Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area

July 20, 2015

Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area: Stress regulation and withdrawal

Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area is not only dangerous to the brain but the effects can also spread through other organs of the body

One of the areas of the brain that can easily be affected by effects of substance abuse is the hypothalamus area. This is the part of the brain that is responsible for several duties including controlling of the body temperature, hunger, thirst, and sleep. Owing to these functions, the hypothalamus is equally playing a key role in how we respond to stress. According to the experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center which is one of the leading pioneers in natural and holistic addiction treatment, we cannot effectively talk about addiction without the mention one stress. Doctor Dalal Akoury MD and also the founder of this facility agree that stress regulation is highly relevant to our understanding of addiction. And that is why we want to explore further into details the effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area of the brain even as we also look the stress regulation and withdrawal. It is therefore important to note that when an individual experiences stress, the hypothalamus releases chemicals known as hormones. It is these hormones that allows’ the brain and the body to respond to that stress. Unlike neurotransmitters (which are chemicals limited to the brain) hormones travel throughout the body via the blood system. It therefore means that hormones can exert an effect on other body systems as well. When these chemical hormones operate in the brain, we refer to them as neuromodulators. These hormones (neuromodulators) can act just like neurotransmitters in the brain. Like neurotransmitters, they have their own receptors associated with them.

Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area: Stress the motivator of relapse

From our studies, it is obvious that stress is a well-known relapse trigger to all users of drugs. It capable of prompt powerful cravings in addicted persons I can therefore say almost with certainty that majority of us in one way or another have come across someone who struggled with an addiction and tried to quitting but ultimately relapsed when they became stressed out. Doctor Akoury says that under normal circumstances, at the beginning periods of recovery withdrawal symptoms often create stress and the vicious cycle continues. It is however very important to appreciate that stress will always prompts the addictive use, while efforts to discontinue use prompt stress. During withdrawal, these stress hormones are elevated. Even though stress levels are high, the brain’s anti-stress neuromodulators appear to decrease, as do dopamine and serotonin in the nucleus accumbens. This suggests that withdrawal affected the reward system (evidenced by decreasing dopamine and serotonin). At the same time, withdrawal activates the stress and anxiety systems. This “1-2 punch” heightens the negative experience of withdrawal. This prompts people to seek relief via the addictive substance or activity (i.e., relapse).

In summary, the neurotransmitter pathways associated with the amygdala and the hypothalamus play a crucial role in sustaining the addiction process and this occurs thorough:

The negative emotional memory that is associated with drug withdrawal
The positive emotional memory that is associated with drug cues
The disruption that occurs to stress regulation
The pleasurable relief from withdrawal symptoms that occurs by resuming drug use or addictive activities

Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area: The brain also helps to reverse addiction

There’s no doubt that addiction is wreaking havoc on the brain. That is the naked truth that addiction causing significant chemical, structural, and molecular changes that quite literally hijack the brain. However, treatment can reverse or counteract these effects. Besides, as the recovery process proceeds, the brain continues to heal. And even though it is true that many changes do occur in the brain after addiction takes hold. Nonetheless, we must also remember that the brain is a dynamic and ever-changing system. Changes to the brain’s neuronal circuits, chemistry, and structures powerfully drive the addiction forward. However, a strong motivation to change, can just as powerfully counter these changes. People can learn new coping skills. They can practice behavioral modification techniques. These efforts will counter those damaging changes.

Abstinence from addictive substances or activities can lead to a reversal of many physical changes that occurred during addiction. Combination therapies (medications plus psychotherapy) help the recovery process by managing the physiological effects of addiction and withdrawal. Cognitive-behavioral treatments work to mend and repair the psychological impact of addiction. Doctor Akoury says that from this discussion, it should come out clearly that the brain is quite amazing. Like for instance it has the capacity to control its own physiology and is highly adaptive. Each behavioral step we make forward has a beneficial physiological effect on the brain. Therefore a sincere effort to change behavior is a powerful tool that mends the damaged brain. It therefore means that when we change our behaviors by finding new healthy outlets for satisfying cravings, we succeed in correcting the damaged brain functions. These positive changes form new memory and behavioral circuits in the brain that strengthen and reinforce recovery efforts. Yes, the brain has changed because of the addictive process. Nevertheless, even people with severe addiction problems succeed in overcoming their addictions. Many do so without any outside help. Motivation is one of the key.

Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area: The Psychology of Addiction and Recovery

We have introduced the Bio-Psycho-Social-Spiritual (BPSS) model of addiction. We will use this model to answer the question “How do people get addicted?” So far, we have reviewed the biological reasons people can get addicted. The biological portion of the BPSS model considers addiction a brain disease with biological, chemical, and genetic roots.

We now turn our attention to the psychological portion of the BPSS model. The psychological portion of the BPSS model views addiction in different ways. It is important to note that people may get addicted to whatever they are addicted to through various means including the following:

It could be as a result of learning the habit from others
People may find recovery difficult because of the way they think about things.
They may also lack good problem-solving skills.
Addiction may occur as a means of coping with uncomfortable feelings.
Addiction could also develop because of a personality defect or mental disorder.
Addiction may be due to developmental immaturity.

We will explore the psychological factors that affect addiction and recovery in due course however, even if addiction originated because of some biological process, it is important to note that recovery from addiction requires people to become motivated to make significant changes. Psychology is a science that studies what motivates people to behave in certain ways. Therefore people can improve the quality of their lives by learning new behaviors and changing old thought patterns. People can also benefit from increasing their maturity, and improving their copings skills. Finally to get these full benefits, it is only fair for you to consult with the experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under the professional guidance of doctor Dalal Akoury today to free yourself from all the effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area of your brain and all other organs of your body today.

Effects of addiction on the hypothalamus area: Stress regulation and withdrawal

Sex Addiction Stress, and Stress

May 25, 2015

Stress, Sex And Addiction: Roles Of Corticotrophin Releasing Factor, Oxytocin And Arginine- Vasopressin In Sex Addiction Stress.

Sex Addiction Stress

Stress sensitivity and sex are predictive factors for the development of neuropsychiatric conditions. it has been thought stresses are the sole cause for addiction but this isn’t true since triggers can also cause relapse to drug use. Sex Addiction Stress and stress involve similar pathways.

The development and clinical course of addiction-related disorders do appear to involve neuroadaptations within neurocircuitries that modulate stress responses and are influenced by several neuropeptides. These include corticotropin-releasing factor, the prototypic member of this class, as well as oxytocin and arginine-vasopressin that play important roles in affiliative behaviors. Interestingly, these peptides function to balance emotional behavior, with sexual dimorphism in the oxytocin/arginine-vasopressin systems, a fact that might play an important role in the differential responses of women and men to stressful stimuli and the specific sex-based prevalence of certain addictive disorders.

Stress and Sex Addiction Stress

Stress generally is defined as any stimulus that challenges physiological homeostasis—that is, which alters the balance or equilibrium of the normal physiological state of the organism.

Individuals exposed to chronic stress exhibit a higher propensity to become addicts. Stress-induced relapse is also higher in addicts. In general, there is a higher prevalence of addiction in patients diagnosed with anxiety disorders and depression. Additionally, childhood trauma is associated with increased vulnerability to addiction. Exposure to high peer deviance in childhood and adolescence is among the strongest known risk factors for drug use and drug abuse. Interestingly, a very recent study has found that individuals with increased risks of drug addiction because of parental divorce or genetic liability are more sensitive to the pathogenic effects of peer deviance.

Stress and addiction are interconnected in several ways. For example, stressful life events may predispose individuals to engage in addictive behavior or relapse.

