Suchergebnisse

Alcohol use by persons under age 21 has been identified as a major public health problem. Studies note that it increases the risks for disability, and may be detrimental to the developing brain. Minors who drink are more likely to commit suicide, break the law, or be victims of violence. Alcohol is implicated in nearly one-third of youth traffic fatalities. The total annual cost of underage drinking is estimated at $62 billion. While most laws intended to prevent underage drinking are passed at the state level, there has been legislative activity and interest at the federal level to support states' efforts to curb the problem. This report describes the extent of underage alcohol use, recent legislative activity on this issue, and various policy implications.

"Up-to-date guidance on assessing and treating unhealthy alcohol use in older adults. As our population ages, practitioners find themselves working with older adults more frequently. Alcohol use problems among older adults are often underdiagnosed and undertreated, and there are few treatments designed specifically for this client group. This practical guide provides practitioners with up-to-date information on assessing and treating unhealthy alcohol use among older adults. With a focus on evidence-based treatments, it is highly relevant to practitioners working across a variety of settings. Through the author's expertise, we learn about the prevalence of alcohol use among older adults, the models for understanding unhealthy use and the different screening and assessment options as well as the treatment possibilities relevant to health care and social service providers. Assessment and treatment options highlight the need to consider lifespan development when providing care, as well as the relevance of common life transitions and generational differences. Clinical pearls and vignettes illuminate treatment approaches and further sections discuss pharmacological interventions and cultural considerations. Printable tools are available in an appendix. This book is a must for practitioners from diverse settings who work with older adults."--

Within the Western world, alcohol permeates many aspects of youth culture. Even though there is legislation prescribing a minimum age for purchasing alcohol, alcohol use among youth is, to a large degree, normalized both within youth culture and in society more broadly. For youth, alcohol use is intimately intertwined with the cultural meanings of alcohol, personal and social identity, and broader structures and processes of power. Consequently, the precise nature of the relationship between alcohol and youth culture varies, to some extent, across social groups. This project examines alcohol use among marginalized youth in particular, within the larger context of the normalization of alcohol in youth culture. Discipline: Sociology (Honours) Faculty Mentor: Dr. Tami Bereska

Using a survey of 808 male and female college students at a medium-sized state university in the Deep South, this study compared the drinking behavior of, and the social mechanisms leading to alcohol use, in the two gender groups. The results show that males are more likely than females to drink to intoxication. Three main factors can account for this difference. First, males are more likely than females to be associated with others who present prodrinking norms and drinking models. Second, females are more likely to be affected by their parents, and association with parents' more restrictive norms results in less favorable alcohol-use definitions among females, and, in turn, a lower level of alcohol use. Third, peer drinking norms, which are more permissive, exert a stronger impact on male definitions of alcohol use and level of intoxication than on female definitions.

The purpose of this study was to establish the discriminant validity of alcohol use disorder (AUD) diagnoses within a population of well-functioning male heavy drinkers. A group of 57 subjects with a consumption of at least 28 alcoholic units (AU)/week was recruited from wine-tasting clubs. Within this group, a comparison was made between those individuals who met the criteria of AUD and those who did not. We compared the subjective and objective health status and drinking habits of both groups. No significant differences were found between the individuals with AUD and those without AUD, or between individuals with alcohol dependence and those without AUD, except for their drinking pattern. These findings raise doubt of the discriminant validity of AUD diagnoses in well-educated heavy wine drinkers.