Of the more than 1 million Americans who join Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), almost all drink coffee and close to 60 percent smoke, Vanderbilt University researchers report.Most recovering alcoholics drink coffee for its stimulatory effects, and smoking reduces feelings of depression, anxiety and irritability, the researchers noted.

“Normally, coffee drinking and cigarette smoking go together,” said lead researcher Dr. Peter R. Martin, director of the Vanderbilt Addiction Center. “But recovering alcoholics tend to smoke less than drink coffee.” About 90 percent drink coffee, but only about 60 percent smoke cigarettes, Martin said. “That’s interesting disassociation between the two behaviors,” he said. Of the 88.5 percent who drank coffee, 33 percent drank more than four cups a day. Most reported drinking coffee did make them feel better and helped them concentrate and be more alert. Of the AA members, 56.9 percent smoked. Among smokers, 78.7 percent smoked at least half a pack a day and more than 60 percent considered themselves highly dependent on cigarettes. Read more

A study involving hundreds of women living in the Four Corners region (Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona) shows that a diet emphasizing Mexican cheeses, beans, soups, tomato-based sauces, and meat may help lower the risk of breast cancer in both Hispanic and non-Hispanic women. Lower rates of breast cancer among Hispanic women than non-Hispanic white women prompted University of Utah scientist Maureen Murtaugh, PhD, RD, and colleagues to investigate whether their diets played a role in risk reduction, and how other factors influenced outcomes.

The team identified study participants as Hispanic or non-Hispanic white women and grouped them according to whether or not they had reached menopause. The women answered questions about the type and amount of foods they ate. Researchers grouped their findings according to five defined dietary patterns:
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If you’ve got a strong family history of food allergies or allergic asthma, you might want to think twice before munching a handful of nuts when you’re pregnant. That’s because recent research has found that regular consumption of nut products during pregnancy raises the odds of having a child with asthma symptoms by nearly 50 percent. Read more

Cutting back on salt and following a low-sodium diet isn’t likely to improve asthma symptoms, according to a new study. Previous studies had suggested that following a low-sodium diet may help improve asthma control, but researchers now say that advice should be taken with a grain of salt.

“We were disappointed that a simple measure, such as a decrease in sodium intake, does not result in improvements in asthma control,” researcher Zara E. K. Pogson, MRCP, clinical research fellow at the University of Nottingham in England, says in a news release. “We therefore cannot advise people with asthma to alter their sodium intake to better control their asthma, despite the fact that a low-sodium diet improves cardiovascular risk factors.”
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