Sex Addiction Stress

Epidemiological studies have observed significant sex- specific differences among patients suffering from addiction and other neuropsychiatric disorders. The onset, severity, clinical course, and treatment response of anxiety disorders also differ significantly in women compared to men. Importantly, the sex bias in neuropsychiatric disorders, including post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), remains even after adjusting for the type of trauma, pre-existing psychiatric disorders, and sex differences in reporting. Several studies have found increased prevalence of depression in women. Similar sex differences exist for addictive disorders. For example, more adult males abuse addictive drugs than females across most drug classes, including alcohol, psychostimulants, and narcotics. However, women develop addiction more quickly. There are also critical differences in the way that illicit substances affect the two sexes.

Men and women also show different propensities to relapse, and are differentially affected by triggers for relapse to drug taking, putting women at greater risk for repeated relapses despite the higher prevalence of drug abuse in men. Interestingly, once the addiction cycle resumes, women show longer periods of drug use before their next quit attempt.

The sex differences may also be a result of hormonal and neural differences between men and women in relationship to their response to the addictive behavior.

Corticotropin-releasing factor and Sex addiction Stress.

CRF is a 41-amino acid-containing neuropeptide. CRF orchestrates the stress response by acting at the level of the pituitary to initiate the HPA axis response to stress, as well as centrally to modulate limbic and brain monoamine systems that are important in autonomic and behavioral components of the stress response. CRF causes its effects by stimulation of corticotropin-releasing factor 1 receptor (CRF1R) and CRF2R, and displays an 18-fold greater affinity for CRF1R than CRF2R.

Physiological responses to stress involve the release of CRF from the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus, followed by stimulation of ACTH release from the anterior pituitary. ACTH, in turn, stimulates the secretion of cortisol/corticosterone from the adrenal glands. In addition, CRF has an extensive extrahypothalamic influence across the corticostriatal-limbic regions, and plays a critical role in modulating subjective and behavioral stress responses. Central catecholamines, particularly noradrenaline and dopamine, are involved in modulating brain motivational pathways that are important in regulating distress, exerting cognitive and behavioral control, and tempering behavioral and cognitive responses critical for adaptation and homeostasis. The hypothalamic and extrahypothalamic CRF pathways and central catecholamines target brain motivational path- ways to critically affect adaptive and homeostatic processes. CRF dysregulation has been linked to the pathophysiology of mood and anxiety disorders. During stress, release of limbic CRF can modulate monoamine systems that have been implicated in mood and cognition. Although activation of both the HPA axis and central monoaminergic systems by CRF during acute stress is adaptive, the inappropriate or persistent activation of these systems can have adverse consequences leading to psychopathology.

Oxytocin and arginine-vasopressin in Sex addiction Stress

Sex addiction Stress and stress

Cells originating in the PVN have specific pathways that efficiently deliver OXY to other structures in the brain including the amygdala, BNST, septum, hippocampus, and NAc. OXY released by peripheral organs or by the posterior pituitary does not readily cross the blood–brain barrier, with only 1–2% crossing. In disparity, the local expression of OXY receptors is highly variable and explains differences in social attachment within and between species. OXY exerts anxiolytic and anti- depressive effects in various models.

OXY, in collaboration with hormone dopamine, is vital for pairing and bonding in prairie voles. When OXY is infused into the VTA, it increases dopaminergic activity in the NAc, and stimulation of oxytocinergic projections within the VTA increases extracellular DA within the NAc while concurrently inducing penile erection. OXY-induced dopaminergic release within the meso- limbic DA system may impact the attribution of incentive salience to a variety of social stimuli and ultimately influence an organism’s drive towards such objects thus causing addiction.

Sex Addiction Stress is a menace that should be fought by all means that is why we at Integrative Addiction Institute are committed to availing help to addicts and offering training to Health care providers in Integrative Addiction. Call on Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) today for assistance.

Stress And Sex Addiction Stress: Roles Of Corticotrophin Releasing Factor, Oxytocin And Arginine- Vasopressin In Sex Addiction.

