Alcohology app adds to arsenal for April's Alcohol Awareness Month

Alcohology app bridges gap between science and myth for Alcohol Awareness Month

From PRBuzz 

According to the creator of the new 2015 app, Alcohology, there's a wide gulf between what people think alcohol does for them and what alcohol does to them.  Case in point: The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism notes that less than10 percent of the public realizes alcohol is a carcinogen. “That's the core of what Alcohol Awareness Month is about: Education...not some new take on Prohibition,” says author Scott Stevens.

The app is targeted toward health and counseling professionals, drinkers – whether they have the disease of alcoholism or just consider themselves moderate drinkers – and anyone concerned with a loved one's drinking.  Stevens, author of the recovery book, Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud, created the application, “because sometimes the swaying factor among many is knowing what alcohol does to otherwise healthy tissues.”  The app is free in the Google Play Store and in Kindle Apps. An IOS version is planned.

The app features short, topical videos on the evidence-based studies on alcohol and dismisses the 'junk science' touting alcohol's health benefits.  “Take the emotion out of a loaded public-health issue and rampant family drama and take the facts first,” says Stevens. “Not observational-studies, but some of the quality, recent research, will break a few myths and knock down some resistance to choosing abstinence over moderate or heavy drinking.”

The journalist and author frequently reports on alcohol-related health issues and notes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last year identified alcohol as the third-leading cause of preventable death and illness in the U.S.  “Alcohol-involved car wrecks take about 1 out of every eight of the 89,000 annual deaths linked to alcohol use.  The alcohol issue is broader than drinking and driving. It's a $226 billion annual health, wellness and productivity concern.”

Stevens knows all too well about the trials of alcohol and recovery.  His award-winning non-fiction books are unique, bold takes on sobriety, relapse and recovery.  And he's in recovery himself, after a two-liters-a-day drinking problem. “I've had to eat my own cooking, sure, but this app is also geared toward moderate or occasional drinkers.  You don't need to have a drinking problem to be a problem drinker.  This is a toxin the body doesn't favor much. The app is clear about that.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stevens is a noted journalist on alcoholism. His two books on alcoholism include What the Early Worm Gets. For more information on the books or new app, please visitwww.alcohologist.com

Parents Who Host Lose the Most campaign encourages wiser parenting

The Parents Who Host Lose the Most campaign draws attention to the legal and health reasons for not defying common-sense parenting. Share the YouTube video or read the transcript. 


Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

The Sobriety :60+:OD, car wrecks, cirrhosis combined cause less than 1/3 of alcohol-related deaths

OD, car wrecks, and cirrhosis are only the tip of the alcohol-related death iceberg. Read the transcript and share the youtube video.

Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

UM study: Alcohol detectors in all cars would cut impaired driving crash deaths 85 percent

Researchers at the University of Michigan Injury Center and the school's Transportation Research Institute studied the impact of installing alcohol ignition interlock devices in all newly purchased vehicles over a 15-year period. According to the March 19 UM news release, 85 percent of crash deaths attributable to alcohol-involved motor vehicle crashes would be eliminated by the device.

The study authors conclude, “That would mean preventing more than 59,000 deaths. Another 1.25 million nonfatal injuries would also be prevented, as the nation would see a reduction of 84-89 percent. When it comes to dollars, all these lives saved and injuries prevented would save society $343 billion over 15 years. In fact, the cost of installing the devices would be recouped after just three years.”

This is the first study that models the impact of a universal policy installing alcohol interlocks on all new vehicles sold in the U.S. It was based on data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System and the National Automotive Sampling System's General Estimates System.

Though the injury prevention benefit was apparent for all ages, drivers who are closest to the legal drinking age would likely be the most significant beneficiaries of alcohol interlocks. Among drivers ages 21 to 29 years, about 481,000 deaths and injuries would be prevented, nearly 35 percent of total deaths and injuries for all age groups. Drivers under 21 who engaged in drinking while driving would also benefit substantially, with nearly 195,000 deaths and impaired driving ("drunk driving") injuries potentially prevented.

"It is often difficult to penetrate these age groups with effective public health interventions and policies to prevent drinking and driving," said lead author Patrick Carter, assistant professor at the medical school. "By capitalizing on recent technological advancements that make alcohol-detecting sensors seamless to the driver and applying such technology more broadly to all newly built vehicles, we can actually have a substantial injury prevention impact among traditionally hard-to-reach high-risk populations."

The research was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the univeristy's Injury Center.

In 2012, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommended a passive alcohol detector for all cars (see related story). "Technology is the game-changer in reducing alcohol-related crashes on our nation's roadways," said Deborah A.P. Hersman, NTSB chairman, in a statement posted on the NTSB web site. "Achieving zero alcohol-impaired driving-related deaths is possible only if society is willing to separate the impaired driver from the driving task."

Critics worry that such systems have not yet been perfected and that they may not distinguish the driver's breath from that of a passenger, among other concerns.

