The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The BASIS top 10 most read posts of 2017

Today, we reflect on our efforts to share addiction science during the past year. We hope that you’ve benefited from the material we’ve posted this year, from our weekly reviews of scientific studies of smoking, gambling, drinking, and other kinds of substance use to our editorials from researchers, treatment providers, and those who have personally experienced addiction. We’d love to learn more about how you’ve used The BASIS in your own life, what posts you have personally enjoyed, and any topics you would be interested in hearing about moving into the new year! Please share your experiences by emailing us... Read more →

Can vaping help smokers quit? The real story from a real story

Editor's Note: This op-ed comes from Dr. William G. Shadel, Associate Director, Population Health Program and Senior Behavioral Scientist at RAND Corporation. A couple of years ago, my son’s coach approached me after practice and asked, “Can this thing really help me quit smoking?” He was holding a large, black box in his hand – a sort of stylized plastic straw jutted out from one side of the box and four green and red lighted buttons littered the other side. I recognized this as a “vape mod,” a more complicated and some would say, advanced version of the typical electronic... Read more →

Rites of passage: Changing engagement in youth risk behaviours

Editor’s Note: This op-ed comes from Dr. Heather Wardle, Assistant Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. It is part of our Special Series on Youth Risky Behavior. I remember the first time I gambled. I was eight and at my dad’s golf club. Whilst the adults chatted, I wandered off and found this amazing machine with bright lights, fruity symbols and fun music that gave me money when I put my coppers into it. Pressing buttons randomly, not knowing what to do, I was amazed when more money than I put in appeared in the dispenser... Read more →

What I've learned studying youth hazardous drinking

Editor’s Note: Professor Ryan J. Martin of East Carolina University authored this op-ed as part of our Special Series on Youth Risky Behavior. Dr. Martin serves as Associate Professor in the Department of Health Education and Promotion, College of Health and Human Performance. I have always been intrigued why people sought to be intoxicated. A part of that intrigue stemmed from reading about the lives of musicians and actors I grew up listening to and watching, some of which died at a young age from abuse of alcohol and drugs. Further, the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program was widely... Read more →

Introduction to the Special Series on Youth Risky Behavior

During the month of September, most parents are preparing their kids for a new school year and anticipating the new people and situations their children might encounter. Along with these thoughts often come concerns about potential new threats to their kids’ well-being. As kids age and develop more independence, they have more opportunities to interact with potential objects of addiction, including both substances, like alcohol and cigarettes, and behaviors, like gambling. Here at The BASIS, we are dedicating the month of September to the topic of youth risky behavior. Our team of writers will distill four recent scientific studies related... Read more →

Conversation with a stranger on an airplane… or how I came to study LGBTQ health

Editor’s Note: Professor Kimberly F. Balsam of Palo Alto University authored this op-ed as part of our Special Series on Addiction within the LGBTQ+ Community. Professor Balsam serves as Director of the LGBTQ Area of Emphasis and Co-Director of the Center for LGBTQ Evidence-Based Applied Research (CLEAR) at Palo Alto University. She is also the President of APA’s Division 44 (Society for the Psychological Study of LGBT Issues). “Are you married? What does your husband do? What did you do this weekend?” All of these are seemingly innocuous questions, unless you have to come out about your sexual orientation to... Read more →

Introduction to Special Series on Addiction among the LGBTQ+ Community

In many parts of the world, LGBTQ+ people (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning) have more rights than ever, yet LGBTQ+ people are more vulnerable than others to substance use disorders and other expressions of addiction. LGBTQ+ people, including those who identify as Intersex or Asexual, generally experience stressors on a daily basis that their heterosexual or cis-gender counterparts do not. From employment, housing, and health care discrimination to devastating family and social rejection, LGBTQ+ individuals are under a disproportionately greater number of daily stressors that put them at a disproportionately greater risk for engaging in a variety of risky behaviors... Read more →

Self-development and Problem Gambling

Editor’s Note: This op-ed was prepared by Dr. Harold Wynne of Wynne Resources. For the past four decades, I have been intrigued with self-development, both as an adult educator and social scientist interested in human behaviour, addiction and problem gambling. As an adult educator, I have experienced first-hand how success in education programs leads to the personal growth and development of adult students. I have participated in graduation ceremonies for adult students who have achieved high school diplomas and witnessed the pride these people and their families have in this later-in-life accomplishment. I have witnessed the same sense of accomplishment... Read more →

Issues Surrounding Marijuana as Medicine

Editor's note: This essay was authored by Ken C. Winters, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Oregon Research Institute & Kevin A. Sabet, Ph.D., Director, Drug Policy Institute, University of Florida. This op-ed provides an overview of the key question at the center of the controversy: does marijuana’s potential benefit outweigh its potential harms. We summarize the extent of medical marijuana laws in the U.S., marijuana’s development as a medicine and conclude that health benefits of marijuana’s core elements - THC and CBD – are associated with a modicum of support for a very limited number of health problems. Introduction Currently, 29 states... Read more →

One Moment at a Time: Mindfulness, Meditation, and Hope for Addiction Treatment

Near the end of my third year of medical school, I attended a silent mindfulness meditation (MM) retreat. On the 10th day, when the silence was broken, I walked outside appreciating the quiet, warm day. I saw a man with a calm face sitting under a tree. I decided to join him on the grass, feeling there was something I could learn from him. As I sat down next to him in the shade of the tree, I was surprised by the bumpy firmness of the ground and the giant maple’s gnarled roots which were buried just below the surface.... Read more →