• Alcohol and tobacco are the two most frequently "co-abused" substances in the general population
• Alcoholics, the heaviest of drinkers, also tend to be the heaviest of smokers
• A recent study has discovered that nicotine (in the form of tobacco) increases alcohol…

• Alcohol availability seems to affect "neighborhood culture"
• A recent study found that where someone lives determines 15-16 percent of their attitudes toward drinking and 11 percent of their individual consumption
• "Wetter" neighborhoods have higher levels of drinking,…

• A tiny protein called metallothionein (MT) may protect against alcohol’s neurotoxic effects
• The brain can make more of these proteins in response to alcohol consumption
• One of an individual’s different responses to alcohol may be related to his or her MT levels
…

• Genetic factors contribute up to 40 percent to the risk of developing alcoholism
• Environmental factors likely contribute the remaining risk
• Those considered most at risk are children of alcoholics (COAs)
• Not all COAs become alcoholics
• Biochemical…

• Alcoholics may drink because they get a "bigger bang" each time they drink
• This phenomenon is known as "behavioral sensitization"
• Behavioral sensitization is the opposite of tolerance; it is even known as "reverse tolerance"
• A neurochemical called MK-801 may…

• An infant is extraordinarily sensitive to its mother’s behavior
• Baby rats nursed by their intoxicated mothers exhibit greater overall distress and aversion to alcohol
• The infants’ distress and aversion seem dependent on maternal reaction to alcohol
• Alcohol’s…

• 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…