Latest news with #Queen'sUniversity
2 hours ago
- Health
Are you drinking heavily? You may be at greater risk of liver disease
The rate of serious liver disease among heavy drinkers has more than doubled over the last 20 years as the demographics around who is consuming more alcohol shift, a new study suggests. The research, published (new window) Wednesday in American medical journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, found that heavy alcohol use is up among women, older adults, lower-income individuals and people with metabolic syndromes like obesity, high blood pressure and high blood sugar. These groups tend to already be at a higher risk for liver disease, and excessive drinking only makes that worse, doctors say. Liver disease is real, it's surging, and your risk is much higher than you might think, said Dr. Brian Lee, a study author and a transplant hepatologist who treats liver transplant patients in the U.S. WATCH | Research suggests heavy drinking is shifting and liver disease is up: Liver disease is a leading cause of alcohol-related deaths in Canada (new window) and the United States (new window) . Severe forms of the illness, which has three main stages (new window) , leads to cirrhosis. That's when the liver has experienced irreversible damage and is significantly scarred. Alcohol causes fat to deposit in the liver, that fat then causes inflammation, the inflammation then causes scarring and the scarring is what causes the long-term complications of liver disease, said Lee. Until it gets to the later stages, there aren't usually many obvious symptoms (new window) related to alcohol-related liver disease. And there's also not any specific treatment that can help. People are often advised to stop drinking or make other lifestyle changes, but in severe cases where the liver has stopped working, a liver transplant might be necessary. Rate of liver disease doubled: study The new research followed more than 44,600 American adults who were 20 years or older from 1999 to 2020. Over that 20-year period, the study found that among heavy drinkers, the rate of serious liver disease increased from 1.8 per cent in 1999 to 2004, to 4.3 per cent in 2013 to 2020. That increase was mostly in women, older people and those living in poverty. Even though the research included only people in the United States, experts say this is a global trend. In Canada, recent research (new window) has also shown that alcohol-related illnesses are on the rise and that women are increasingly impacted. Better consumption guidelines needed: Expert One thing that we need to really try as a population is to better educate our population on how much alcohol they're actually consuming, said Dr. Jennifer Flemming, an associate professor in medicine and public health at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. Flemming says many people don't understand what constitutes a standard drink. Experts blame this uncertainty on a mishmash of alcohol consumption guidelines and little transparency on the amount of alcohol in a standard drink. For example, Flemming says in the United States, 14 grams of pure alcohol is considered a standard drink, compared to 10 grams of pure alcohol in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, in Canada, the national health department says a standard drink is 13.45 grams of pure alcohol (new window) , which includes a 12 ounce bottle of beer at five per cent alcohol, or a five ounce glass of wine at 12 per cent alcohol. Enlarge image (new window) Experts say warning labels on alcohol outlining the health risks related to its consumption would help inform people. Photo: Radio-Canada / Neil Cochrane/ICI Radio-Canada Warning labels may help, study suggests But labels on alcohol products in many parts of the world don't actually specify how many grams the alcohol contains, which Flemming says can make it hard for people to know. Though research is limited, some studies suggest that placing warning labels on alcohol can decrease consumption. A study published (new window) in 2020 examined the effect of warning labels on alcohol in the Yukon. The researchers found that sales of alcohol with warning labels decreased and concluded that these labels resulted in reduced consumption. When people noticed the warnings, they changed their beliefs, said one of the researchers Tim Stockwell, who is a scientist at the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria in B.C. "Those people who increased their awareness of the cancer risk expressed intentions to cut down their drinking. Which consumption guidelines should Canadians follow? The Canadian Centre for Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) released new alcohol consumption guidelines (new window) in 2023. They stated that no amount of alcohol is safe and recommended no more than two drinks a week for men and women. Despite receiving funding from Health Canada to create these new guidelines, the federal health department has not adopted them, and its website features different recommendations (new window) . In an email, a Health Canada spokesperson told CBC News the CCSA's work is ongoing and said the Health Canada website will be updated after this work is completed. As for adding warning labels that better define the risks and serving size, Health Canada says it is monitoring the situation and will continue to inform the public about the harms of alcohol. Enlarge image (new window) Tim Stockwell, a scientist with the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria, says there's been a shift in public awareness about the health impacts of heavy drinking. That's why he expects future research to show a drop in alcohol-related illnesses like liver disease. Photo: University of Victoria But experts say more needs to be done to better protect people. At this time, Stockwell says the best guidance for Canadians is to follow the recommendations by the CCSA. The pressure is mounting, said Stockwell, though he noted how challenging it is given the power of large commercial alcohol companies. LISTEN | The Dose: How does drinking affect my health? (new window) People more aware of health risks: Expert The new research doesn't account for increased alcohol consumption (new window) during the COVID-19 pandemic, but research in Canada found that (new window) alcohol-related illnesses did significantly increase during that time. It also doesn't account for early suggestions that people have been drinking less post-pandemic, says Stockwell. There's been a shift in the awareness out there in the public … about the health impacts, he said. That's why he expects future research to show a drop in alcohol-related illnesses, like liver disease. He says this is also partly due to inflation. When people have less disposable income, they spend less on everything, and alcohol is no exception, said Stockwell, noting that people also appear to be paying attention to new information about cancer risks related to alcohol consumption.
