Category: Addictions

Study suggests neuron-pruning drug may nudge mice away from habit-driven behaviors when combined with retraining

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From the Emory Health Sciences press release: A drug that stimulates neuron pruning can nudge mice away from habit-driven behaviors when combined with retraining, neuroscientists have found. The results were… Read more »

Rodent model of addiction challenges traditional view of how addiction is sustained

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From the Society for Neuroscience press release: Drug addiction may not require a habitual relationship with a substance, suggests findings from a new model of cocaine administration in rats that… Read more »

Study examines relationship between traumatic brain injury and alcohol use

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From the Elsevier press release: Head injury, which often damages brain regions overlapping with those involved in addictive behaviors, does not worsen drinking behavior in people with heavy alcohol use,… Read more »

Higher estrogen levels linked to increased alcohol sensitivity in brain’s ‘reward center’

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From the University of Illinois at Chicago press release: The reward center of the brain is much more attuned to the pleasurable effects of alcohol when estrogen levels are elevated,… Read more »

Study suggests frequent alcohol drinking kills new brain cells in adults, females are more vulnerable

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From the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston  press release: Researchers from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston recently discovered that alcohol killed the stem cells residing… Read more »

Study looks at how gut and gender may affect ease of quitting smoking

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From the American Chemical Society: Many people who smoke or chew tobacco can’t seem to escape nicotine’s addictive properties. Studies show that women in particular seem to have a harder… Read more »

Study suggests effectiveness of online social networks designed to help smokers quit

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From the University of Iowa press release: Online social networks designed to help smokers kick the tobacco habit are effective, especially if users are active participants, according to a new… Read more »

Study links dependence on indoor tanning devices with beliefs about physical appearance and depressive symptoms

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From the American Association for Cancer Research press release: More than 20 percent of non-Hispanic white women ages 18 to 30 who reported using an indoor tanning device one or more… Read more »