Complain about a product or service

Australian Researchers Report New Alcoholism Treatment

December 25, 2006

• University Presidents Support Lower Drinking Age • Binge Drinking Tied to Conditions in the College Environment • Study: Parents Often Source of Liquor for Underage Drinkers • Anheuser-Busch Ends Alcoholic Energy Drink Sales • Anheuser-Busch, Miller Face 'Alcospeed' Suit • More Alcoholism in Retirement Communities? • Alcohol Dependency Widespread, Study Finds • College May Be Bad Influence On Budding Alcoholics • Drinking Heavily in College May Lead to Heart Disease Later in Life • Anheuser-Busch Condemned for Pushing Alcohol-Heavy Spykes "Liquid Lunchables" • Binge Drinking Widespread Among College Students • Experts Offer Tips on Teenage Binge Drinking • Moderate Drinking May Be OK for Men with High Blood Pressure • Australian Researchers Report New Alcoholism Treatment • Moderate Drinking May Be Beneficial in Healthy Men • Stars Urged to Rethink "Bud.TV" • Light to Moderate Drinking Reduces Risk of Cardiac Events, Death • Early Drinking Linked to Risk for Alcohol Dependence • Study Shows 15 Percent Work Under Influence of Alcohol • Alcoholism May Be Linked to Taste Buds • Higher Alcohol Prices Don't Always Cut Drinking • Alcohol Ads Linked to Teen Drinking • Tobacco Promotion Encourages Binge Drinking • More about Alcohol ...

Alcoholics often find it hard to navigate the holidays and avoid the temptation to imbibe during the seemingly non-stop celebrations. Now, Australian researchers say they may be able to help.

After a series of trials, scientists say they've successfully blocked the pleasant, euphoric alcohol "high" from reaching the orexin section of the brain of laboratory rats.

Without the "buzz," they say, people addicted to alcohol have no interest in drinking.

As a result, researchers say alcohol dependence may soon be treated with medicine. The drugs would be targeted to the area of the brain known as the hypothalamus that has already been implicated in the controlling the desire to over eat.

Addiction to alcohol is a global health issue, said to cause as much, if not more, death and disability tobacco use and some diseases.

The researchers say the development of drugs, to be used in combination with traditional treatments, could significantly reduce the problem.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.