12Step.com

Tribe Sues Beer Sellers

JasonB178 — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 05:59:02 +0000

A lawsuit filed last month seeks damages from several beer manufacturers in what is alleged to be negligent sales of alcoholic beverages, mainly beer, to native Americans. The suit claims that distributers for Anheuser-Busch, Miller, Molson Coors and Pabst knowingly provided beer to licensed sellers in Nebraska, where they were then sold to, and smuggled by, Indians back onto the South Dakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

The lawsuit seeks damages for the resulting effects of the smuggled beer, citing increased rates of health care and social services. Alcohol is banned by the Oglala Sioux on the reservation.

The Indian territory stretches across the border of Nebraska and South Dakota, but the stores in question are in Nebraska. The small town of Whiteclay has less than 20 residents but the stores there sold more than 200 thousand cases of beer in 2010. The tribe claims that beer was sold to its members.

It is legal to sell alcoholic beverages to anyone over 21 in Nebraska, and arguably, it would violate civil rights laws to deny sales to Native Americans. However, if the lawsuit is successful, the businesses involved, along with the beer companies, would be responsible for the results of the sales.

Tribal leaders point out that there isn’t any place in the small town, where the beer is sold, to legally consume the beverages. They allege that retailers knew exactly what was happening, and despite being asked by the tribe, refused to stop.

Other interested parties will be closely watching how this case develops. It parallels what happened with tobacco and legal battles for the consequences of legal use. The question is whether or not manufacturers and retailers are contributing to the known damage that alcohol consumption causes. An article in the Huffington Post about the case says, “One in four children born on the reservation suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome or fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, and the average life expectancy is estimated between 45 and 52 years.”

Parents Important in Helping Eating Disorders

12Step Staff — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 19:56:37 +0000

Parent and family involvement is important in treating an eating disorder

Recovery on Campus

JasonB178 — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 02:28:06 +0000

In what may turn out to be the first instance of a really great idea, Rutgers University in New Jersey has started a new type of residential hall – for those in addiction recovery. The dorms are an outgrowth of the university’s alcohol and drug assistance program and they have one essential element – students are protected from the pressure of drinking and drugging that comes with living with non-addiction students.

But the recovery option is more than just abstinence, according to the program director.

“A recovery room is for students who are actively pursuing staying sober.”

The extent to which addiction negatively impacts the pursuit of a college degree isn’t known. For many, graduation isn’t prevented with binges on the weekends. But, just as in other areas of life, especially where there is high pressure to perform, an addiction crisis can cripple someone’s chances. In a college setting, failing one class in a mandatory series can set a student back an entire year. That’s huge.

The dorms, which are reported to house 31 students this year, give addicted students a positive atmosphere and one where recovery is on the menu. The all important ingredient is peer relationships. Instead of the party focus, there’s a sober understanding of the power that drugs and alcohol has to ruin lives. They meet twice a week in either AA or NA meetings and a trained addiction therapist is available.

According to school sources, fun is one key element in the mix. The idea is to not only stop using behaviors and maintain recovery, but to replace those harmful things with enjoyable activities like intramural sports and other social events that don’t involve alcohol or drugs.

It’s certainly not all smooth sailing though. But when residents relapse, there are peers ready and waiting to help them back to sobriety. In this situation, your AA and NA sponsor might be your neighbor the next door down. College is tough enough already, and it’s nice to see Rutgers taking the lead to help those who want to help themselves.

Digital Addiction Affects on the Brain

12Step Staff — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 20:56:37 +0000

Dr. Deepak Chopra talks about how internet addiction has similar affects like drug addiction with respect to the brain

Women Talk About Hiding Alcohol Abuse

12Step Staff — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 19:56:37 +0000

Alcohol abuse can affect women, but they may be good at hiding it

Can Energy Drinks be Addictive?

12Step Staff — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:56:37 +0000

After Demi Moore was hospitalized it came out that she may have been addicted to energy drinks, but can this drink cause addiction?

Randy Travis, Livin' the Songs

JasonB178 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:58:30 +0000

For a Country and Western singer, getting caught drunk in public might add credibility. After all, the classic country song has love, loss, a truck or train, and whiskey. However, Randy Travis comes from a gospel music background and his tunes rarely even mention alcohol. It’s a bit surprising that he was arrested for public intoxication.

