FRIDAY, June 13 (HealthDay News) -- Boosting the level of a specific brain protein may rapidly halt excessive alcohol consumption, according to a new study done in animals.

University of California, San Francisco, researchers found that the excessive amounts of GDNF, or glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor, stopped the desire to drink alcohol in as little as 10 minutes when tested on rats. Other rodents that had been "rehabbed" to give up alcohol also did not suffer a relapse into heavy imbibing when reintroduced to alcohol and given a GDNF boost.

WEDNESDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- Heavy smoking and drinking, especially beer, may hasten the onset of pancreatic cancer, according to researchers who presented their data Tuesday at the Digestive Disease Week 2008 conference in San Diego.

Beer appears to exert a stronger influence than hard liquor or wine in lowering the age of onset of pancreatic cancer, said researcher Dr. Michelle A. Anderson, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Michigan.

WEDNESDAY, May 14 (HealthDay News) -- While research suggests that moderate alcohol consumption may have health benefits, heavy drinking increases blood pressure, stiffens blood vessels and causes more rigid heart muscles in men and enlarged hearts in women -- all risk factors for cardiovascular disease, a new study warns.

TUESDAY, May 6 (HealthDay News) -- Drinking and alcohol dependence has increased substantially among women, particularly white and Hispanic women born since 1945, new study finds.

Call them a guilty pleasure (or educational and fun) but I’m a big fan of (legitimate) online health quizzes, so when I learned about the Vitality Compass on bluezones.com that borrows from what other cultures can teach us about health, I was all over it. The premise of the blue zone concept is that there are certain ‘zones’ or regions of the world where people live long and well.

By Christiana McCausland Health The truth: By age 35 your bone strength has usually peaked, and by age 50 your risk of breaking a bone because of osteoporosis may be as high as one in two. But here's an important secret: Experts say smart lifestyle choices-from workouts to the right supplements-can greatly improve your odds of avoiding bone problems. What should you do right now? Just follow this age-specific game plan. Read full story

This article from Reuters got me thinking about the benefits of drinking in moderation vs. the benefits of not drinking at all. For years, we've heard from the media (through studies and researchers) that a little drinking -- especially red wine may be good for you. Do you think these claims have been overstated? Does anyone enjoy a glass of wine a night for this reason? On another note, does red wine really help you sleep?

LONDON (Reuters) - Drinking alcohol, even moderate amounts, may boost blood pressure more than previously thought, British researchers said on Tuesday.

People with a genetic mutation that makes it difficult to consume alcohol had significantly lower blood pressure than regular or heavy drinkers, the researchers found.

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A study conducted over a period of three decades and involving a multi-ethnic female population represents one of the largest studies regarding the effect of alcohol consumption on the risk of breast cancer in women.

Announced on September 27 in Barcelona, Spain, the study concluded that it is not the type of alcohol consumed, but rather the ethyl alcohol itself that increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer.