Alcohol Industry

To examine variation in positive and negative
subjective effects to alcohol, tobacco and marijuana and covariation between these three drugs and each effect. Design Retrospective self-reports of subjective effects were collected to estimate the genetic and environmental influences and the extent of their specificity across three drugs. Participants Data were drawn from 1299 adolescent and young adult same- and opposite sex twin- and sibling-pairs participating in the Colorado Center for Antisocial Drug Dependence (CADD). Setting A large, collaborative, longitudinal study of substance use and antisocial behavior in community and clinical adolescents. Measurement Subjective effects were assessed using a 13-item questionnaire that included positive and negative responses to alcohol, tobacco and marijuana. Findings Heritable influences contributed moderately (additive genetic effects 16–56%) to positive and negative subjective effects to all three drugs and did not differ for males and females. Genetic and environmental contributions to positive and negative subjective effects are largely non-overlapping for tobacco and marijuana. Multivariate genetic modeling indicated that subjective effects to alcohol, tobacco and marijuana share a common, heritable etiology and that drug-specific genetic influences were an important contributor to individual differences in drug response. Conclusions Results from our genetic analyses suggest that subjective effects to these commonly used and misused drugs are heritable and that the genetic and environmental influences on effects to one drug also influence subjective effects to other drugs.

Objectives. Latinos with disabilities disproportionately report substance use, including binge drinking and drug use. Ecodevelopmental factors, including socioeconomic patterning of poverty, social exclusion, and post-colonial racism, have been shown to impact alcohol and drug use. However, this line of research remains underdeveloped among Latinos with disabilities. The purpose of this study was to obtain rich descriptions of the role of ecodevelopmental factors, including family and community, on alcohol and drug use among Latinos with physical disabilities. Methods. We utilized a community-based participatory research design, in conjunction with an innovative methodology referred to as photovoice. Three rounds of photography and focus group interviews were conducted with a total of 17 focus groups. Reflections in each focus group interview were aloud and digitally audiotaped. A total of 28 participants 19-35 years of age (mean age = 27.65, SD = 5.48) participated in each round of photography and focus group interviews. Data analyses followed the tenets of descriptive phenomenology. Results. Findings highlight ecodevelopmental family and community risk and protective factors. At the family level, participants reflected on the ways in which family functioning, including family support, communication, and cohesion, can serve as risk and promotive factors for alcohol and drug use. Additionally, participants described in detail how experiences of poverty, stigma and discrimination, violence, accessibility to alcohol and drugs, accessibility for persons with disabilities, transportation, community support and cohesion, and access to health and mental health services constitute risk and promotive factors at the community level. Conclusion. Findings are suggestive of how ecodevelopmental family and community factors might increase the risk of alcohol and drug use among Latinos with physical disabilities. From this qualitative research, we derive a series of testable hypotheses. For example, future studies should examine the impact of family functioning on alcohol and drug use among Latinos with physical disabilities over time. Study findings may have great utility to inform the development of preventive interventions for this at-risk group.

Aims Theory‐driven, exploratory study to: (i) identify a reward drinking phenotype in young adults; (ii) evaluate this phenotype as a predictor of naltrexone response; and (iii) examine mechanisms of naltrexone in reward drinkers. Design Secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial. Setting USA. Participants A total of 128 young adult (ages 18–25) heavy drinkers. Interventions Naltrexone versus placebo. Measurements Daily surveys assessed affect, urge, drinking, and context. The Drinking Motives Questionnaire was used to identify phenotypes based on reward (enhancement motives) and relief (coping motives) drinking. Findings We identified three profiles: “Low reward/Low relief” (14.1%; low enhancement/low coping motives); “Reward drinkers” (62.2%; high enhancement/low coping motives); and “High reward/High relief” (22.7%; high enhancement/high coping motives). Among reward drinkers (versus low profile), naltrexone significantly reduced percent days drinking to intoxication (blood alcohol concentration [BAC] ≥0.08) (PDI) (d = 0.56; 95% CI [0.17, 0.96]) and percent high intensity drinking days (PHID) (8/10 drinks for women/men) (d = 0.32; 95% CI [0.01, 0.68]). Among the high reward/high relief profile drinkers (versus low profile), naltrexone reduced PHID (d = 0.69; 95% CI [0.02, 1.50]). Using profile‐informed cutoffs and observed scores (for clinical applicability): (i) among cutoff‐derived reward drinkers, we found a medium‐to‐large (d = 0.66; 95% CI [0.24, 1.16]) and small effect (d = 0.28; 95% CI [0.04, 0.72]) of naltrexone in reducing PDI and PHID, respectively; and (ii) among the cutoff‐derived high reward/high relief subgroup, we found a medium‐to‐large effect (d = 0.63; 95% CI [0.05, 1.1]) of naltrexone in reducing PHID. Among reward drinkers (not other profiles), naltrexone reduced drinking on days a drinking event occurred by weakening the within‐day association between positive affect and urges (P < 0.05). Conclusions Naltrexone has pronounced effects in reducing risky drinking among young adult reward drinkers (high reward/low relief) by reducing urges on days when individuals have higher positive affect and are exposed to a drinking event. Naltrexone also appears to reduce risky drinking among young adult high reward/high relief drinkers, but not via the same mechanism.

Americans have been drinking more alcohol in recent decades, and the number who died from alcohol-related causes doubled between 1999 and 2017 to more than 72,000. Currently, 14.5 million Americans have an alcohol use disorder. Scientists correlate alcohol abuse with several acute and chronic maladies, domestic violence, vehicle accidents, crime and a rising number of “deaths of despair” in America. Experts fear more people may abuse alcohol during the coronavirus pandemic. Researchers disagree, however, on whether drinking low or moderate amounts of alcohol damages one's health. Meanwhile, many researchers and health officials say regulations should limit adolescents’ exposure to alcohol advertising, especially on social media, and alcohol taxes should be raised to discourage drinking. Others, including libertarians and industry representatives, say stricter ad regulations or higher taxes would not reduce drinking among those who drink heavily, and that doctors should do more to diagnose alcohol abuse earlier.

In the United States and many other countries, religiously active people are less likely to drink alcohol than those who are not as religious. That may not be a surprise: Holy texts from the Christian New Testament to the Quran and the Hindu Dharmashastras warn against the dangers of excessive drinking and other potentially harmful “vices.” Many religious leaders, including the late Rev. Billy Graham, have urged followers to abstain from alcohol.

The mission of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is to end drunk driving, help fight drugged driving, support the victims of these violent crimes, and prevent underage drinking.

Alcohol and the public health from the CDC, one of the major operating components of the Department of Health and Human Services.

While most people know that drinking too much alcohol can lead to injuries and deaths in car crashes, many people do not know that drinking too much alcohol also can increase the chances of cancer, suicide, unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, and other negative health outcomes. CDC provides for the common defense of the country and, as such, has a significant role in fighting excessive alcohol use through the use of our science, tracking, and service to the countless Americans and their families affected by drinking too much.