Sponsoring or Coaching in Recovery from Alcoholism
Alcohol is a major cause of unnecessary death among Russian men. That fact is unlikely to surprise even the most casual observer of Russia. But after crunching several years’ worth of data, a leading researcher expressed a sense of surprise over the extent of reckless drinking in Russia and its impact on heart disease.
In very detailed and clinical language, Dr. Martin McKee explained during a recent presentation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, how alcoholic behavior contributes to an extraordinarily high mortality rate among Russian men. McKee, a public health professor at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, manages the largest team of researchers working on health issues in former Soviet bloc countries. Some contributed to these findings.
“We have had these remarkable fluctuations in life expectancy which really defy our understanding of the nature of disease in a population–generally outside wartime you do not get changes of the scale that we have seen,” McKee said during the presentation.
“To try to understand this phenomenon, we clearly need to understand what’s going on at all … levels,” McKee continued. “So, to put it another way, it’s not just enough to ask–if we are looking at alcohol–why do people die? We need to ask why do they drink? What do they drink? Why, when they drink to the extent that they do, do they fall down and why does no one pick them up?”
A major problem is that some Russians consume so much alcohol that they suffer from alcohol poisoning, McKee’s team found. The most dangerous form of drinking involves alcohol-based substances not meant for human consumption, including ethanol-based liquids and anti-freeze. Some Russians drink diluted forms of these toxic substances because they have twice the concentration of alcohol than spirits, and are taxed at only one-third the rate of hard liquor.
Another problem is the way Russians drink. There is a specific word in Russian – zapoi – to describe a phenomenon in which an individual goes on an alcoholic-bender that can last days, causing the drinker’s withdrawal from normal social life. This type of binge drinking is thought to lead to high rates of sudden heart failure from acute stress on cardiovascular muscles.
Moderate consumption of alcohol can have a protective effect against coronary artery disease. But such protective effects are negated when heavy, irregular drinking occurs. Binge drinkers are vulnerable to stroke from hypertension and sudden death from cardiac arrhythmia.
The large number of premature Russian alcohol-related deaths is due to chronic heavy drinking, binge drinking, and the drinking of potentially toxic substances containing high levels of alcohol. “The spectrum of cardiovascular disease is appreciably different in the former Soviet Union than it is in Western Europe,” McKee said.
Based on the research his team conducted in one Russian region from 2003-2005, McKee concluded that hazardous drinking — defined as heavy binge drinking, or the consumption of potentially toxic alcohol — accounted for 43 percent of deaths among working age (25-54) men in a typical Russian city. Applied to Russia as a whole, the data indicates that such phenomena cause an estimated 170,000 excess male deaths per year. A subsequent study in 2009 in Barnaul, a city in Siberia, indicated that more than half of all deaths of working-age males could be attributable to some form of alcoholism.
McKee’s findings have interesting policy implications. The scope of primary prevention needs to extend in Russia beyond the conventional “Western” model with its focus on smoking, diet and exercise, McKee asserted during his December 8 presentation in Washington. In addition to honing policies that provide for improved medical and psychological treatment, McKee advocated that Russian authorities consider legislative changes that discourage binge drinking. Authorities also need to redouble efforts to implement policies in Russia’s regions, he said.
McKee’s team confirmed that other factors contributed to high Russian death rates, including widespread cigarette smoking, poor diet, and the mistreatment of hypertension. McKee also noted that Russian life expectancy has been improving in recent years, due in part to government measures that have made alcohol-based products, not just spirits, more difficult to acquire. But as in the past, he emphasized, current conditions were prone to sudden shifts, meaning existing trends could quickly change.
Originally published by www.EurasiaNet.org
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For years I used exercise as a denial mechanism. There is no way I could have a drinking “problem” if I got up in the morning and swim-bike-run like this. The worse my drinking, the more I swam, biked and ran. Harder. Faster. Harder. Faster.
Exercise also provided an outlet for my mania. On those days when my mania flared, I felt like a racehorse in the gate – eyes wide, hooves pounding at the dirt. Open that gate baby and I will kick your ass. I once ran the last six miles of a marathon without my shoes because my shoes were killing me and I was not about to stop.
My alcoholism and bipolar just love each other. They are evil little twins. When I put one to bed the other one sneaks in and wakes up the other. I have been sober almost 13 years and the mania is still banging on the door. My medications have been an incredible help in taming the beast and lifting the depression.
Full story at; Alcoholism and Bipolar: My Evil Little Twins | Depression on My Mind.
New research shows that attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings may increase spirituality and help decrease frequency and intensity of alcohol use
More at; The effects of spirituality in Alcoholics Anonymous on alcohol dependence.
A new collection of Speaker Tapes has been found in America.
The collection of MP3 tracks includes;
This library of tapes is estimated at 50,000 on wire recordings, reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes and dates back to the 1940′s. Collected by Bill and Arbutus O’Neal of Texas.
This collection is progressively being converted to MP3 however there are currently several hundred available for free down load.
These AA speaker tapes are mostly American but there are talks from Australia, Britain, Germany and Tokyo.
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Researchers say they’ve identified a gene that makes some people more sensitive to the effects of alcohol, the BBC News reported Oct. 19.
