Alcohol & Alcoholism

Young adults who sent and received weekly text messages that tracked their alcohol consumption drank less after 12 weeks, according to a new study.

Government experts are urging people to learn the facts about drinking and driving, to prevent the surge of alcohol-related car accidents that occur every holiday season.

Marijuana use is gaining in popularity among teens, according to Monitoring the Future, an annual survey of eighth, 10th, and 12th-graders, The New York Times reports. The survey found one of every 15 high school seniors smokes marijuana on an almost daily basis.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced a nationwide crackdown on drunk driving this holiday season.

A family-centered prevention program can help deter substance use, conduct problems and depressive symptoms among rural African-American teens, a new study finds.

France, with a culture that embraces wine, is facing serious concerns about teenage binge drinking, NPR reports.

Texans arrested for drunk driving this holiday season who refuse to take a breathalyzer test may have to submit to a blood test.

An estimated 31 percent of driving deaths were linked to alcohol in 2010, compared with nine percent of deaths caused by distracted driving, according to a new government report.

A prison warden in the Central Michigan Correctional Facility says prisoners are making homemade alcohol, mostly from oranges.

Young women who start binge drinking in college may be at relatively high risk of sexual assault, a new study suggests.

Teenagers whose parents drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs are far more likely to drive under the influence themselves compared with teens whose parents don’t drive after using drugs or alcohol, according to a new government study.

A new alcohol screening tool that focuses on two key questions is designed to help pediatricians spot children and adolescents at risk for alcohol-related problems. The doctor asks about the patient’s own drinking, as well as his or her friends’ alcohol use.

Alcoholic popsicles will be sold in Arizona starting this week, myfoxphoenix.com reports. The new product, Snobar, has an alcohol content of up to 14 percent.

Some experts in the field of substance abuse say there are significant problems with a recent study that concluded medical marijuana laws are associated with a reduction in traffic deaths. The critics point out the study was published as a working paper, and was not a peer-reviewed study in a scientific journal.

The number of emergency room visits related to energy drinks jumped from 2005 to 2009, according to a new government report.

A new study finds medical marijuana laws are associated with a reduction in traffic deaths. The most likely reason for the decrease is that some people in states with the laws use marijuana instead of alcohol, the researchers say.

Rappers are increasingly promoting alcoholic drinks in which they have financial stakes, according to the Los Angeles Times.

While alcohol consumption is on the rise in the United States, drinking preferences vary by region of the country, according to USA Today.

The number of people in Maryland who are receiving substance abuse treatment through Medicaid has more than doubled in less than three years.

Women who became adults when 18 was the legal drinking age in the United States are at higher long-term risk for homicide and suicide, than women who grew up after the legal drinking age became 21, a new study finds.

A measure under consideration in the Massachusetts State Senate would allow bars in the state to once again offer happy hours, for the first time since 1984.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reports that as many as 1 in 4 children younger than age 18 is exposed to family alcohol abuse or dependence. These children are more likely to develop depression or anxiety disorders in adolescence, use alcohol or other drugs early and become tomorrow’s addicted youth, explains NACoA's Sis Wegner.

A new study suggests that teenage girls and young women with a family history of breast cancer should steer clear of alcohol. The study found those who had a drink a day on average were more than twice as likely as those who didn’t drink to develop benign breast disease, a risk factor for breast cancer.

Last week, voters in 105 cities and counties in Georgia voted to lift restrictions on Sunday alcohol sales, while 22 communities voted against changing the laws.

Teenagers living in rural areas who regularly volunteer and help others are less likely than their peers, who don’t often engage in these activities, to drink or use drugs as young adults, a new study suggests.