Enzymes and Contribution in Cancer Treatment

December 9, 2014

Enzymes for Cancer Treatment

enzymes-for-fighting-cancer Cancer has managed to earn itself quite a reputation throughout the world as a major threat to everyone. This therefore warrants a keen understanding of the disease and how it works.

Cancer is formed through a breakdown in a variety of the normal cellular and immunity mechanisms in the body. Often, body components damaged by free radicals are built up within the cells in the body throughout life. Extreme oxidative stress resulting from factors such as body injury or diseases catalyze this process. This damage caused to body tissue initiates the release of chemical signals to arrest the situation, but in large amounts, the chemical signals eventually cause further damage to tissue. This tissue damage cycle is responsible for the damage of DNA in the end.

As you might have known from raw biology, the DNA is responsible for a number of regulatory processes and mechanisms. If it can no longer perform this regulation function, it only means that the growth of cancer cannot be regulated any more. And given the inflammation or tissue damage already in place, the body immunity is likely to miscommunicate, mistaking the developing cancer cells for other damaged body tissue. This disrupted cellular communication gives cancer a window to thrive. Even more disadvantageous to the victim is the effects of the reactive species of oxygen whose effects on the natural cellular controls eventually prevent apoptosis of the developing cancer cells.

Cancer cells are also ‘smart’. They have adaptive characteristics that make them survive against the body immunity mechanisms. While enzymes are known for their digestive abilities in the body, the cancer tumor for instance produce a dense fibrin protein which not only help them stick around but also aid their protection against the possible digestion by the immune system. Enzymes in the bloodstream are capable of digesting and dissolving the fibrin coating on the cancer tumor. The enzymes would however have to be in large amounts. In addition, they would need to be enzymes with high amounts of nattokinase or protease or break down the thick fibrin.

Low Enzyme Levels And Cancer

Research suggests a rather close relationship between low levels of enzymes and the formation and proliferation of cancer tumor. The enzymes as already mentioned are capable of destroying the cancer tumor naturally. The body is programmed to have the foods taken in digested by the very enzymes that come into the gut with the food. This suggests that the digestive system is meant to process foods that are raw for this ideal set up to work out, since raw food comes with enzymes that aid the breakdown of that particular food right in the upper gut (stomach). Food usually stays there for about 30- 45 minutes.

If that were to be the case. It would mean that down the gut in the lower stomach and the duodenum, the pancreatic enzymes have a reduced work and a lot of them can be reserved and channeled into the bloodstream where they do the cleaning work and could help digest any existing cancer tumor in the bloodstream.

However, this is never the case as the foods we eat are processed: cooked or treated. These processes that food undergoes are responsible for killing of the enzymes. The food thus does not get predigested in upper stomach. The pancreas is therefore overworked as soon as the food gets to the lower stomach as it has to produce extra enzymes for braking down the food. In the process, the food is often incompletely digested.

This partial digestion of the food ends up with some undigested food into the bloodstream where they are treated as foreign and toxic to the body system. Being viewed in that lens by the body’s immunity, the system that already has much to do, has to put up with even extra work of fighting the undigested food being considered toxic in the bloodstream.

The overworked pancreas loses its ability to produce sustainable amount of enzymes in the long run resulting with an individual with low enzyme levels. The moment all the essential enzymes exist in low amounts, the body loses its ability to naturally fight and destroy cancerous cells.

enzymes-for-fighting-cancer

How to Boost the Enzymes Level

In that condition, you must make use of enzyme supplements. A number of them are recommended for use. The most recommended one being the PapayaPro. The product has mature green papaya powder as key ingredient, with the most active enzyme being Papain. Papain has a unique digestive formula and is expressly powerful as compared to pancreatin or even the pancreatic enzymes. It is not affected by changes in the intestinal pH and can work equally in both alkaline and acidic conditions. It is highly aggressive when taken in an empty stomach and will work more than the pancreatic enzymes in its attacking and destroying of the cancer tumor.