According to reports, the country star was drinking wine in a church parking lot when police arrived. Travis was in his car, apparently drowning away a recent argument with his girlfriend. Yes, it was a Sunday night (actually into Monday morning by then).

In Texas, if you are caught drinking in a vehicle and you have the keys to that vehicle available – even if the car isn’t running – you can be charged with DUI. The critical bit of information is whether you had “physical control” of the vehicle when police make the arrest. In Travis’ case, he got out of the car when police arrived and was arrested for the lesser charge of public drunkenness. This may be due, at least in part, to his popularity in the state and his celebrity – Travis is a multiple Grammy Award winning country music star.

They ended up taking him to the county jail to sober up. He was released after six hours in the drunk tank. The charge is a misdemeanor in Texas and will only entail a fine. Travis is quoted as saying, “[I’m] committed to being responsible and accountable.”

On the scale of celebrity screw-ups, this one doesn’t rank that high. Fans will be quick to forgive the singer, whose gravelly voiced, hymn-like songs are noted for their inspirational quality. Still, it’s another celebrity mug shot to add to the collection, and it only reconfirms that being famous doesn’t help with alcohol problems – underneath, we are all humans capable of failure once in awhile.

Are Nicotine Patches and Gum Effective?

12Step Staff — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:56:37 +0000

A new article looks at if nicotine gum and patches really work

Study Linking Alcohol Consumption to Colon Cancer Criticized

JasonB178 — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:47:53 +0000

Researchers are always looking for valid links between disease states and addiction. One way to go about it is to look at existing population data to see what associations can be found between a disease and consumption of a drug or alcohol. In a recent article about alcohol and colon cancer the association appears to be strong. Until you dig a bit deeper.

On the surface, the numbers seem to show that people who drink more than 2.5 drinks daily (on average) are at a greater risk for colon cancer. Simple. Unfortunately, the research, out of Boston University Medical Center, doesn’t do well under scientific scrutiny. The research did show an increase, and found a link when they narrowed the positive group down to those with a family history of colon cancer, who ate a higher percentage of red meat and smoked more. But there’s real reason to suspect we aren’t getting the full story.

For example, in a published critique of the work, reviewers found several troubling items. First, researchers didn’t separate out binge drinkers from consistent drinkers, or recognize that simply taking folic acid dropped the rates in all categories. Along with this, they point out that the data used is too old to be of much value – diagnosis of colon cancer has changed dramatically since 1980 (oldest data) and older reporting used different methods, essentially comparing apples and oranges.

What may be worse is that there was no consistent pattern found between the amount of alcohol consumed and the risk of colon cancer. Above 2.5 drinks a day, risk increased, but didn’t then consistently increase at, for example, 4 or 5 drinks a day.

Perhaps the only solid conclusion we can draw from this research is that having a family history of colon cancer increases your risk of getting the disease, and that taking folic acid (or eating green vegetables which contain the nutrient) has a protective effect. But we already knew that.

Obesity Linked to Relationship with Mother?

12Step Staff — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:15:51 +0000

12Step.com

Tribe Sues Beer Sellers

Parents Important in Helping Eating Disorders

Parent and family involvement is important in treating an eating disorder

More Videos

Recovery on Campus

Digital Addiction Affects on the Brain

Dr. Deepak Chopra talks about how internet addiction has similar affects like drug addiction with respect to the brain

More Videos

Women Talk About Hiding Alcohol Abuse

Alcohol abuse can affect women, but they may be good at hiding it

More Videos

Can Energy Drinks be Addictive?

After Demi Moore was hospitalized it came out that she may have been addicted to energy drinks, but can this drink cause addiction?

More Videos

Randy Travis, Livin' the Songs

Are Nicotine Patches and Gum Effective?

A new article looks at if nicotine gum and patches really work

More Videos

Study Linking Alcohol Consumption to Colon Cancer Criticized

Obesity Linked to Relationship with Mother?

A new study has linked obesity risks to how a child's relationship is with their mother

More Videos