A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Are we in the midst of an ice epidemic? Was the Prime Minister correct to say, when launching the National Ice Taskforce, that ice (methamphetamine) is our “worst drug problem” that it’s a “pernicious and evil” drug, and is “far more addictive than any other illicit drug”? Or is this another cycle of drug alarm [...]
Former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett has questioned what Tony Abbott's ice taskforce will achieve and appealed for "courageous" leadership on the bigger problem of alcohol. Mr Kennett has called for a total ban on alcohol advertising and sponsorships, saying the key to tackling the ice epidemic is education. His stand was endorsed by the president [...]
Alcohol companies advertise during sporting events, and sponsor sports and teams so as to link sporting success with alcohol and to reach our children, the next generation of potential drinkers. And they do it very successfully. We know that the earlier children are exposed to alcohol advertising the more likely they are to commence drinking [...]
A new study has revealed that almost two thirds of people identified as being harmed by the drinking of others in a 2008 survey, were still being harmed three years later. And it’s not your age, gender or the number of times that you go out that is most likely to determine whether you are [...]
In recent years, hundreds of new synthetic recreational drugs have emerged – drugs that neither the general public nor the scientific community know very much about. Many of these new synthetic drugs – often referred to as “legal highs” – are dangerous and continue to lead to poisonings throughout the US and the rest of [...]
By now, most of us have seen the shocking before and after pics of people addicted to methamphetamines. Exactly what is happening inside each cell to cause such striking changes to a person’s face and body? Meth, scientists from the Italian Institute of Technology and UC Irvine say, causes abnormalities in the fat metabolism of [...]
Stress is the reason why we find it hard to empathise with someone we do not know, researchers suggest. In separate tests in mice and people, empathy towards strangers increased when stress hormones were blocked by a drug. Playing a fun video game with a stranger was found to have a similar effect to the drug. [...]
We’ve all been guilty of it – dramatically exclaiming that work is going to drive us to drink after yet another gruelling day at the office. But it turns out there may be a little truth in the old saying after all. A new study published by the British Medical Journal suggests that working too [...]
CHRIS UHLMANN: Allowing teenagers tastes of alcohol to try and promote responsible drinking might be counterproductive. That's the view of the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre after a four year study of the drinking habits of 2000 families. Researchers found that teenagers who got alcohol from their parents are three times more likely to [...]
Scientists are now seeing that continued exposure to porn gives the brain an unnatural high—something it literally isn’t wired to handle—and the brain eventually fatigues. Anatomy and physiology instructor Gary Wilson notes this is the same pattern noticed when drugs are abused: the brain becomes desensitized. More of the drug or harder drugs are needed [...]
