While many Australians enjoy pleasures associated with drinking alcohol, we need to treat it with more caution, with alcohol consumption conservatively estimated to cost the Australian community $66.8 billion a year in health, workplace and other costs, according to research released today. This dollar figure covers some significant personal and community level harms.

Examining the Social and Economic Costs of Alcohol Use in Australia: 2017/18, published by the National Drug Research Institute (NDRI) at Curtin University in Perth, is the first national update in a decade of the costs of alcohol use. Using up-to-date methods of calculating costs and including a number of previously uncounted conditions and costs, it is substantially higher than the 2010 estimate of $14.4 billion. The main estimate includes some reference to ‘protective’ effects from alcohol, consistent with the evidence. A conservative estimate was made in our calculation of costs, as further harms where a reliable cost could not be estimated were excluded.

The research behind the updated national estimate was funded by the Australian Government Department of Health, and found that in the 2017-2018 financial year:

• alcohol was responsible for $18.2 billion in tangible costs including from: ill health; health service costs such as emergency department and hospital admissions; worker absence and occupational injuries; crime; road traffic crashes; and, alcohol purchases by those dependent on alcohol (but not by other alcohol consumers);
• alcohol was responsible for another $48.6 billion in intangible costs, which is the value of items that can’t be bought or sold, such as years of life lost from premature death, lost quality of life from living with alcohol dependence or from child abuse, and, impacts on victims of alcohol-caused crime; and,
• not included in the overall total were costs such as those associated with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder ($16 billion). There is a clear need for evidence about the prevalence of FASD to allow an accurate estimate of cost and to inform preventive and other responses.

There were several other critical areas where, due to limited data, reliable cost estimates were difficult to determine including: lost quality of life from living with someone with alcohol dependence; and, reduced workplace productivity (‘presenteeism’). Although not included in the overall total, indicative estimates suggested that these outcomes were highly likely to attract substantial costs.

“Alcohol continues to cause a significant toll through premature deaths, with 5,219 cases attributed to alcohol in 2017/18, personal suffering, reduced quality of life, and real financial costs in Australia,” Professor Allsop said.

“Nearly half-a-million Australians are dependent on alcohol, with many more drinking in a way that puts their health at risk. Importantly, any member of the community can be impacted by the drinking of others. The many adverse health effects and other consequences result in significant costs to society. Effective strategies to address alcohol related harms have the potential to substantially reduce medical costs, improve productivity, diminish crime, and lower costs to the whole community while improving community and individual wellbeing.”

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E-cigarette & Vaping Visual Dictionary – CDC

(Vaping linked to dysregulation of mitochondrial genes and immune response genes)

Nov 24 2021

Since they hit the market, e-cigarettes have been touted as a safe alternative to tobacco cigarettes for adult smokers. When research began to suggest otherwise, many questioned whether smoking was still to blame for adverse effects, since most vapers are either "dual users" who also smoke cigarettes or have a prior history of smoking.

Now, a team of researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC has demonstrated that - independent of the effects of prior smoking – using e-cigarettes is linked to adverse biological changes that can cause disease. The study, published in Scientific Reports, revealed that vapers experience a similar pattern of changes to gene regulation as smokers do, although the changes are more extensive in people who smoke.

Our study, for the first time, investigates the biological effects of vaping in adult e-cigarette users, while simultaneously accounting for their past smoking exposure. Our data indicate that vaping, much like smoking, is associated with dysregulation of mitochondrial genes and disruption of molecular pathways involved in immunity and the inflammatory response, which govern health versus disease state."

Ahmad Besaratinia, PhD, corresponding author and professor of research population and public health sciences at the Keck School of Medicine

"We found that more than 80% of gene dysregulation in vapers correlated with the intensity and duration of current vaping," said Besaratinia. "Whereas none of the detected gene dysregulation in vapers correlated to their prior smoking intensity or duration."

Effects of vaping mirror those of smoking

In previous research, Besaratinia and his team have shown that e-cigarette users develop some of the same cancer-related molecular changes in oral tissue as cigarette smokers. They also discovered vapers had the same kind of cancer-linked chemical changes to their genome as smokers.

In this study, they found that, in both vapers and smokers, mitochondrial genes are preferential targets of gene dysregulation. They also found that vapers and smokers had significant dysregulation of immune response genes.

Besaratinia says the findings are not only novel and significant, but they are also interrelated, since growing evidence shows that mitochondria play a critical role in immunity and inflammation.

"When mitochondria become dysfunctional, they release key molecules," said Besaratinia. "The released molecules can function as signals for the immune system, triggering an immune response that leads to inflammation, which is not only important for maintaining health but also plays a critical role in the development of various diseases, such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, metabolic diseases, and cancer."

"Given the popularity of e-cigarettes among young never-smokers, our findings will be of importance to the regulatory agencies," said Besaratinia. "To protect public health, these agencies are in urgent need of scientific evidence to inform the regulation of the manufacture, distribution, and marketing of e-cigarettes."

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For Full Research

When you use street or club drugs, you’re taking a lot of risks. The drugs are dangerous, and usually there’s no way to know how strong they are or what else may be in them. It's even more unsafe to use them along with other substances like alcohol and marijuana.

Here's a rundown of common street drugs and the health threats they can pose.

Bath Salts – Cocaine – Ecstasy – Flakka – Heroin – Krokadil – LSD – Marijuana – ICE – Mushrooms – Salvia – Spice

Bath Salts

These designer drugs came on the scene fairly recently and became popular fast. That may be because they were easy to get and used to be hard to detect in drug tests.

They're highly addictive, and they come in a crystalline powder that users swallow, inhale, or inject.

Despite their name, bath salts have nothing in common with products you can use for a soak in the tub.

What else they’re called: Plant Food, Bloom, Cloud Nine, Ivory Wave, Lunar Wave, Scarface, Vanilla Sky, or White Lightning.

What type of drug is it? Bath salts contain manmade stimulants called cathinones, which are similar to amphetamines.

What are the effects? These stimulants increase levels of dopamine, a brain chemical that can create feelings of euphoria.

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November 10, 2021 

Participants were mindful of children’s knowledge and the role they played in modelling consumption practices prior to and during the COVID-19 lockdowns. There may be scope to use the insights provided here to support parents in modelling approaches and engaging with children about alcohol in ways that challenge or disrupt its prominence or acceptability.

AUTHOR: Megan Cook (email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), Sandra Kuntsche and Amy Pennay

CITATION: Cook, M., Kuntsche, S. and Pennay, A., 2021. ‘They're like little police’: Australian parents' perceptions of their children's awareness of drinking during COVID ‐19. Drug and Alcohol Review

SOURCE - Drug and Alcohol Review RELEASE DATE - 09/11/2021

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‘They’re Like Little Police’: Australian Parents’ Perceptions of Their Children’s Awareness of Drinking During COVID-19

Abstract

Introduction: As a result of COVID-19 and associated lockdown restrictions, children may have been exposed to more home-based alcohol consumption and parents’ alcohol use practices. This paper explores Australian parents’ perceptions of their children’s awareness of alcohol use and their reflections on the impact of COVID-19 on children’s exposure and acquisition of alcohol-related knowledge.

Methods: In-depth interviews were undertaken with 30 parents and carers of children aged four to 12 years from across Australia. Participants described their family lives, the role of alcohol, any changes in alcohol and family dynamics experienced because of COVID-19 and their children’s exposure and knowledge of alcohol before and during their experience of COVID-19. Using social learning theory as a guiding framework, transcripts were analysed to identify relevant themes.

Results: Pre-COVID-19 children were commonly thought to be aware of behavioural changes owing to alcohol consumption, made associations between people, beverages and activities and recognised boundaries around consumption. COVID-19 was suggested to have impacted the environments in which children were exposed and the types of modelling and practices they were exposed to. It was more common for participants to describe COVID-19 affecting other children’s learning and knowledge of alcohol, rather than their own.

Discussion and Conclusions: Participants were mindful of children’s knowledge and the role they played in modelling consumption practices prior to and during the COVID-19 lockdowns. There may be scope to use the insights provided here to support parents in modelling approaches and engaging with children about alcohol in ways that challenge or disrupt its prominence or acceptability.

(Taken from : https://movendi.ngo/science-digest/australian-parents-perceptions-of-their-childrens-awareness-of-alcohol-use-during-covid-19/ )