New pill which makes alcoholics want to drink less.

avogadno's picture
Submitted by avogadno on Tue, 03/06/2012 - 10:11

I find all aspects to recover from addiction interesting, and regardless of how good or bad medications to treat addiction turn out to be, I am happy to see that there are scientific approaches to treated this illness taking place. I am NOT advocating any medications by posting this article.

"Scientists have for the first time developed a pill that makes alcoholics want to drink less, bringing fresh hope to those who struggle with addiction.

The drug helps alcoholics fight the urge to drink excessively and can be used when they go out and are faced with temptation, a conference has heard.

It is thought it works by blocking the part of the brain which enables alcoholics to enjoy drinking.

Tests revealed that addicts who took the nalmefene, along with counselling sessions, more than halved their alcohol consumption, it was reported.

It also helped them cut down on the number of days they binged on alcohol, according to the Telegraph.

Dr David Collier, of Barts and The London School of Medicine, Queen Mary University of London, has worked on one of the nalmefene studies.

He told the Telegraph: 'The people volunteering for these trials had real problems with alcohol dependence.

'Most had never sought help before, and others had tried and failed with abstinence strategies - stopping drinking for good.

'From our experience in these trials, reducing alcohol consumption to safer levels can be a realistic and practical treatment goal for people who are dependent on alcohol, that can bring many short- and longer-term benefits to health.'

Nalmefene is not yet licensed and is currently in the process of going through clinical trials. It is developed by the Lundbeck pharmaceutical company.

One of the reasons the drug is considered to be such a breakthrough is because this is the first pill aimed at reducing the amount of alcohol consumed.

Other drugs on the market to tackle alcoholism make addicts ill - including side effects such as vomiting, sleep disorder, dizziness and cold-like symptoms - if they drink any booze at all.

Attendees at the European Psychiatric Association congress in Prague were told that in one six-month trial alone, 604 patients in five European countries, reduced their alcohol consumption from 84g to 30g per day - the equivalent of a bottle of wine down to one large glass.

The findings also revealed they cut the number of days in which they binged on drink from 19 to just seven days."

Comments

dandammit's picture

dandammit

Fri, 05/25/2012 - 06:30

.

JR Harris's picture

JR Harris

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 11:58

Doesn't Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc have a monopoly and some kind of copyright on things that cure "Alcoholism?"

Oh I forgot, they only sue non US based firms and members of the fellowship.

"Tradition 10 - Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the AA name ought never be drawn into public controversy." Please follow orders from the Interchurch Center if you are an AA member and don't comment.

DeConstructor's picture

DeConstructor

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:11

there are several effective medications available now. I have not heard of this one, but another thing in the arsenal instead of indoctrination into the AA faith is a good thing.

I am sure many here are aware, but anytime these medications are mentioned with anyone involved in the AA faith and recovery industry, they will immediately (and repeatedly) 'confuse' these medications with Antabuse.

From my understanding, Antabuse has not been stocked in US pharmacies since the 80's, and only used in incarceration or rehab facilities. It was never very effective and had many negative side effects.

Medication that is effective is certainly the biggest threat out there to the AA faith. Not only is it a direct threat, but also even rumors of it causes people to ask questions and do research, which again make the AA faith look really bad.

Clara's picture

Clara

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:32

Yes, it is. It is also used in cancer therapies for nausea.

Remember Christopher Stevens when you vote.

Trisha K.'s picture

Trisha K.

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:44

They didn't say it out loud. But in the article above they said this; "Other drugs on the market to tackle alcoholism make addicts ill - including side effects such as vomiting, sleep disorder, dizziness and cold-like symptoms - if they drink any booze at all."
I wonder what drug they were referring too, oh yeah, Antabuse. DeConstructor, please pay attention to what organizations and people are mentioning Antabuse. You have no idea what you are talking about. Virtually no one talks about Antabuse in AA and I would bet with the large (young population) they have never even heard of it.
Thanks just wanted to set the record straight.

“The more I traveled the more I realized that fear makes strangers of people who should be friends.”
Shirley MacLaine

btnben's picture

btnben

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:26

The first lady I ever fell madly in love with - I was 12...lol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WANNqr-vcx0

God damn it, get me a whiskey

Bill W, Deathbed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?source=patrick.net&v=Sdn3O6aaMNc

Clara's picture

Clara

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:31

How old was she, you bad boy?

Remember Christopher Stevens when you vote.

avogadno's picture

avogadno

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:32

I took Naltrexone for a while and it helped me with craving alcohol. It's supposed to help with opiates also but I still craved it while on naltrexone.

Pro Empowerment!
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soberbychoice

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 16:51

Nalmefene is derived from Naltroxene but with some enhancements that should make it more effective. It's only one of several that have derived from NAL since Dupont developed this drug long ago for "heroin flushes" if anyone remembers those. Vivitrol is a 30-day shot of NAL which is also effective.

Campral, Zofran, Topamax, Neurontin are a few of the other meds that help with alcohol cravings as well. Dr. Bankole Johnson's book on the meds topic, "The Rehab Myth" will be out in July. Preorder now on Amazon.com.

I have experience with using these medications in conjunction with Smart Recovery and intensive CBT. My unscientific observation is that the meds help the motivated to quit, without exception. The ones who don't much want to quit fare better than the average newcomer to AA, and the only ones who seem to fail are the same ones that get coerced into AA and have no intention of stopping.

humanspirit

Tue, 03/06/2012 - 17:12

I mentioned this on the ST site, but I think it has some relevance. I became pregnant at a relatively young age , and had been very much a partying, hard-drinking person for the previous few years. I was certainly drinking enough for any AA group to welcome me into their tentacles as being an 'alcoholic', if I'd ever been misguided enough to ask for their opinion.

Something about the pregnancy hormones going on in my body completely removed my desire to drink, and if I even tried to sip a beer, I would throw up pretty quickly. This happened again when I became pregnant ten years later.

No 12 steps, no guilt induction, no listing and confession of sins, and no having to buy into a ludicrous and irrelevant religious program. My body was telling me what was not good for the baby, and it absolutely could not be denied.

So a biological chemical released into your body can absolutely do this. As I said then, whatever biochemist manages to isolate this natural factor could make a fortune – and save many lives in the process.

I'm not altogether in favour of drug therapy as along-term solution, but this has got to be better than relying on praying to the AA god™ and buying into a self-defeating, ineffective and soul-destroying faith-based program for a solution.