The book, What the Early Worm Gets first made a call for this passive type of detection in 2010. “Some Americans will balk at this as an intrusion. If we, as a country, say preventing intoxicated driving deaths is a priority, mandating this safety equipment the way seatbelts and airbags are required is a no brainer. If we say 'hands off MY booze just test the bad guys,' drinking and driving deaths are no priority... 3/4 of impaired drivers who cause death or injury have no prior convictions.

“This is a put-up-or-shut-up moment for communities that claim keeping the streets free of impaired drivers is a prime concern. The only reason the detectors won't entirely eradicate mixing gasoline and alcohol is that the legal limit to which they'll be set is .08 BAC while motor skills, reaction time and judgment begin to be impaired at .02.”

(See entire article)

Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

Wet brain tied to the alcoholic diet, not alcoholism in new Sobriety :60+ episode #32

Alcoholism doesn't cause the condition, but what alcohol does to vitamin absorption plus a poor diet can lead to catastrophe. Read the transcript or share the YouTube segment.

Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

The Sobriety :60+ on enabling the drinker vs. disabling the drinking

We're all over enablers like a hobo on a ham sandwich. How to disable the drinking and not enable the drinker. Watch the YouTube video  and read the transcript.

Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

Keeping perspective: A heroin epidemic and an alcohol pandemic

Heroin deaths are on a sharp rise. The 8,260 deaths in 2013 were a 39 percent jump from year before, and nearly double the 4,400 seen in 2011 according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Every single one of those deaths is a tragedy... a personal one for the families, and a senseless one for communities struggling for answers. The problem has been called an epidemic by medical professionals, addiction specialists, law enforcement and politicians.

The 8,620 heroin deaths make an epidemic. The other drug killing 89,000 Americans every year equates to a pandemic. Alcohol is that drug. The third-leading cause of preventable illness and death in the U.S., and the world.

'But drinking is legal and safe in moderation,' is the public perception. The $226 billion annual pricetag shouldered by the U.S. economy is the public reality. That is the cost of alcohol misuse when it is examined by lost productivity, healthcare costs, law enforcement and property damage.

Americans will fight a heroin epidemic because it beats facing the alcohol pandemic. Why look at what, when and how much alcohol is consumed? It's easier to hate the heroin we don't understand, than to condemn the drug in the refrigerator. We'll manhunt and condemn the killer of 8,200 while the murderer of 89,000 walks free. One is sold by sociopathic thugs, the other is sold by Walmart, Walgreens, Kroger, Pick 'n Save and insert-your-favorite-hometown-store here. Towns will shred the streets to eradicate dope, its users and dealers if we find a hypodermic on the school playground, but we'll hold the beer-soaked church festival on the same playground.

Just like the sharp rise in heroin deaths can and should get swift and meaningful attention especially for its toll on teens, the larger drug-related death toll cannot be ignored.

In one year, there are slightly more than 84,000 visits to emergency rooms in the U.S. due to heroin. That's about 1 every seven minutes. There is an alcohol-related hospital admission every 30 seconds and 20-40 percent of general use (non-specialty) hospital beds are used to tend to alcohol-related complications. Heroin addicts aren't breaking the healthcare system... aging Baby Boomers aren't pushing it past capacity: Alcohol use is.

Last year, 80 percent of heroin deaths were caused directly by the drug in combination with alcohol or other drugs. About 10 percent were caused directly by heroin alone. The remaining 10 percent were caused by the drug together with suicide, accidents, homicides or medical disorders.

Perhaps it is the sudden vicious way heroin always kills, compared only to the equally senseless and sudden way alcohol only sometimes claims a life on the highway. One in eight alcohol-related deaths is from a car wreck. One in 40 is from alcohol poisoning (as noted in a related overdose article). The majority of alcohol-related deaths are far from the instant the alcohol is used. Most alcohol-related death comes in the form of homicide, accidental injury, drug interactions, heart disease (a related article demonstrates alcohol doesn't prevent it, it causes it), stroke (1 in 5 is alcohol-related), cirrhosis and more than 60 other diseases... including cancer. The “C-word.” Alcohol IS a known carcinogen. Heroin might be as well, if its users lived long enough or in numbers high enough to constitute a study.

In either case, doctors have stated that no amount of either substance is safe. (See No Amount is Safe) People tend to take that to heart when concerned with heroin since most of the population will never see the substance, but they'll ignore the warning when it comes to the beverage as seen on TV ads or enjoyed with meals.

The reality check here is not that alcohol should be banned, rerunning the failed experiment of prohibition. It's that we need to look at society's favorite drug as a sneakier murderer more fatal than the killer drug, heroin. If there's an epidemic, there's also a pandemic. What causes problems, is one.
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Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

Psychological withdrawal from alcohol in The Sobriety :60+ #30

Physical withdrawal can be gone within days or weeks, however the psychological withdrawal symptoms can last several months.  Or longer.  Learn more at YouTube or read the transcript.

Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on the health risks and myths of health benefits of drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."  Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.