Koob addresses RSA meeting with NIAAA update

Last week, the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA) held its annual scientific meeting, opened by an address from George F. Koob, Ph.D., director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). The researchers and others in attendance heard an update of NIAAA's program efforts. NIAAA funds much of the alcoholism research in the United States, with a budget of $525 million for FY 2019 (the budget for 2020 is still under development). Would‐be grantees are very interested in this funding. Grant awards and start dates are based on the budget process and fund availability, Koob said.     

Alcoholism starts in youth,so it should be screened for

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) — what used to be called alcoholism, but a condition which by definition is sometimes used to apply to everyone who drinks alcohol and is underage — is not a disease of adults only. It starts in childhood, and that's why Scott E. Hadland, M.D., and colleagues argue for screening in the February issue of Pediatrics.     

Quantitative evidence for the benefits of Moving the Goalposts, a Sport for Development project in rural Kenya

Sport for Development has many reported benefits, but quantitative evidence of the impact of these interventions in Low Income Countries remains sparse. A new monitoring and evaluation toolkit was used in a cross-sectional survey at Moving the Goalposts (MTG), a football project aiming to empower young Kenyan women. We wished to determine empirically whether increased membership duration brought increased benefits. MTG selected and translated toolkit items consistent with the organisation's strategic aims. We collected 333 completed questionnaires at 15 sites. Psychometric validation revealed some reliable scales; remaining items were scored separately. Scores were sensitive to differences between members defined by sociodemographic and site characteristics. Bivariate and multiple regression analyses showed that increased membership duration brought increasing benefits across several domains (perceived lifeskills; social life; insights about HIV/AIDS; outcomes related to female empowerment). Improved leadership skills were mainly age-related. Members attending more established sites experienced greater benefits, but members at more and less accessible sites benefitted similarly. Positive thoughts and feelings were related not to membership duration, but to how long a site had been operating. This indicates the importance of creating a positive culture over time. This cross-sectional study provides quantitative evidence for the benefits of Sport for Development initiatives.