The Citrus Pectin enzyme also found in the PapayaPro has an even more unique ability, it can prevent the spread of cancer cells (metastasis). Their molecules enter the blood and confuse cancer cells for lectin (cancer protein). As a result, the tumors are prevented from being able to attach to other body parts to start new cancer colonies. This has been supported by a number of studies.

AwareMed recommends the use of enzyme supplements to boost the body immunity and help fight cancer. More information can be obtained by contacting our doctors at AwareMed.

Enzymes and Contribution in Cancer Treatment

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Gut Inflammation Causing Your Mood Disorders?

December 8, 2014

Gut Inflammation Could Be the Source of Your Mood Disorders

As much as this may be shocking to some, it’s a proven medical fact that we all have to believe. There’s now a strong evidence showing the connection between our gut health, brain function and eventually our moods.

Like most people, I always believed that it’s only stress that can inflict much havoc with our digestive tract. However, as I later found out, problems in our gastrointestinal tract (commonly known as the GI tract) also stand a high chance of negatively impacting our brains and thus causing a lot of anxiety and depression.

Simply put, whatever goes on in your digestive tract has a lot of influence in the CNS-Central Nervous System, your neural circuitry and consequently stands a chance to influence on your behavior- which can be a positive or negative influence.

As revealed in the latest research, there’s for example, a link between how your digestive tract develops in the first few years of one’s life and his or her brain’s health. Subsequently, the influence can be seen later on in his or her future behaviors. The explanation for this hypothesis is based on the fact that a healthy gastrointestinal floral populace impacts positively on the neurons that are tasked with motor control and behavior. In fact, the research concludes that those with distinctly overwhelming population of these gut pathogens (or gut dysbiosis) stand a great chance to develop anxiety and depression in their later lives.

GI Tract Inflammation

Gut Inflammation and Mood Disorders

For deteriorating gut and intestinal health, a mechanism for the development of systemic inflammation and autoimmunity develops. This is a risky situation given the fact that both conditions of inflammation and autoimmunity have for long been linked with the birth of mood disorders.

As demonstrated in a different research, animal experiments in regards to inflammatory bowel disease proved that this disease had a strong adverse effect on the hypothalamus where it increases the sensitivity of the Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal Axis– the HPA, to stress. With all these, it’s only reasonable to affirm the intimate relationship that exist between brain function, gut health and mental health.

According another study on the inflammatory process and depression, addressing inflammation concerns in women who just had their first birth could go a long way in lowering or even prevent the harsh symptoms of post-delivery depression. The research also claims of a cause and effect relationship that exist between Intestinal permeability/GI inflammation and the pathogenesis of alcoholism.

It’s now quite an irrefutable fact that our microbial symbiotic gut inhabitants and ourselves-for which I mean the central nervous system, are in a constant communication through the GABA receptors present in the vagus nerve.

Could Chronic Inflammation result in Depression?

Research has shown that depression could be as a result of gastrointestinal inflammation. The research provides several in attesting to this as below:

It’s a common knowledge that depressions are in most cases found alongside autoimmune diseases and gastrointestinal inflammations as well as with cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases, cancer and type-2-diabetes, all of which chronic low-grade inflammation is a noticeable contributing factor. As a conclusion, the researchers suggested that there’s a likelihood that depression is “neuropsychiatric manifestation of a chronic inflammatory syndrome”
A dysfunction in the “gut-brain axis” is possibly the primary cause of inflammation as suggested by researchers. According to the researchers and other experts consulted during the research, the gut is literally a second brain- the same identical tissues making the brain during gestation, are the same found in the gut. The gut also has a large amount of serotonin neurotransmitter which plays a big role in mood control
A good number of clinical studies conducted over time have shown that treatment of gastrointestinal inflammation by use of probiotics, vitamin D and B, and omega-3 fats could worsen the quality of life as well as depression symptoms by offsetting proinflammatory stimuli to the brain.