University of North Carolina investigators conducted a genome analysis of 200 sibling pairs who had one parent with alcohol dependence but no alcohol problems themselves. Participants were then given the equivalent of three alcoholic drinks and asked to describe the effects. Their descriptions were compared with their genetic test results.
The researchers found that participants with the gene CYP2E1 on chromosome 10 were less able to “hold their liquor” than participants without it. The CYP2E1 gene is known to affect the way alcohol is metabolized in the brain.
“Alcoholism is a very complex disease, and there are lots of complicated reasons why people drink. This may be just one of the reasons,” said Kirk Wilhelmsen, MD, PhD, lead author of the study.
Still, the researchers see the potential for developing a synthetic version of the gene to increase alcohol sensitivity — and thus decrease consumption — in the future.
“Obviously we are a long way off having a treatment,” concluded Wilhelmsen. “But the gene we have found tells us a lot.”
The study was published online Oct. 19 in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
From; Join Together.
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Test your knowledge of alcohol-related risks and find out the facts about drinking. Can you tell fact from fiction?
There are so many stories around alcohol and drinking that it’s hard to know what to believe.
Knowing the facts about how drinking affects your body is the best way to make sure you drink safely.
Below are some common myths around drinking. Read on to find out the real facts about alcohol.
Myth: Drinking makes sex better
Truth: Alcohol can help you avoid feeling awkward or can help you feel more confident. But it can keep men from getting or keeping an erection, and it can reduce sex drive. More importantly, you might put yourself in a risky situation or you might not use a condom, putting you at greater risk of a sexually transmitted disease or an unwanted pregnancy.
Myth: Beer gets you less drunk.
Truth:
all have around 2.8 units of alcohol .This is what makes you drunk chemically, and the faster you drink the full 2.8 units, the higher your peak blood level.
Myth: Switching between beer, wine, and spirits will make you more drunk.
Truth: Your blood alcohol content is what determines how drunk you are. Mixing drinks may make you sicker by upsetting your stomach, but not more intoxicated.
Myth: A big meal before you drink will keep you sober.
Truth: Drinking on a full stomach will delay alcohol getting into your system, not prevent it. However, it is best to eat a proper meal before a night out, especially foods rich in carbohydrates and proteins.
Myth: Your body develops a tolerance to alcohol, so you can safely drink more
Truth: The more you drink the more damage your body will sustain and the greater the risks become. Tolerance to alcohol can actually be seen as a warning sign that your body has started to be affected by too much drinking.
Alcohol’s hidden harms usually only emerge after a couple of years. And by then, serious health problems can have developed.
Keeping to NHS recommended limits will reduce the risk of alcohol harming your health:
Source: NHS Choices
In Addiction Progression, Men and Women Are Very Different
Addiction is addiction and recovery is recovery. That said, addiction takes twists in people’s lives and manifests itself differently based on many factors. Some of those factors are gender, age, drug used, other mental health issues, environment, socio-economic status, age of first use—and the list goes on.
Let’s start with gender. With addiction, women and men are created equal but different. While equal and different, men and women start using for different reasons, become addicted differently, progress differently, recover differently and relapse for some different reasons.
More at; In Addiction Progression, Men and Women Are Very Different « The Hazelden Blog.
Mommy’s Gone to Treatment
Addiction is a devastating and all-embracing disease. Family members are often as profoundly affected by the illness as the person who suffers from it. Imagine what a child must think watching a parent descend deep into addiction, changing from a loving and nurturing mother into a hostile, screaming stranger.
But there is hope for addicts and their families. This book is about Janey, a young girl whose mother has entered a center for addiction treatment.
Written in easy-to-understand language with brightly colored illustrations, Mommy’s Gone to Treatment addresses issues children often face when an addicted parent seeks help.
Included is a parent’s guide with important talking points on easing a child’s apprehension when someone they love confronts their illness.
Mommy’s Gone to Treatment
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Mommy’s Gone to Treatment |
Alcoholic Mouthwash Could get you Drunk
People are drinking alcohol-based mouthwash because it’s now cheaper than regular alcoholic drinks in some parts of Australia.
Health workers have warned that they risk serious consequences, even death.
Street cleaners lately have been stumbling on scores of empty bottles of a popular mouthwash, which is nearly 30 per cent pure alcohol.
And in the space of a few weeks, supermarkets and pharmacists have seen mouth wash sales suddenly go through the roof.
“This particular mouthwash has eucalyptus oil in it, which is an essential oil, and it doesn’t take much eucalyptus oil to cause damage, it can cause fits, it can even cause death.” A health worker said in response to the question, “How dangerous is it to drink?”
Public health advocate, Doctor John Boffa, says it’s hardly surprising that drinkers are looking for alcoholic substitutes. “A 500ml bottle, which is what’s being sold in the supermarkets, you’re talking about 15 standard drinks. So it’s a very large volume of alcohol. It’s enough to get to an intoxication level of 0.05 three times over.”
Government health authorities are looking into the growing problem.
Recovering alcoholics should take this a warning that mouth wash may get them drunk.
Adapted from a transcript of radio show ‘AM’ of the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC).
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