Alcoholism

Car Breathalyzers Are Useless Without the Benefit of Rehab

Many DUI offenders revert back to drunk driving once their car breathalyzers have been removed, making these gadgets useless from a rehabilitative perspective. But a new pilot project shows that these devices, when used in conjunction with rehab, are effective in preventing future DUIs. A car breathalyzer, more formally known as an alcohol ignition interlock…

Rats Bred Over Several Decades To Get Wasted For Science

It’s tough to say whether studies that show there is an “alcohol gene” hold any weight, but a new study does attempt to drive home that genetics can play a role in somebody’s desire to get totally trashed. It’s all thanks to some drunk rats. In a recent study published in PLOS Genetics, scientists at…

What Was In This Mysterious “Cure” For Alcoholism?

The most famous medical man dedicated to treating alcoholism was Leslie Keeley, who operated the Keeley Institute and sold Keeley’s Gold Cure. When patients got the facility they were given a nice room, encouragement, and four shots of “gold bichloride” a day. There’s no such thing as gold bichloride. It’s natural that the rest of…

What Is a Hangover?

Yippee! Let’s poison ourselves with beverages that will make us violently ill! It was your battle cry last night, and today you’re paying the price. But what is that hangover you’re experiencing, exactly? A hangover is your body’s reaction to drinking too much alcohol… Everyone has a different tolerance (it’s usually lower for women than…

How Do Your Drinking Habits Compare To The Rest Of The Country’s?

If you have two drinks a day, you’re only in the top 20% of of American adults in terms of per-capita alcohol consumption. This chart from Wonkblog’s Christopher Ingraham pretty much speaks for itself, but this figure still made me do a double take: …in order to break into the top 10 percent of American…

Scientists Engineered Mutant Worms That Can’t Get Drunk

A team of researchers in Texas recently did something extraordinary. They made a genetic tweak to worms’ brains that made it impossible for them to get drunk. More specifically, the scientists modified the worms’ genes so that a molecular channel that binds alcohol to their brains would no longer work. And humans have a similar…

Even a single alcohol binge can cause serious health problems. According to a new study by the National Institutes of Health, a bout of heavy drinking causes bacteria to leak from the gut and release toxins into the blood—which leads to an excessive production of immune cells that could potentially damage body tissue.

Nope. Scientists did not just find an ‘alcoholism gene’

A number of media outlets are reporting on the apparent discovery of an alcoholism gene — a “single fault” in your DNA that supposedly contributes to alcohol dependency. But while this new research is interesting, it’s clear that addiction is much more complex than that. Here’s what the new study found: There’s a gene, called…

How much alcohol is too much?

Located somewhere between the craggy cliffs of Raging Alcoholism and the tranquil (if a tad repressed) planes of Stone-Cold Sobriety roll the pleasantly sloping hills of Moderate Booze-Consumption. It’s a nice, pleasantly buzzed place to visit – but getting there can be a little tricky. What does it really mean, after all, to drink in…

The heartbreaking confession of an alcoholic man with eating disorder

“I’m writing this for everyone who struggles with addiction, but I really want men with eating disorders (diagnosed and undiagnosed) to read this,” writes comedian Jamie Kilstein in Jezebel. Actually, everyone should read this heartbreaking tale.

Are you in danger of spontaneously combusting? The risk factors according to a 1799 physician

Modern scientists are still investigating what might be behind reports of alleged spontaneous human combustion, but by the end of the 18th century, reports of humans suddenly going up in flames were pervasive enough that physicians compiled supposed risk factors for the phenomenon. https://gizmodo.com/is-spontaneous-combustion-for-real-5937653 History magazine Lapham’s Quarterly offers this list of “risk factors” collected…

How Alcoholism Is Linked to Extreme Weight-Loss

Recent research out of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center sheds new light on the correlation between gastric bypass surgery and the increased risk of developing an alcohol addiction. Previously, it had been suggested that increased alcohol consumption was compensatory for the inability to consume food as one had previously, at levels seeming of addiction.…

Alcoholism Can Now Be Treated with Prescription Drugs

Sometimes, quitting can be hard work—especially if you have an alcohol dependency. Now, however, it could be a whole lot easier: France has just cleared a new anti-alcoholism drug for use by its nation of claret swillers. Originally designed to treat nervous spasms, Baclofen—which goes by the trade names Kemstro, Lioresal and Gablofen—hasn’t been shown…

Is Everyone You Know an Alcoholic?

Alcoholism is usually viewed as a binary: Either you’re addicted to alcohol or you’re not. Now psychologists are starting to consider the possibility that there are legions of “almost alcoholics” out there who are quietly afflicted but don’t know what to do about it. And from the looks of it, this group could include everyone…

Watch drunken monkeys steal cocktails from Caribbean beach resorts

On the West Indies island of St. Kitts, vervet monkeys prowl the beaches, snagging sugary cocktails from unsuspecting beach-goers. The BBC’s Weird Science captured these booze hound primates in their not-so-native state. And there’s a method to their videographing madness besides filming stumbling furry alcoholics; it turns out, we can learn a lot about human…

This Gene Fuels Your Impulsive, Addicted Behavior… If You’re a Dude

Scientists wanted to know why a particular gene kept coming up in studies related to both addiction and obesity. The connection? Impulsivity. But only for men. Researchers at the University of Nebraska took cheek swabs from 439 white, college-age volunteers (only Caucasians to eliminate race-based genetic differences). They completed questionnaires about their personality, and use…

Brain chemistry may explain why men are more likely to become alcoholics

Men are up to twice as likely to become alcoholics than women, and a new study indicates that this propensity may be tied to dopamine production. Researchers found that men’s brains are hardwired to release more dopamine when consuming booze. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that’s released when the human body partakes in activities like sex…

One Mutation Could Prevent You From Becoming An Alcoholic

Do you feel exhausted after a couple of drinks? Need constant Red Bull infusions to make it out of the bar? You might have a mutation that prevents you from becoming an addict. The way the human body handles down alcohol is predominantly governed by the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), which breaks down the potentially…

Flask Umbrella Keeps You From Being Dry in the Rain

Alcoholic on the go? Nothing’s worse than getting stuck in the rain without a nip or two to help keep you warm. Well, if you had this sneaky Malacca Flask Umbrella from Swaine Adeney Brigg, you’d never go without. Simply unscrew the bottom of the handle to reveal a glass flask that you can fill…

Shot-Glass Printing Bot, Darko-Like Rabbit, Molten Beer Bong Turn Up at Roboexotica “Cocktail Robotics” Convention

Apparently the science of cocktail robotics was woefully neglected until some enterprising alkies created Roboexotica, a convention to celebrate cyber-assisted drunkenness. The action is taking place this weekend in Vienna, and from the looks of the opening night pictures, things are still as academic as they were when I was in college. (Just looking at…