Free Advice: It’s of great help to understand that the bacteria in your gut form an active and integrated part of your body which essentially, heavily depend on the diet you use and are thus hugely affected by the lifestyle you lead. Too much processed foods and / or sweetened drinks impact negatively on the healthy microflora reducing their population. Sugars in general feed the bad bacteria in the gut and increase their population goes high and the end, systemic inflammation is promoted. Consequently, mood disorders creep in.

Probiotics and Their role in mood disorder

Going a step further in this discussion, could it be possible certain human strains of probiotics cause a therapeutic effect on mood? And could this further emphasize the relationship between gut inflammation and mood disorders? Through several studies conducted, this is factually true.

A particular strain known as the Bifidobacterium infantis, has been shown to considerably influence the stress response by standardizing specific measurements of the Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal Axis in addition to immune response and modulation of cytokine, all in an amazing model of depression and stress.

Evidence continue streaming in through research work to support the claim that the brain- our body organ with the sole responsibility of regulating the GI’s functioning through the vagus nerve, is able to communicate directly with the various microbial that form the natural surroundings of the GI tract. In fact, one of the researches conducted claims, “Since the interactions of microbes with host leads to a complex balance of host genes, alteration of microbiota population can cause several metabolic disorders.”

GI Tract Inflammation

What all these shows is that there is a need to maintain the health of the digestive system’s bacterial interaction (environment) and check the use of probiotics

Maintaining an optimally functioning GI tract is of great significance given the profound prospect of the close relationship and communication between our brain and our gut. Also, this statement should open our eyes to give priority to the GI system when evaluating new patients, lest we wave away from the possible understanding of the causes of many chronic diseases.

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An institution set up to create awareness on healthy living, lifestyle, treatment options on commonly occurring diseases like cancer, addictions etc. We share information on common medical conditions as well as offer accurate treatment to on health problems. Call us or contact us directly from here.

Gut Inflammation Could Be the Source of Your Mood Disorders

Beta-Endorphins (Β-Ε) Levels and Alcoholism

November 30, 2014

The Effects Of Low Intensity Exercise On Beta-Endorphins (Β-Ε) Levels And Urge For Alcohol In Alcoholic Patients.

What are Beta-endorphins?

beta endorphin Beta-endorphins, or B-endorphins, are substances created by the pituitary gland. They specifically function as neurotransmitters, or conductors of messages between nerve cells. These substances are found around both the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. The Beta-endorphins is classified as a peptide since it contains 31 amino acids linked together. The beta-endorphins circulate around the brain, spinal cord, and secondary nerve systems in the body. Two glands, the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus, have a particular prevalence of the substance. The pituitary gland is responsible for releasing this endorphin into the blood, where it then travels to the central nervous system in the first legs of its journey. The beta-endorphins are agonists. They therefore connect to a cell and kick-starts a response. Beta-endorphins targets portions of a cell called opiate receptors in particular. The substance can reach these receptors in bodily tissue via a process called diffusion.

Beta-endorphins and alcohol

When alcohol is consumed at below risk levels it is known to be very rewarding health wise, it improves the quality of life but when a person begins taking alcohol in higher levels then there are problems that he will definitely have to suffer as a result of the severe effects of alcohol consumption. There are myriads of alcohol disorders needless to mention many accidents occur when people are drunken making alcohol a lead cause of accidental deaths.

