Alcohol Drinking

BACKGROUND: Alcohol-related violence is of major concern to society. Around half of all violent crimes are alcohol related, and yet interventions for alcohol-related violence are under-developed. Often, offenders receive treatment for substance use or violence, but not the two in nexus. AIM: My aim was to conduct a Rapid Evidence Assessment of interventions with a focus on treating established nonsexual violence in the context of alcohol use, to describe the content of these interventions, where they take place and their effectiveness in reducing alcohol problems and/or violence.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between trait mindfulness and substance use behaviors has been inconsistent across studies. The current meta-analysis aimed at quantifying the magnitude of this relationship, and at determining how this relationship varies in context of (1) mindfulness facets, (2) substance type, (3) sample characteristics, and (4) substance use severity. METHODS: Using electronic databases, the literature search yielded 303 articles, but only 39 articles met inclusion criteria to be included in this meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The prevalence of colonic diverticulosis in Korea is increasing in conjunction with the adoption of western dietary pattern, extension of lifespan, and advances in diagnostic modalities. The clinical characteristics of colonic diverticulosis seem to be gradually becoming similar to those of Western societies. Therefore, factors associated with the clinical characteristics of colonic diverticulosis in Korea were investigated.

BACKGROUND: The compression of morbidity hypothesis predicts that, in order to achieve their extreme old age, centenarians markedly delay or even escape diseases that would otherwise be lethal at younger ages. Phenotypic studies have not adequately characterized the prevalence and timing of age-related illnesses among those who achieve exceptional old age. Thus, we conducted a retrospective cohort study of centenarians to explore the timing of such diseases among centenarians. METHODS: Health history questionnaires were completed by 424 centenarians (aged 97-119 years) or their proxies.

OBJECTIVES: To assess lifestyle factors including physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and dietary habits in men and women with exceptional longevity. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: A cohort of community-dwelling Ashkenazi Jewish individuals with exceptional longevity defined as survival and living independently at age 95 and older.

BACKGROUND: Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) ostensibly shortens with age and has been moderately associated with mortality. In humans, these findings have come almost solely from cross-sectional studies. Only recently has LTL shortening within individuals been analyzed in longitudinal studies. Such studies are relevant to establish LTL dynamics as biomarkers of mortality as well as to disentangle the causality of telomeres on aging. METHODS: We present a large longitudinal study on LTL and human mortality, where the 10-year change of LTL is analyzed in 1,356 individuals aged 30-70 years.

OBJECTIVES: Vitamin and mineral supplementation is a common practice in the United States, yet little is known about the long-term health effects of regular supplement use. METHODS: To examine the relationship between reported use of supplements and mortality, we analyzed data from US adults 25 to 74 years of age who were examined in the First National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1971 to 1975), with vital status determined through 1987. RESULTS: At baseline, 22.5% of the cohort reported using supplements regularly and 10.0% reported irregular use.

The low rate of coronary heart disease (CHD) in France compared with other developed countries with comparable dietary intake has been called the French paradox. We explored this paradox by looking at alcohol, diet, and mortality data from 21 developed, relatively affluent countries in the years 1965, 1970, 1980, and 1988. We assessed wine, beer, and spirits intake separately. France had the highest wine intake and the highest total alcohol intake, and the second lowest CHD mortality rate.

From antiquity to the 1920s, the frequency of asthma and especially death from asthma was considered to be rare. In fact, asthma was not considered a significant cause of death during the early years of the 20th century. The Frenchman Armand Trousseau declared in his Clinique Medicale that "asthma n'est pas fatale" ("asthma is not fatal"). In the United States, Oliver Wendell Holmes had described asthma as a "slight ailment that promotes longevity." Clearly this perception of asthma has changed for many reasons.