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Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Alcohol News - 51/2017

NEWS.com.au (Australia) - Draft strategy proposes radical plan to boost booze prices
WINE lovers and young drinkers would be hardest hit by a government proposal to increase booze prices.
Science Daily - What is the best policy for reducing the impact of alcohol on the road accident rate?
Researchers from the University of Seville have analysed alcohol consumption in traffic accident fatalities in the European Union.
The Guardian - The damage alcohol does to young teenagers is not easily spotted
Aged 16, with the creamy, peach-skin face of a child, wearing my mum’s work skirt and a pair of navy court shoes, I sat, smiling serenely, without my parents, in the Oxford branch of an Italian restaurant chain and ordered an Irish coffee.
YLE News (Finland) - Longer opening hours, stronger drink in groceries, higher taxes - new alcohol legislation passes Parliament
The Finnish Parliament on Tuesday gave final approval to a package of alcohol legislation and at the same time raised taxes on alcoholic beverages in an effort to reduce consumption.
The Guardian (UK) - One in six parents allow children alcohol by age of 14, says study
One in six parents allow their children to drink alcohol by the age of 14, with potentially dire future consequences, according to a new study.
The Atlantic - Even Small Amounts of Alcohol Impair Memory
I can’t even remember what happened that night” is a common joke/cry for help among people who recently drank to the point of blacking out. But there’s also evidence that drinking even a little bit can seriously impair learning and memory.
The Independent (UK) - ‘Tis the season for sobering statistics
More than a third of Brits are choosing not to drink alcohol at up to four social occasions this festive season, a new study has found.
New Zealand Herald (New Zealand) - Police urge alcohol restraint as Christmas approaches
Police are appealing to Northlanders to take it easy on the booze after a number of alcohol-related incidents in the lead-up to the festive season.
Education Week - Steer Students Away From Alcohol by Broadening Their Social Circles, Study Says
Cooperative learning in the classroom may have an unexpected benefit for middle school students: a lower chance that they'll use alcohol.
The Copenhagen Post (Denmark) - More Danes choosing alcohol-free beer
Beer-loving Danes are starting to develop a taste for alcohol-free beer. Sales of alcohol free beer have risen significantly over the past year according to the brewery association Bryggeriforeningen.
Pharmacy Today - Talk to patients about how alcohol and medications #DONTMIX
With the holidays in mind, the National Council of Patient Information & Education (NCPIE) and Healthline have partnered to launch #DONTMIX, a social awareness campaign that ties back to NCPIE’s single message to “think before you drink—sometimes alcohol and medicines don’t mix.”
Wall Street Journal (USA) - Drug and Alcohol Deaths at U.S. Workplaces Soar
The number of U.S. deaths at work from unintentional drug and alcohol overdoses jumped more than 30% in 2016, according to new government data, showing that the nation’s struggle with a deadly opioid epidemic is migrating to the workplace.
The Times (Ireland) - Drinks firms ‘must accept public health bill will hit profits’
A campaign group has accused business bodies of delaying the alcohol bill and attacked criticism of the government for progressing the legislation.