Alcohol consumption has been reported to influence the activity of the endogenous opioid system. Reports indicate that acute exposure to ethanol leads to an enhanced release of brain Beta-endorphins (β-E) which through its interaction with μ and δ receptors mediates, at least in part, neurobehavioral effects such as reinforcement and acquisition of ethanol drinking behavior. Specifically, ethanol intake has been shown to increase β-E release by the pituitary and hypothalamus, an action that is mediated by the increase of corticotropin releasing hormone in a dose dependent manner. Furthermore, some reports indicate a biphasic effect of ethanol on hypothalamic Beta-endorphins release. However, the ethanol-induced increase of Beta-endorphins release is fast and transient, lasting about 15-20 minutes before normalizing again. Besides its effects on pituitary and hypothalamic Beta-endorphins, ethanol administration enhances Beta-endorphins release in the nucleus accumbens. This is a brain region important for the processes of reward and reinforcement. Therefore, the activation of μ and δ receptors by the increase in Beta-Endorphins levels due to ethanol intake may be pivotal in reinforcing properties of alcohol intake. On the other hand, chronic exposure to ethanol may cause adaptive responses of neuronal systems linked to negative reinforcement. Decreased Beta-endorphins production following chronic ethanol exposure may be responsible for some of the feelings of discomfort and the presence of negative reinforcement. Reports indicate that chronic ethanol abuse results in lower concentration of Beta-endorphins in the cerebrospinal fluid and plasma of male and female alcoholics. Therefore, chronic ethanol abuse might result in a central opioid deficiency. That deficiency might be related to decreased synthesis and release of Beta-endorphins in the hypothalamus and pituitary as well as lower density and activity of the opioid receptors.

A group of scientists conducted a research study to find out the effects of low intensity exercise on Beta-endorphins (β-E) levels and urge for alcohol in alcoholic patients. These researchers were Athanasios Z Jamurtas, Nikos Zourbanos, Kalliopi Georgakouli, Panagiotis Georgoulias, Eirini Manthou, Ioannis G Fatouros, Marios Goudas, Yiannis Koutedakis and Yannis Theodorakis.

This study used nine chronic alcoholic patients of whom 8 were males and 1 was female. These participants who were undergoing alcohol detoxification were recruited from a psychiatric hospital in Greece and 9 healthy controls volunteered to participate. Patients were diagnosed as being alcohol dependent according to the DSM-IV and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). AUDIT consists of 10 questions scored individually from 0 = never to 4 = 4 or more times per week. A total score of > 8 is an indication of alcohol abuse, a score of > 15 indicates serious abuse/addiction whilst a score between 8 and 10 is an indication of being at risk. Cronbachâ€™s alpha coefficient was .73. Alcoholic patients were young and the medical exam revealed no presence of cardiovascular or metabolic disease in the participants. However, five patients were receiving antidepressant medicine, five were receiving anticonvulsant medicine and seven of them were receiving Thiamine, Pyridoxine, and Cyanocobalamine (three times a day) and folic acid (5 mg a day).

The findings of the study

beta endorphins All patients had a history of addiction of 10 years or more. All subjects were able to complete a 30-minute workout and the mean relative exercise heart rate was 61.1 + 4.9 % and 62.2 + 3.5% of their maximum heart rate for the alcoholic patients and healthy controls, respectively. Beta-Endorphins levels were significantly lower (p<0.001) in alcoholic patients whereas exercise resulted in significant increases (p<0.001, Cohenâ€™s D: 3.31) only in the alcoholic group. Lactic acid at baseline was not significantly different between groups and increased significantly (p<0.001) after exercise in both groups. Analysis for CBC parameters revealed a significant time effect for red blood cells, hemoglobin and hematocrit. None of the remaining parameters was significantly different between groups nor was changed due to exercise. Pearson correlation analysis revealed non-significant relationships between Beta-endorphins and urge for alcohol (r = 0.23, p = 0.58). Finally, results on the Beta-Endorphins test revealed no significant changes in scores for alcohol urge in alcoholic patients (pre: 2.3 + 1.17; post: 1.87 + 1.17).

Finally, we at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center are committed to availing help to addicts by availing some of the most integrative approaches to healing an addict. Be it issues with Beta-Endorphins or general addiction treatment needs, we are here to help. We advocate for natural healing to all kinds of addiction. Call on Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for help.

The Effects Of Low Intensity Exercise On Beta-Endorphins (Β-Ε) Levels And Urge For Alcohol In Alcoholic Patients.

Tag Archives: Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis