Mixing Terminology on Drink-Driving Survey Causes Media to Pile On Midwest

Pity the upper Midwestern motorist – or, rather, the poor pedestrian that crosses his bleary-eyed path. According to a story on FOX News:
The upper Midwest has the worst drunken driving rates in the country, according to a government report that says 15 percent of adult drivers nationally report driving under the influence of alcohol in [...]

Did You Destroy Your Brain With Booze?

Trevor Butterworth
Over on Scientific American’s 60 Second Science, STATS’ Maia Szalavitz looks at a recent op-ed in the New York Times by psychiatrist Paul Steinberg, who claims that studies of rats reveal “significant though often subtle” impairment to cognitive function after binging on alcohol.
Leaving aside just what it means for something cognitive to be subtle [...]

How Dangerous Is Moderate Drinking?

The Chicago Tribune seems to have put moderate drinking in the doghouse. According to its a recent news story, “comprehensive reviews of the scientific evidence” have found people are at risk for cancer, even if they drink moderately. The point of the article seems to be a cost/benefit analysis. Do the known benefits of moderate [...]

NYT Explains Percentages on Breast Cancer Alcohol Scare

Trevor Butterworth
New study claimed a 30 percent increased risk, but what did this mean in terms of absolute risk? … more
Originally published October 10, 2007

So, What Made Me an Addict?

Maia Szalavitz
“Many people think they know what addiction is,” writes STATS’ Maia Szalavitz in the Washington Post, “but despite non-experts’ willingness to opine on its treatment and whether Britney or Lindsay’s rehab was tough enough, the term is still a battleground. Is addiction a disease? A moral weakness? A disorder caused by drug or alcohol [...]