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Alcohol News - 50/2017

ERR News (Estonia/EU) - Eurocare applauds Estonian EU presidency's policy regarding alcohol abuse
European alcohol policy alliance Eurocare recognized the Estonian presidency's "courage and persistence" that led to the adoption of the Council Conclusions on cross-border aspects in alcohol policy, making another attempt at tackling the abuse of alcohol.
EurekAlert (USA) - Alcohol taxes are too low, have not kept up with inflation
State alcohol excise taxes are typically only a few cents per drink and have not kept pace with inflation, according to a new study in the January issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.
CBC.ca (Canada) - Wasted lives: The impact of policy on alcohol consumption and addiction
Alcohol sales bring in more money to the provincial government than natural gas royalties, forestry revenue or tobacco taxes, but some experts argue the social and healthcare costs outweigh the profits.
The West Australian (Australia) - Booze ban: Documents reveal police plan for toughest alcohol restrictions in the Pilbara
Hard-drinking Pilbara mining towns could be hit with some of the toughest liquor restrictions in the State if a controversial police plan to reduce alcohol-related violence in the region is given the go-ahead.
Read more
ERR News (Estonia) -
Bill to further restrict alcohol sales eased in Riigikogu
A bill of amendments to the Alcohol Act and Advertising Act set to further restrict Estonia's alcohol policy, which passed first reading in the Riigikogu in March, has since been eased significantly in the Riigikogu, daily Postimees writes.
Radio New Zealand (New Zealand) - New Caledonia campaigns against alcohol abuse
The New Caledonian government has adopted a comprehensive plan to counter excessive drinking, which has been identified as a key problem.
EURACTIV (EU) - Combat digestive diseases with tighter controls on the alcohol and food industry
You are what you eat, the saying goes, but what about what we drink? Dietary regulations across Europe need to be stricter if digestive disease rates are to fall, writes Thierry Ponchon.
Read more
Harvard Health -
Is there a link between alcohol and skin cancer?
Patients are always elated when you can recommend an enjoyable, health-improving, recreational activity. As a runner, my favorite “prescription” while pregnant was exercise!
ERR News (Latvia/Estonia) - Latvian health minister praises Estonia's alcohol policy
In a letter to Minister of Health and Labour Jevgeni Ossinovski, Latvian Minister for Health Anda Čakša commended Estonia's alcohol policy and said that Latvia is likewise planning to raise its alcohol excise duty.
thejournal.ie (Ireland) - Two people died every day in 2015 over drug use with alcohol the number one drug
ALMOST TWO PEOPLE in Ireland died each day in 2015 as a result of overdoses, trauma or medical causes linked to drug use.
GhanaWeb (Ghana) - FDA bans advertisement of alcohol in the media effective 2018
The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) effective 1st January 2018, has banned both advertisement and Live Presenter Mention(LPM)of alcoholic beverages in the media before 8pm.
Huffington Post South Africa (South Africa) - How Alcohol Plays A Role In Gender-based Violence --- And What Must Happen Now
How many times do you hear about alcohol playing a role in a Gender-Based Violence (GBV)? In our view, far too many times not to have a frank discussion about it.
The Baltic Course (Estonia) - Statistics shows significant drop in health damage from alcohol in Estonia
A significant reduction in the health damage caused by alcohol has taken place in Estonia in 2017 compared with 2016, as mortality numbers, the number of crimes committed by people under the influence of alcohol and of road accidents involving a drunk driver have all decreased, provisional figures by the National Institute for Health Development and the police suggest.
Minneapolis Star Tribune (USA) - Baby boomers are becoming 'baby boozers' as reliance on alcohol and drugs rises
Maybe it wasn’t rock bottom, but Clare Mannion can’t imagine how it could have been worse, finding herself, as she did, drinking airplane bottles of vodka in her closet.

