If historic trends hold, between 5 and 15 San Bernardino youth will land in the emergency room this year as a result of alcohol poisoning. Others will be injured in car crashes, engage in risky sexual behavior and become victims of violent or sexual crimes.

These statistics show the serious health effects alcohol is having on local youth.

“Today’s youth just don’t understand how drinking alcohol can negatively affect their health and even possibly their future development,” said Jan Serrano, trauma coordinator for Arrowhead Regional Medical Center. “Sadly, we see the consequences of their poor choices far too often.”  » More

Bonnie J. Nagel, Ph.D., nagelb@ohsu.edu; Megan Herting, B.S., hertingm@ohsu.edu
Researchers know that adolescents with a family history of alcoholism (FHP) are at risk for developing alcohol use disorders. Some studies have shown that, compared to their peers, FHP adolescents have deficits in behavioral inhibition. A study of the neural substrates of risk-taking in both FHP adolescents and their peers with a negative family history of alcoholism (FHN) has shown that FHP youth demonstrated atypical brain activity while completing the same task as the FHN youth.

Results will be published in the April 2012 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.  » More

Wonderful blog post. Someone also commented on this, but I especially love this line, "When you are the center of your own universe and too inebriated to see the next closest planet, you shouldn’t comment on its life forms." Read Full Article » More

By LARRY ESKRIDGE of the Daily Ledger
CANTON — The cost of underage drinking and ways to reduce it provided the focus of a town hall meeting Tuesday at the Donaldson Center in Wallace Park, sponsored by SADD/SWAT, the Coalition for Wise Choices, the Making Wise Choices program, the YWCA, the YMCA, and United in Jesus Outreach Ministries.

District 66 Superintendent Roy Webb said he was pleased to see such a large turnout, noting he believed so many people came because there was a concern about young people in the area.  » More

From newswise.com: A new report based on a national survey shows that only 1.2 percent of the nation’s more than 7.4 million adults aged 21 to 64 with an untreated alcohol abuse disorder perceive they could benefit from treatment. The report released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in conjunction with National Alcohol Screening Day, April 7, highlights the need to raise awareness about adult problem drinking, how to identify when someone has a problem, how to confront a problem drinker and how to get help.

Read full article from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) on Newswise  » More

NYU Local; By Willis Plummer
The semester just started, and you’re probably in your dorm-room pre-gaming for a concert with that last Four-Loko from your stockpile. You’re having a great time, and you know that concert is going to be awesome, but NYU has some news for you: “There are ways to have fun in New York City without alcohol.” I don’t know about you, but they just blew my mind. » More