Posts Tagged ‘alcohol’

On November 13, 2009 the FDA issued notification to 30 manufacturers of caffeinated alcoholic beverages that it intends to look into the safety and legality of their products. “The increasing popularity of consumption of caffeinated alcoholic beverages by college students and reports of potential health and safety issues necessitates that we look seriously at the scientific evidence as soon as possible,” said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of food and drugs. The problem is that caffeine has not been approved by the FDA to be added to alcoholic beverages. However, some substances which are Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS), or have been subject to prior sanction, are legality able to be used as food additives. For a substance to be GRAS, there must be evidence of its safety at the levels used and a basis to conclude that this evidence is generally known and accepted by qualified experts. Thus, the FDA is giving these companies 30 days to produce data to support that the use of caffeine in their products is GRAS or have been previously sanctioned. Click here for a full list of companies and products affected. [via FDA]

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If you know anything about American college life you know that sleep is often a rarity. Between the activities, festivities, oh, and the education sleep is sometimes not a top priority. Thus, the findings of a new study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health should not be of any surprise – that only 30% of college age students get at least eight hours of sleep per night (the average required for young adults). Furthermore, on weeknights, 20% of students stay up all night at least once a month and 35% stay up until 3 a.m. at least once a week. Sleep deprivation can induce extra stress on the body, lead to weight gain, not to mention impair the cardiovascular and immune systems. Even more jarring, more than 60% of students have sleep-wake cycle disturbances and many take drugs and alcohol regularly to help them do one or the other. [via Medical News Today]

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Using global figures from 2004, researchers estimate that 1 in 25 deaths worldwide is related to alcohol consumption. This includes deaths from injuries, accidents and diseases like liver cirrhosis, cancer and cardiovascular disease. The highest percentage of deaths linked to alcohol were found in countries of the former Soviet Union where 1 in 7 die of an alcohol related cause. One of the countries with the lowest alcohol related mortality is India where about 95% of women and 80% of men abstain from drinking. Much of the focus of this research is to shed light on the parallels between alcohol consumption and tobacco smoking-they both cause high disease and economic burdens, especially on developing countries. The researchers are calling for an international effort in alcohol control, especially in emerging economies like China and Thailand where increasing industrialization and westernization is correlating with increasing alcohol consumption.

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Hand washing is one of the best and most effective ways of controlling the spread of diseases – if done correctly. As we accumulate germs on our hands, we can infect ourselves with these germs by touching our eyes, mouth or nose which act as entryways into our body. Dirty hands can spread germs to others if you touch them directly, or if you touch a surface that they also touch. The best way to clean your hands is to use soap and clean running water. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also great at germ-killing. Antibacterial soaps are NOT recommended because they are no more effective than regular soap. Furthermore, they may induce the development of bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. For proper hand-washing follow these simple rules:

1.  Use warm running water to wet your hands first, then apply a liquid or bar soap.
2.  Rub your hands together vigorously for at least 15 to 20 seconds, making sure that all surfaces are exposed to the soap, including your wrists, between the fingers, back of the hands and under the fingernails.
3.  Rinse well and dry with a clean or disposable towel.
4.  Turn off the faucet with a disposable towel to prevent contaminating your hands.

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Thirty six percent of East Asians (Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans) show a characteristic physiological response to consuming alcohol that includes facial flushing , nausea, and tachycardia. This “alcohol blush” is now considered a risk factor for esophageal cancer, one of the deadliest cancers worldwide with a 5-year survival rate of only 15.6% in the United States. Heavy alcohol consumption greatly increases the risk for esophageal cancer among these individuals, who comprise about 8% of the world’s population. Therefore, by simply knowing whether you have this this characteristic response to alcohol, you can decrease your esophageal cancer risk by limiting alcohol intake.

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Energy drinks, such as Red Bull, have been increasing in popularity among adolescents and young adults in recent years. The most common reasons for consumption of these sugar and caffeine-laden drinks are to improve concentration and athletic performance. Just like coffee, however, energy drinks cannot properly hydrate the body because sugar and caffeine promote excretion of water. As well, studies have demonstrated that strong doses of caffeine can increase hypertension, cause heart palpitations, irritability, anxiety, headaches and insomnia. Approximately 1.5 billion cans of Red Bull were sold in the US alone in 2004.

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Drinking too much this holiday season can do more than cause a bit of inebriation. Consuming relatively large amounts of alcohol can cause what physicians term “holiday heart syndrome“, a condition where alcohol stimulates the heart to go into arrhythmias (an abnormal heart rhythm) – even in healthy individuals without cardiac problems. Symptoms of holiday heart syndrome typically include palpitations, shortness of breath, lightheadedness, and chest pressure/pain or discomfort. This condition can occur during any periods of increased alcohol consumption – binge drinking on weekends, during vacations, and, of course, during holidays. It’s usually self-limited and benign. But if you feel any of the symptoms above for an extended amount of time (minutes to hours), you should get checked out by your physician or seek medical attention at the emergency room. The only way to prevent holiday heart is to use your judgment in exercising moderation.

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The latest issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine reports that fatal medicine errors (FMEs) occuring from mismanagement of medication by patients at home has been increasing, presumably because more and more medications are now consumed outside of hospital and clinics. An examination of FMEs from 1983 to 2004 (nearly 225 thousand) showed that the greatest number of accidental deaths involved alcohol and/or street drugs. The researchers suggest that the number of these deaths can be reduced by focussing on interventions that occur outside of clinical settings. Full story.

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