Sunday, December 10, 2017

FASD News - 49/2017

Daily Telegraph (Australia) - Judges to consider affect of ‘alcohol during pregnancy’ on young offenders’ behaviour
JUDGES are being taught about disabilities caused by mothers who drink while pregnant as part of a new push to give offenders with such disorders lighter sentences.
HuffPost UK (UK) - RIP Sir Noel The Christmas Dog - An FASD Love Story
Four years ago, our youngest son was struggling. He was in Year 5. At great cost to himself he gave everything he had at school, at home, in clubs. But he walked every day in world that didn’t understand him.
Newcastle Herald (Australia) - Booze the mother of all problems for unborn babies
WOMEN who drink should be using contraception to avoid having brain damaged babies, a Newcastle public health forum heard on Tuesday night.
Charity Today News (UK) - NOFAS-UK CEO speaks of her delight at being an official part of #UKCharityWeek 2017
The National Organisation for Foetal Alcohol Syndrome-UK (NOFAS-UK) has today spoke of its ‘honour’ to be a part an official part of#UKCharityWeek, 4-10 December 2017.
St. Albert Gazette (Canada) - ‘Dry 9’ campaign dedicated to alcohol-free pregnancies
A new campaign is helping women who are pregnant or who are trying to conceive stay away from liquor. Dry 9, created by the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC), provides resources and information on alcohol and pregnancy.
Science Daily - Lithium chloride blunts brain damage linked to fetal alcohol syndrome
A single dose of lithium chloride, a drug used to treat bipolar disease and aggression, blocks the sleep disturbances, memory loss, and learning problems tied to fetal alcohol syndrome, new experiments in mice show.
My Eastern Shore (USA) - Researcher speaks about helping children affected by substance abuse
Local social workers, child care providers and educators attended a conference to learn about supporting caregivers of children affected by substance abuse, Friday, Dec. 1, at Chesapeake College.
Toronto Star (Canada) - After a girl committed 71 violent incidents in 10 months, children’s aid and this caregiver agreed the group home program wasn’t working
Her sometimes epic outbursts — fuelled by symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome — were described in reports sent to the children’s ministry whenever a serious incident occurs in Ontario involving a child in care.
Todays Parent - I said I wouldn’t adopt a child with FASD—and now I have four
It was a scorching day so I’d taken my children to a splash pad. I was watching my daughters dancing in the water, when out of the corner of my eye I caught sight of my nine-year-old son, Allan, dart into the parking lot. He ran right in front of a moving car, which had to swerve not to hit him. I bolted over and grabbed him by the arm.
Nutrition Research Institute - Why Iron Man’s mother didn’t drink alcohol during pregnancy
In the Marvel movie Iron Man, Tony Stark (Iron Man) is a genius inventor who creates a suit of armor, giving himself enhanced strength and the ability to fly.

UPCOMING
EUFASD - European Conference on FASD 2018
The call for abstracts is now open. The deadline is Friday, March 16, 2018, at midnight, Berlin time.
Children in Scotland - Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD): Supporting children and young people (26/02/2018)
This workshop gives insight to the wide range of conditions encompassed by FASD and explores practical ways in which to support children and young people affected by them.

VIDEOS and MATERIALS
AGLC - Dry9 | Just a Sip
Are you expecting or planning to be? No amount of alcohol is proven safe to drink while pregnant so do a #Dry9 and encourage your friends and family to support you and do a Dry9 too.
AGLC - Dry9 | Previous Generation
AGLC - Dry9 | Co-Parent to Be
AGLC - Dry9 | Persistent Friend
Courthouse Libraries BC - Working with Clients with FASD - Webinar Recording
This webinar is aimed at legal advocates and poverty law lawyers. Effective communication with a client can be difficult to achieve under ideal circumstances, let alone if your client has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

