An extract of the Chinese herb kudzu dramatically reduces drinking and may be useful in the treatment of alcoholism and curbing binge drinking, according to a new study by McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School researchers...

NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease) is the most common type of liver disease in the developed world, affecting up to one-third of the US population. NAFLD is often associated with obesity and other parameters of the so-called "metabolic syndrome," which is a major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease...

A drug made from the saliva of the Gila monster lizard is effective in reducing the craving for food. Researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, have tested the drug on rats, who after treatment ceased their cravings for both food and chocolate...

Prenatal exposure to alcohol often results in disruption to the brain's cognitive and behavioral domains, which include executive function (EF) and adaptive functioning...

Although various kinds of substance use are associated with reduced educational attainment, these associations have been mixed and may also be partially due to risk factors such as socioeconomic disadvantages...

Resiliency is a measure of a person's ability to flexibly adapt their behaviors to fit the surroundings in which they find themselves. Low resiliency during childhood has been linked to later alcohol/drug problems during the teenage years...

Prior research has shown that neighborhoods with higher densities of alcohol outlets are more likely to have higher rates of violent crimes. This study examined the effects of different types of alcohol outlets - on-premises such as bars and restaurants, and off-premises such as liquor and convenience stories - on four different categories of crime in urban neighborhoods...

Researchers at Rutgers University have uncovered a new way to stimulate activity of immune cell opiate receptors, leading to efficient tumor cell clearance...

According to a study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 21.8% of pregnant white women between the ages of 15 to 44 years smoked cigarettes within the past 30 days, which is considerably higher compared with the smoking levels amongst pregnant Black women (14.2%) and pregnant Hispanic women (6.5%) within the same age range...

Chronic exposure to cocaine reduces the expression of a protein known to regulate brain plasticity, according to new, in vivo research on the molecular basis of cocaine addiction. That reduction drives structural changes in the brain, which produce greater sensitivity to the rewarding effects of cocaine...