Is alcohol really bad for young people?

The advice from Sir Liam Donaldson that parents should not give their children under 15 alcohol has provoked media interest today. Sir Liam said studies had shown those who begin drinking early are more likely to develop alcohol-related problems. 'The more they get a taste for it, the more likely they are to be heavy drinking adults or binge drinkers later in childhood,' Sir Liam said.

But critics said parents should be left to use their own 'common sense' and warned an outright ban on alcohol risked increasing its allure as 'forbidden fruit'. ~ Whatever your view, it does seem that alcohol abuse in young people is on the increase, with a prevailing culture of binge drinking and going out to get drunk. But what does alcohol abuse do to the body?

Alcohol abuse over the long term has been shown in many brain imaging studies to actually, physically shrink the region of the brain that commands learning and memory. The shrinkage is more extensive in the cortex of the frontal lobe, which is known to be the center of higher intellectual functions, and of course this shrinkage will increase with continued alcohol use and age.

Short-term memory loss is usually the first noticeable sign of alcohol related damage.
Progressive brain shrinkage was shown in a study that conducted periodic imaging in alcoholics over a five year period. The amount of brain shrinkage was directly related to the amount of alcohol consumed, but there was no question that the shrinkage far exceeded anything in the normal range.

Until around age 18 -19 the human brain is still in the process of development and may be more susceptible to damage than the adult brain. In adolescents who regularly drink alcohol, parts of the brain which are important in planning and emotional control have been found to be smaller than expected.

I'm not against drinking alcohol and enjoy a glass of wine or beer from time to time. I have to wonder if the real problem lies deeper than the alcohol, in that people have to drink it in order to have a "good time". Is this a behaviour that young people learn from their parents and then go on to exhibit themselves? I know I find that heavy drinkers find it difficult to accept that I can have a good time when I'm choosing not to drink.

Just food for thought - and you can make your own mind up!

(You can read more about alcohol awareness on our website www.myhealthnetwork.co.uk)

Antidepressants are useless at beating depression

09 December 2009 This article appeared in What Doctors Don't Tell You.

Even though their annual sales are recorded in the billions of dollars, antidepressants aren’t doing their job. Most people with clinical depression aren’t being helped by the drugs, a new study has discovered. Researchers reckon that a brain protein called monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) is responsible for most cases of clinical depression, and yet they are not affected by the antidepressants. This would explain why earlier studies have discovered the drugs are useless in half of all cases of depression.
Early generations of antidepressants developed in the 1970s did target MAO-A proteins, but they were dropped because of adverse reactions, especially with some foods. Since then, antidepressant research has moved away from the MAO-A protein, and has produced drugs that are less effective. Researchers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, who measured the effectiveness of antidepressants with the aid of advanced brain imaging technology, say that time has proved to be a better healer than the drugs, and many people with depression see the production of the protein normalise by itself. (Source: Archives of General Psychiatry, 2009; 66: 1304).

So what other options do you have?

Firstly, look at your diet. Eliminate caffeine and alcohol as they are both mood and hormone disruptors. Make sure you are getting plenty of Omega 3 in your diet by eating oily fish at least 3 times a week. Include protein foods such as dairy products, meats, fish, wheat, oats,which contain tyrosine, a precursor to the mood elevating compound dopamine. Have lots of fresh fruits and vegetables and eliminate junk/processed foods.

Take regular, gentle exercise to help generate serotonin the "feel good" hormone. As a precursor of serotonin, 5-HTP can be an effective way to increase serotonin levels and may be helpful in depression. St Johns Wort can be useful in cases of mild to moderate depression.

~Try talking therapies. Coaching or stress counselling can be a really useful way to help put your problems in a context where you can feel more in control. Make a habit of putting aside time daily to think about and be grateful for what's good about your life. Focus on the positive and what you want, rather than what you don't want.

You may find the Stress Solutions programme at www.myhealthnetwork.co.uk useful. It's full of information and ideas to help anyone lead a healthy, stress free life.

I get a lot of bloating and constipation, could it be my diet?

I'd say your diet could have a lot to do with your problem, plus your eating patterns and stress levels. It might be useful for you to do a food intolerance test to make sure that you are not eating foods that disagree with you. (visit Food Detective for a reasonably priced home testing kit.)

The most common problem foods are dairy and wheat and you might want to try leaving them off for a while and see if that makes a difference. Make sure you eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly and that you don't watch TV or work at the computer whilst eating as that switches off your digestion.

You can find out more about good diet and healthy digestion in our Zest for Life programme at http://www.myhealthnetwork.co.uk/

Can I take Ginkgo Biloba with Warfarin?

No, it is not advisable to take Ginkgo when you take any medication that thins the blood such as warfarin, heparin or aspirin. Ginkgo has the same blood thinning properties and there is a danger that you will make your blood too thin.

My Health Network blog begins!

At last My Health Network is getting into the world of social networking and blogging, with the help of the tech guys at the National B2B centre. Many thanks Gareth.

I'll be posting weekly and I hope to answer as many of your questions about health as I can. I'd love to hear your feedback and do please send your questions to me.

I promise to give you impartial views on health matters - we are not funded by advertisers, drug companies etc. just our subscribers.