National Post
8 hours ago
- Politics
- National Post
Raymond J. de Souza: Via Rail's Toronto-to-Vancouver line tells the story of Canada
Article content Having never been north of Lake Superior, the beauty of the vast forest and innumerable lakes was entirely new to me. The reality of that Shield is omnipresent; it seemed that every half-mile or so the train slipped through narrows opened by massive blasting of the rock. Article content The political challenge required a bit of blasting too. Article content 'In the Canada of 1871, 'nationalism' was a strange, new word,' wrote Berton. 'Patriotism was derivative, racial cleavage was deep, culture was regional, provincial animosities savage and the idea of unity ephemeral.' Article content Macdonald and his allies had to promise, persuade, cajole, bully, threaten and fight their way through obstacles as tough as the rock and as high as the mountains. That they did so — and quickly, within a decade — remains improbable at 150 years distance, even though now it is a historical fact. Article content The greatness of the task summoned greatness in the men who would execute it. The cars on The Canadian are named for various heroes of our history, not limited to the CPR. There is General James Wolfe of course, with his plaque including a favourable mention of Louis-Joseph de Montcalm. Joseph Brant. David Thompson (The Canadian follows the Thompson River into the Rockies.) Article content Article content And to my delight, George Munro Grant, the 19th-century principal who made Queen's University what it became, but earlier was a protégé of Sir Sandford Fleming, who was a chief visionary for the CPR project. Sir Sanford, for good measure, developed Canada's first postage stamp and invented Standard Time — a necessity once railways sped up travel across longitudes. Article content Via Rail is bedevilled by delays as it uses the CN track, and CN's freight trains take priority. Pulling over to a siding to await a passing freight is annoying between Toronto and Ottawa. On board The Canadian it was a matter of wonder at the astonishing bounty of Canada's resources — potash, wheat, lumber, coal, oil and shipping containers, sometimes stacked one atop another, of all kinds of goods — would pass in seemingly interminable chains. Continental passenger rail may have seen its day; freight has not. Article content The traditional telling of the Canadian story is peaceable compromise, contrasted with the warmaking American character, which birthed its project in violent revolution and rebirthed it in bloody civil war. Yet when the Canadian Pacific Railway bill finally passed Parliament in 1881, Berton characterized what was to follow in martial terms. A war to liberate a country from the supremacy of the land itself was declared. Article content Article content 'Within one year an army of twelve thousand men would be marshalled to invade the North West,' Berton would write of Macdonald's great political triumph. 'Other armies would follow: ten thousand along the Fraser, twelve thousand attacking the mountain crevices, fifteen thousand blackening the face of the Shield…. The granite shield of Canada has to be cracked open to let the railway through. The mountain barrier must be breasted and broken. But the great adventure was launched.' Article content
CBC
10 hours ago
- Health
- CBC
Are you drinking heavily? You may be at greater risk of liver disease
Social Sharing The rate of serious liver disease among heavy drinkers has more than doubled over the last 20 years as the demographics around who is consuming more alcohol shift, a new study suggests. The research, published Wednesday in American medical journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, found that heavy alcohol use is up among women, older adults, lower-income individuals and people with metabolic syndromes like obesity, high blood pressure and high blood sugar. These groups tend to already be at a higher risk for liver disease, and excessive drinking only makes that worse, doctors say. "Liver disease is real, it's surging, and your risk is much higher than you might think," said Dr. Brian Lee, a study author and a transplant hepatologist who treats liver transplant patients in the U.S. WATCH | Research suggests heavy drinking is shifting and liver disease is up: Who's drinking heavily is shifting and liver disease is up, research finds 1 day ago A study published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology shows that rates of serious liver scarring more than doubled over the last 20 years among heavy drinkers as the demographics of drinkers shift to include older adults and women. Liver disease is a leading cause of alcohol-related deaths in Canada and the United States. Severe forms of the illness, which has three main stages, leads to cirrhosis. That's when the