Looking for Alcohol Treatment Information?

You can receive independent, expert advice on alcohol rehabilitation and rehab centres by telephoning DryOutNow.com on 0845 370 0203.

The most important consideration in choosing a rehab centre is to match the individual to the rehab centre that is most likely to lead to a successful outcome.

DryOutNow.com can provide an assessment of all your needs and a recommendation regarding the most effective rehab placement for you, given your particular circumstances. We can provide fast, immediate access to alcohol treatment.

Alcohol Treatment Research: Coffee and cigarette consumption high among AA attendees

More than one million Americans currently participate in the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) programme. While AA participants are reportedly notorious for their coffee drinking and cigarette smoking, very little research has quantified their consumption of these two products. Recent findings confirm that coffee and cigarette use among this population is greater than among the general US population: most AA members drink coffee and more than half smoke.

Results will be published in the October issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

"Drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes are part of the culture of AA, but we knew little about the degree to which this occurred, how much more prevalent these behaviours were compared to the general American population, or why AA participants actually drank coffee or smoked cigarettes," said Peter R. Martin, professor of psychiatry and pharmacology, director of the Vanderbilt Addiction Center at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and corresponding author for the study.

Martin added that many questions remain about the effects of coffee and cigarettes on recovering alcoholics. "What do cigarettes or coffee do for them; how do they believe that they are affected by smoking and drinking coffee?" he asked. "Is this behaviour simply a way to bond or connect in AA meetings, analogous to the peace pipe among North American Indians, or do constituents of these natural compounds result in pharmacological actions that affect the brain? Perhaps most interesting, how do these consummatory behaviours affect the brain and what is their role in recovery?"

While the most common cause of death in long-term recovering alcoholics is related to the health consequences of cigarette smoking, Martin noted, recent epidemiological studies have shown that coffee consumption is not harmful to health and may, in fact, reduce the risk of death from suicide, certain cancers, and other diseases.

While that may be true, noted Robert Swift, professor of psychiatry and human behaviour at Brown University Medical School, little is known about coffee's role vis-a -vis abstinence, whether drinking coffee makes it easier or harder to stay sober. "It's possible that coffee is even a gateway drug, with coffee drinking beginning at about the time persons begin using alcohol. In addition, a potential negative interaction is coffee's known negative effects on sleep. Many alcoholics in long-term recovery frequently have trouble with sleep, and coffee consumption could make sleep problems worse."

A strength of this study, Swift added, is that relatively little is known about AA, why some persons are helped by it while others are not. "The authors have been successful in gaining the confidence of AA groups and incorporating them into a research study," he said.

Martin and his colleagues asked participants in all open AA meetings during the summer of 2007 in Nashville, TN to self-report a variety of information: a "timeline followback" for coffee, cigarette and alcohol consumption.

"The most important finding was that not all recovering alcoholics smoke cigarettes while almost all drink coffee," said Martin.

"I think that it is important for alcohol researchers and clinicians to know that alcoholics, even those who do not use other illicit drugs, are not just addicted to alcohol, but use other psychotropic drugs like caffeine and nicotine," said Swift. "I found it interesting that coffee contains a lot of psychoactive substances, in addition to caffeine. A second important aspect is the finding that rates of smoking are much higher in alcoholics in recovery than in the general population. Smoking kills and is at least as harmful for alcoholics as is alcohol. Yet, AA tolerates or otherwise does not address smoking in its members."

"Yet, if coffee is beneficial and cigarettes are harmful to health, AA members seem to be going in the right direction by reducing smoking and perhaps increasing their coffee drinking," observed Martin. "We are now working on more detailed analyses of results to examine whether these changes in coffee and cigarette use are predictive of recovery from alcoholism per se."

Martin, P. et al.,Coffee and Cigarette Consumption and Perceived Effects in Recovering Alcoholics Participating in Alcoholics Anonymous in Nashville, TN', Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, (currently in press).

DryOutNow.com provides highly practical help for people with alcohol problems, their friends and relatives. DryOutNow.com also provides free resources for healthcare professionals such as medical information and alcohol treatment guidelines.

Other Alcohol Treatment Research Articles

• Poor Alcohol Regulation could cost up to 250,000 lives, doctors predict.
• Technology improves treatment options for drug users
• Department promoting early substance use screening process
• Alcohol tax increases deter drinking
• DrugScope welcomes report on 'neglected issue' of prescription and over-the-counter medication depen
• DrugScope responds to NTA figures on young people in treatment for substance misuse
• Concerns over trends in Ketamine use
• Try science when 'just saying no' isn't enough
• More action needed to tackle alcohol misuse, says BMA
• Alkermes initiates clinical trial for ALKS 33, a novel oral molecule with potential benefits in addi
• Genetic markers identified for alcohol response in UCSF Gallo study
• NIDA Monitoring the Future Survey, Results published
• Technology can help addicts trying to quit
• Study assesses success of anti meth adverts
• All patients should be asked about alcohol and drug abuse, says The American College of Obstetrician
• Researchers must tap into the language of intoxication
• Report points to lack of public awareness of health guidelines
• Reward stress link points to new targets for treating addiction
• SAMHSA releases new data on drug related hospital emergency department visits
• National rates of co occurring substance use and mental disorders call for better integration of men

Latest Alcohol Policy Related Articles

• Leeds counts 438GBP million economic and social cost of alcohol-related problems
• Pablo and FRANK - the new cocaine campaign
• Cannabis upgraded to Class B drug
• DrugScope welcomes report on 'neglected issue' of prescription and over-the-counter medication depen
• Tougher health and safety law demands tougher drugs policies, says drug testing company
• Time's up for irresponsible drink deals
• More action needed to tackle alcohol misuse, says BMA
• New report reveals that five million people participate in self help groups each year
• Make Scotlands roads safer, reduce drink driving limits, says BMA Scotland
• Study will seek to break cycle of chemical dependence and incarceration
• More advice on alcohol and healthy living from UK Department of Health
• Working towards recovery, Getting problem drug users into jobs, UKDPC report released
• More support needed for employers to hire addicts, says research
• Study shows link between number of alcohol retailers and youth injuries
• European project to study relationship between ADHD and substance abuse
• Two few treatments centres says former government adviser
• BMA Scotland recently published an action plan to tackle alcohol misuse
• WHO to hold public hearing on ways of reducing the harmful use of alcohol
• Public policy measures on alcohol price and availability would be more effective than clinical treat
• Licensing act could be affecting alcohol-related hospital admissions