RESEARCH
University of Canterbury - The challenge of supporting children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in Aotearoa New Zealand: A narrative literature review”
The drinking culture of ANZ has developed since colonisation. Alcohol consumption has cost not only the individual and their families, but communities and ANZ society as a whole although the MoH (2016) has released the FASD Action Plan 2016-2019 with a budget attached to implement the plan, gaps have been identified.
Toxics - Embryonic Ethanol Exposure Affects Early- and Late-Added Cardiac Precursors and Produces Long-Lasting Heart Chamber Defects in Zebrafish
Drinking mothers expose their fetuses to ethanol, which produces birth defects: craniofacial defects, cognitive impairment, sensorimotor disabilities and organ deformities, collectively termed as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).
Ohio State University - Neuroimmune mechanisms of learning and memory deficits in a rat model of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) afflict up to 5% of American school-age children, many of whom experience pervasive impairments in behavior and cognition. While the impact of these impairments on quality of life may be severe, the underlying neurobiological mechanisms are not well understood.
Pediatrics - Computer-Aided Recognition of Facial Attributes for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
We found there was an increased diagnostic accuracy for ARND via our computer-aided method. As this category has been historically difficult to diagnose, we believe our experiment demonstrates that facial dysmorphology novel analysis technology can potentially improve ARND diagnosis by introducing a standardized metric for recognizing FASD-associated facial anomalies.
Journal of Mental Health and Addiction - Educational Services for Youth with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: Caregivers’ Perspectives
The purpose of this study was to identify services that caregivers of youth with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder believe would help youth with FASD succeed in school.
University of Alberta - Examining Practicing Teachers’ Cognitions and Emotions Towards Students with FASD Using Attribution Theory
The importance of teachers’ emotions has been well-established in educational research, particularly when confronted with challenging student behaviour.
University of Alberta - Evaluating an Attributional Retraining Intervention to Increase Pre-service Teachers’ Self-Efficacy in Working with Students with FASD: A Mixed Methods Study
Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) can experience complex social, emotional, behavioural, and academic needs at school that necessitate the support of prepared and efficacious teachers.
Neuropharmacology - Low doses of prenatal ethanol exposure and maternal separation alter HPA axis function and ethanol consumption in adult male rats
Adverse maternal behaviors during pregnancy and unfavorable postnatal experiences during development are associated with an increased risk of developing psychiatric disorders, as well as, a vulnerability to alcohol addiction in adulthood.
Alcoholism - Prenatal alcohol exposure increases histamine H3 receptor-mediated inhibition of glutamatergic neurotransmission in rat dentate gyrus
We have reported that prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE)-induced deficits in dentate gyrus (DG) long-term potentiation (LTP) and memory are ameliorated by the histamine H3 receptor inverse agonist ABT-239.
Supervision of Family Therapy and Systemic Practice - An Approach to Supervision Practice with Therapists Who Work with Pregnant Substance-Abusing Women in Voluntary and Compulsory Treatment Settings
This chapter is written for supervisors and psychotherapists who work with pregnant substance abusing women in the Specialist Health Service in Norway.
Neurology - Evaluation of the child with microcephaly and the Fetal Alcoholic Syndrome (FAS)
The AAN and the Practice Committee of the Child Neurology Society made three statements regarding the evaluation of the child with microcephaly including: neuroimaging is useful in identifying structural causes; targeted genetic testing when clinical or imaging abnormalities suggest a specific diagnosis; and screening for coexistent conditions such as cerebral palsy or epilepsy.
UCT - NEW EVIDENCE FOR THE VALIDITY OF THREE INFANT COGNITIVE MARKERS OF FETAL ALCOHOL SPECTRUM DISORDERS
Identifying cognitive deficits early in development in high-risk populations, such as infants with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE), is crucial to developing effective early interventions.
Brain Sciences - Long Term Depression in Rat Hippocampus and the Effect of Ethanol during Fetal Life
Alcohol (ethanol) disturbs cognitive functions including learning and memory in humans, non-human primates, and laboratory animals such as rodents.

IN OTHER LANGUAGES
halloherne (Germany) - Alkoholschädigung bei Pflegekindern
Westfalen. Die Landschaftsverbände Westfalen-Lippe (LWL) und Rheinland (LVR) haben eine Arbeitshilfe für Fachleute und Pflegeeltern herausgegeben, die Kinder mit vorgeburtlichen Schäden durch Alkohol betreuen.
Der Neue Wiesentbote (Germany) - Interaktive, erlebnisorientierte Ausstellung „ZERO“ zum Thema „Alkohol und Schwangerschaft“ in Forchheim
Alkohol in der Schwangerschaft schadet dem ungeborenen Kind. Das ist allgemein bekannt. Dennoch werden in Deutschland jedes Jahr über 10.000 Kinder mit FASD, der Fetalen Alkohol Spektrums-Störung (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder), geboren.
Gość Opolski (Poland) - Gdy dziecko rodzi się z FAS
To problem, który nie dotyczy tylko kobiet alkoholiczek, ale dotyczy całych społeczeństw, w których używa się alkoholu - tłumaczy psycholog Teresa Jadczak-Szumiło.
ondanews (Italy) - Farmacia 3.0 – alcol in gravidanza, gravi rischi per feto e discendenza
Stando ai dati forniti dall’ISS (Istituto Superiore di Sanità) più del 50% delle donne in gravidanza mantiene il medesimo consumo di bevande alcoliche che teneva prima di rimanere incinta, superando tranquillamente due bicchieri di vino o birra al giorno.

Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Alcohol News - 49/2017

The Independent (UK) – For those coping with alcohol addiction, Christmas is one of the toughest times of the year
During the run-up to Christmas, alcohol consumption spirals and booze-soaked TV scheduling is partly to blame.
thenews.pl (Poland) - Poles among EU's biggest spenders on alcohol: Eurostat
Poles are among the European Union’s biggest spenders when it comes to alcoholic beverages, a report has found.
Eurostat (EU) - Household spending on alcohol close to €130 billion
In 2016, households in the European Union (EU) spent 1.6% of their total consumption expenditure on alcoholic beverages. This represents a total expenditure of almost €130 billion, equivalent to 0.9% of EU GDP or over €250 per EU inhabitant. It should be noted that this does not include alcoholic beverages paid for in restaurants and hotels.
Globalnews.ca (Canada) - ‘Dry 9’ campaign urges Albertans to support alcohol-free pregnancies
With the holiday season comes festivities and parties, which can make avoiding alcohol a challenge for women who are pregnant or trying to conceive.
NDTV - Consuming Over 14 Units Of Alcohol Can Cause Skin Problems: Study
The health effects of drinking alcohol regularly are innumerable. Several studies have shown how heavy drinking can lead to a number of problems including liver disease, blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and digestive problems.
CBC.ca (Canada) - Wasted lives: The cost of alcohol addiction
The ongoing opioid crisis and rash of overdoses from illicit drugs has been at the forefront of many British Columbian's minds, but the biggest, least discussed addiction on the rise in the province is a legal substance: alcohol.
Stuff.co.nz (New Zealand) - Higher alcohol levels in craft beer catching drivers out
Planning on having a couple of beers this party season? Then keep an eye on how strong your craft beer is if you plan to drive.
The Copenhagen Post (Denmark) - Helping kids in homes where alcohol abuse is the norm
Growing up in a family dogged by alcohol problems can have serious consequences for the rest of your life – as well as blighting your childhood. However, many people are hesitant to intervene if they are worried about a child living in such a family.
The Independent – Liver disease to become biggest killer by 2020 with alcohol and obesity to blame
Liver disease is set to overtake heart disease as the top cause of premature deaths by 2020, a new study reveals.
TheFix.com (Australia) - Australian Sports Leagues Speak Out Against Alcohol Advertising Ban
A proposal that aims to reduce alcohol consumption in South Wales is being met with pushback by the leagues who stand to lose financially if it becomes law.
Healthline - We’ve Crunched the Numbers… Here’s How Alcohol Can Increase Your Cancer Risk
Drinking alcohol increases your risk of many types of cancer, whether you drink a lot or relatively little.
Medical Xpress - Large study links alcohol misuse to subsequent injury risk in young people
The immediate effects of drinking too much alcohol are obvious, unpleasant and can even be life threatening, but a new study has shown that young people who drink excessively, to the degree that they are admitted into hospital because of it, are also at a much higher risk of sustaining injuries in the following 6 months.
Daily Telegraph (Australia) - Judges to consider affect of ‘alcohol during pregnancy’ on young offenders’ behaviour
JUDGES are being taught about disabilities caused by mothers who drink while pregnant as part of a new push to give offenders with such disorders lighter sentences.
Irish Examiner (Ireland) - RSA: Almost 40% of road accidents down to alcohol in run-up to Christmas
Alcohol accounts for almost 40% of fatal road crashes in the run-up to Christmas, according to the Road Safety Authority (RSA).