• Tiny fragments of cells called platelets are responsible for clotting
• Clotting after injury stops bleeding; clotting within a blood vessel can obstruct blood flow to the heart muscle, leading to a heart attack
• Alcohol may ‘thin’ the blood, thereby reducing the chances of…

• Heavy alcohol consumption can cause biochemical changes in the body
• Testing for specific biochemical markers is one way of establishing the likelihood of problem drinking
• Biochemical markers tend to be less sensitive for women than for men

In addition to…

• Alcoholism is known to compromise the immune system
• African-American alcoholics are at greater risk for certain infectious diseases
• African-American ethnicity, in conjunction with alcoholism, seems to signify a more compromised immune system
• These immune…

• Alcoholics have reduced levels of serotonin, a brain chemical
• Alcohol increases serotonin levels, as do carbohydrates
• Those alcoholics with high cravings for carbohydrates have a unique response to specific diets
• Carbohydrate craving may be an important clue in…

• Excessive alcohol consumption clearly has a deleterious effect on brain structure and function
• Gait and balance, followed by visuospatial abilities, show the greatest alcohol-related deficits
• Two principal neural systems, the cerebellar-frontal and the corticocortical…

• A recent study has found that the absence of a parent as role model can be stressful for infants
• Concentrations of cortisol, a principal stress hormone, can indicate levels of stress
• Infant monkeys who had high cortisol levels as a stress response later drank heavily as…

• Heavy alcohol use is associated with thiamine (Vitamin B1) deficiency
• Alcohol and thiamine deficiency together may have a more damaging impact on the brain
• Learning and reference memory appear to be the most sensitive to their synergistic effects
• The role of…

• A significant proportion of Asians lack the aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2) gene
• Acetaldehyde is produced in saliva while drinking alcohol
• ALDH2-deficient individuals who drink heavily appear unable to eliminate salivary acetaldehyde
• These same individuals…

• Alcohol has both sedative-like and stimulant-like effects on the brain
• Benzodiazepines, which have a sedative effect, are used as sleeping pills
• Alcohol and benzodiazepines both facilitate brain GABA activity, which is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter system in the…

• Genetic factors are known to contribute to the development of alcoholism
• Biochemical characteristics can help identify those people with a predisposition for alcoholism
• The enzyme platelet adenylyl cyclase may be such a biochemical marker
• The marker seems to…