Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders May Increase the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes and Other Metabolic Issues

Adults with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) may have an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, and other metabolic abnormalities such as low HDL cholesterol and elevated levels of triglycerides compared to people without FASD, according to a new study supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National … Read more

Meta-analysis supports AA as treatment for AUD

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is as effective as established behavioral treatments for some people with alcohol use disorder (AUD), according to an extensive review of NIAAA-supported research and other studies.  As reported March 11 in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Review, researchers used a meta-analysis to show that AA and other 12-step facilitation interventions are effective in … Read more

SBIRT Has Broad Impact on Adolescent Health

Over the last two decades, numerous research studies have firmly established the effectiveness of screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) in pediatric practices for alcohol and other substances in reducing underage drinking and its harmful consequences. More recently, investigators have hypothesized that SBIRT might have broader effects on adolescent health. Alcohol and other … Read more

Combined prenatal smoking and drinking greatly increases SIDS risk

Children born to mothers who both drank and smoked beyond the first trimester of pregnancy have a 12-fold increased risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)  compared to those unexposed or only exposed in the first trimester of pregnancy, according to a new study supported by the National Institutes of Health.   SIDS is the … Read more

Study Identifies Genetic Variant that May Contribute to Alcohol and Drug Addiction

People with a genetic variant of a neurotransmitter gene may have an increased risk of addiction to alcohol and other substances later in life if they were exposed to childhood stress, such as divorce or emotionally distant parents, and other adverse experiences, according to recent research. The study led by researchers at the University of … Read more

Alcohol-related deaths increasing in the United States

An analysis of U.S. death certificate data by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, found that nearly 1 million people died from alcohol-related causes between 1999 and 2017. The number of death certificates mentioning alcohol more than doubled from 35,914 in 1999 to … Read more