Swift and Certain Consequences

Providing swift and certain consequences results in more positive outcomes among probationers, according to the results of a randomized controlled trial of the Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE) program.

Piloted in 2004 by Judge Steven Alm, the HOPE program is a high-intensity supervision program in which probationers receive swift, predictable, and immediate sanctions for each detected violation.*

The evaluation found that compared to a control group of probationers receiving probation-as-usual, HOPE probationers were less likely to be arrested for a new crime, use drugs, miss appointments with their probation officer, or have their probation revoked (see figure below).

According to Judge Alm, “this is not a miracle—any probation department in the country can do this with the right leadership, strong management, appropriate resources, technical assistance and rigorous performance tracking.”1

The Honest Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE) Initiative Act of 2009 (HR 4055), which would authorize a national grant program to establish probation programs similar to Hawaii’s HOPE program, is currently being considered by a House Judiciary Subcommittee. Dr. Robert DuPont will present findings from the HOPE program at an upcoming one-day symposium at the University of Maryland (see box below).

 

*HOPE probationers are required to call into a hotline every weekday morning to find out if they have been randomly selected to take a drug test that day. If probationers test positive, they are arrested immediately. If they fail to appear for the test or violate other terms of their probation (e.g., missing a scheduled probation appointment), warrants for their arrest are issued immediately. Once apprehended, a probation modification hearing is held two days later. Violators are typically sentenced to a short jail term, with jail time increasing for subsequent violations. Repeat offenders may be mandated into residential treatment.

1Alm, Steven S., Testimony before the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, May 11, 2010. Available online at http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/pdf/Alm100511.pdf. SOURCE: Adapted by CESAR from Hawken, A. and Kleiman, M., Managing Drug Involved Probationers with Swift and Certain Sanctions: Evaluating Hawaii’s HOPE, Appendix 3 – Summary of Results of the Randomized Controlled Trial of HOPE, U.S. Department of Justice, 2009. Available online at http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/229023.pdf. The randomized controlled trial was conducted by Pepperdine University, with support from the Smith Richardson Foundation and the National Institute or Justice.