liver has experienced irreversible damage and is significantly scarred. "Alcohol causes fat to deposit in the liver, that fat then causes inflammation, the inflammation then causes scarring and the scarring is what causes the long-term complications of liver disease," said Lee. Until it gets to the later stages, there aren't usually many obvious symptoms related to alcohol-related liver disease. And there's also not any specific treatment that can help. People are often advised to stop drinking or make other lifestyle changes, but in severe cases where the liver has stopped working, a liver transplant might be necessary. Rate of liver disease doubled: study The new research followed more than 44,600 American adults who were 20 years or older from 1999 to 2020. Over that 20-year period, the study found that among heavy drinkers, the rate of serious liver disease increased from 1.8 per cent in 1999 to 2004, to 4.3 per cent in 2013 to 2020. That increase was mostly in women, older people and those living in poverty. Even though the research included only people in the United States, experts say this is a global trend. In Canada, recent research has also shown that alcohol-related illnesses are on the rise and that women are increasingly impacted. Better consumption guidelines needed: Expert "One thing that we need to really try as a population is to better educate our population on how much alcohol they're actually consuming," said Dr. Jennifer Flemming, an associate professor in medicine and public health at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. Flemming says many people don't understand what constitutes a standard drink. Experts blame this uncertainty on a mishmash of alcohol consumption guidelines and little transparency on the amount of alcohol in a standard drink. For example, Flemming says in the United States, 14 grams of pure alcohol is considered a standard drink, compared to 10 grams of pure alcohol in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, in Canada, the national health department says a standard drink is 13.45 grams of pure alcohol, which includes a 12 ounce bottle of beer at five per cent alcohol, or a five ounce glass of wine at 12 per cent alcohol. Warning labels may help, study suggests But labels on alcohol products in many parts of the world don't actually specify how many grams the alcohol contains, which Flemming says can make it hard for people to know. Though research is limited, some studies suggest that placing warning labels on alcohol can decrease consumption. A study published in 2020 examined the effect of warning labels on alcohol in the Yukon. The researchers found that sales of alcohol with warning labels decreased and concluded that these labels resulted in reduced consumption. "When people noticed the warnings, they changed their beliefs," said one of the researchers Tim Stockwell, who is a scientist at the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria in B.C. "Those people who increased their awareness of the cancer risk expressed intentions to cut down their drinking. Which consumption guidelines should Canadians follow? The Canadian Centre for Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) released new alcohol consumption guidelines in 2023. They stated that no amount of alcohol is safe and recommended no more than two drinks a week for men and women. Despite receiving funding from Health Canada to create these new guidelines, the federal health department has not adopted them, and its website features different recommendations. In an email, a Health Canada spokesperson told CBC News the CCSA's work is "ongoing" and said "the Health Canada website will be updated after this work is completed." As for adding warning labels that better define the risks and serving size, Health Canada says it is "monitoring the situation and will continue to inform the public about the harms of alcohol." But experts say more needs to be done to better protect people. At this time, Stockwell says the best guidance for Canadians is to follow the recommendations by the CCSA. "The pressure is mounting," said Stockwell, though he noted how challenging it is given the power of large commercial alcohol companies. People more aware of health risks: Expert The new research doesn't account for increased alcohol consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic, but research in Canada found that alcohol-related illnesses did significantly increase during that time. It also doesn't account for early suggestions that people have been drinking less post-pandemic, says Stockwell. "There's been a shift in the awareness out there in the public … about the health impacts," he said. That's why he expects future research to show a drop in alcohol-related illnesses, like liver disease. He says this is also partly due to inflation.
