By Richland DUI Task Force
April is Alcohol Awareness Month, a nationwide campaign intended to raise awareness of the health and social problems that excessive alcohol consumption can cause for family, friends and our community. » More

By Justin T. Palm
The thread of alcoholism is woven through mankind’s history. It has left a trail of pain, misery, shattered marriages, sexual assaults, death, loneliness, hopelessness and depression. While alcohol can be enjoyed in a responsible way, its misuse has darkened an already sinister side of human nature.

Each year, governments spend billions of dollars on television commercials, billboard ads, and school programs to combat the scourge. But in homes, cities and nations around the world, alcoholism is growing worse. » More

By Kay James Dells Events
A recent report from Health First Wisconsin estimates that excessive alcohol uses costs the state of Wisconsin $6.8 billion a year and both Wisconsin Dells and Lake Delton Police Chiefs say excessive alcohol use adds to the costs of law enforcement here.

The Burden of Excessive Alcohol Use in Wisconsin report finds that the high costs of excessive alcohol use in Wisconsin are largely shouldered by taxpayers, who pick up more than 40 percent of the costs, or approximately $2.9 billion a year. » More

Reporting from New York by Kerry Grens at Reuters Health; editing by Elaine Lies
On any given day in the United States, 18 percent of men and 11 percent of women drink more alcohol than federal guidelines recommend, according to a study that also found that 8 percent of men and 3 percent of women are full-fledged "heavy drinkers."

That means the great majority of Americans stay within the advised limit of two drinks a day for men and one for women, according to the study that appeared in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

"And in fact, most adults don't drink at all on any given day," said lead author Patricia Guenther, a nutritionist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion.  » More

If historic trends hold, between 5 and 15 San Bernardino youth will land in the emergency room this year as a result of alcohol poisoning. Others will be injured in car crashes, engage in risky sexual behavior and become victims of violent or sexual crimes.

These statistics show the serious health effects alcohol is having on local youth.

“Today’s youth just don’t understand how drinking alcohol can negatively affect their health and even possibly their future development,” said Jan Serrano, trauma coordinator for Arrowhead Regional Medical Center. “Sadly, we see the consequences of their poor choices far too often.”  » More

Bonnie J. Nagel, Ph.D., nagelb@ohsu.edu; Megan Herting, B.S., hertingm@ohsu.edu
Researchers know that adolescents with a family history of alcoholism (FHP) are at risk for developing alcohol use disorders. Some studies have shown that, compared to their peers, FHP adolescents have deficits in behavioral inhibition. A study of the neural substrates of risk-taking in both FHP adolescents and their peers with a negative family history of alcoholism (FHN) has shown that FHP youth demonstrated atypical brain activity while completing the same task as the FHN youth.

Results will be published in the April 2012 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.  » More