Extra.ie
a day ago
- Science
- Extra.ie
Why warmer summers will be great... for peat's sake
Warmer summers could help boost growth rates in European peatlands and aid Ireland reaching its climate targets, research has found. Ireland is trying to encourage more peatland growth to trap vast amounts of carbon. Peatlands contain approximately five times more carbon than their forests. However, European peatlands have been damaged by pollution, draining and climate change. Professor Graeme Swindles, from the School of Natural and Built Environment at Queen's University in Belfast, has been leading a team examining peat accumulation rates, studying cores from 28 bogs across Europe. Warmer summers could help boost growth rates in European peatlands and aid Ireland reaching its climate targets, research has found. Pic: Getty Images The study, which has now been published in the research journal PLOS One, reveals that the fastest peat accumulation – nearly 0.5 cm per year – occurred around the Baltic Sea, at sites in Denmark, Poland, Sweden, and Finland, which experience warm and humid summers. The slowest peat accumulation was in northern Sweden, which has cold winters and a short growing season. Across all sites, peat was found to have accumulated fastest in regions with warm summer temperatures, which improves plant growth, and a water table located around 10 cm below the surface. The slowest peat accumulation was in northern Sweden, which has cold winters and a short growing season. Pic: Shutterstock Prof. Swindles said the study suggests warmer summer temperatures could boost growth rates in European peatlands – but only if the water table stays high enough. He said. 'These findings strengthen current evidence and have important implications for how we restore and rewet peatlands as part of global efforts to tackle climate change.' Prof. Swindles has also suggested that previous peatland restoration programmes should be evaluated to determine if their relative successes or deficiencies corroborate these findings. In March, research from the Environmental Protection Agency showed that Ireland is vastly under-reporting its level of turf cutting. The research showed that 65,000 hectares of raised bog have been cut up for domestic use, nearly 162 times more than the 400 hectares that Ireland has reported to the United Nations.
Glasgow Times
2 days ago
- Science
- Glasgow Times
Warmer summers ‘could boost growth rates in European peatlands'
The peatlands, which contain around half of Europe's soil carbon, need a combination of warm temperatures and a water table of around 10cm to thrive, researchers at Queen's University Belfast found. Peatlands form where there is a sustained build-up of partially decomposed plant matter, and they play a very important role in locking away greenhouse gases and absorbing industrial pollution. They contain approximately five times more carbon than its forests. However, European peatlands have been damaged by human activities including pollution, draining and climate change. Professor Graeme Swindles from the School of Natural and Built Environment at Queen's University has been leading a team examining peat accumulation rates, studying cores from 28 peat bogs across Europe. The study, which has now been published in research journal PLOS One, reveals that the fastest peat accumulation – nearly 0.5cm per year – occurred around the Baltic Sea, at sites in Denmark, Poland, Sweden, and Finland which experience warm and humid summers. The slowest peat accumulation was measured in northern Sweden, which experiences cold winters and a short growing season. Across all sites, peat was found to have accumulated fastest in regions with warm summer temperatures, which improves plant growth, and a water table around 10cm below the surface. Professor Swindles said the study suggests that warmer summer temperatures could boost growth rates in European peatlands – but only if the water table stays high enough. 'We also found that maintaining a water table around 10cm below the surface is key to allowing peat to grow quickly and store carbon over the long term,' he said. 'These findings strengthen current evidence and have important implications for how we restore and rewet peatlands as part of global efforts to tackle climate change.' Professor Swindles has also suggested that previous peatland restoration programs should be evaluated to determine if their relative successes or deficiencies corroborate these findings.
