Caffeine is humankind’s favourite drug. It’s estimated to be consumed by 80% of people worldwide, and most of us consume several doses a day. This popularity would appear to be explained in large part…
Crystal meth has at least two faces, in common with those people unfortunate enough to succumb to its charms, as these horrific before-and-after pics show. I’d like to look at the drug chemically, to shine…
Despite long standing associations with mysticism and stage hypnotism, hypnosis has also been used for medical and scientific purposes. For well over a century, hypnosis has been used to treat a wide range…
Neil Levy, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health
Is sex addiction real? That is, is it really a disorder, involving diminished control over behaviour? Questions such as these are difficult to answer because it’s always difficult to distinguish diminished…
The growth of online gaming has spawned a new kind of addiction and it’s time the industry woke up to its responsibilities. Since the first videogame was launched in 1972, the gaming industry has become…
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a remarkable therapeutic innovation that has restored the lives of many individuals with intractable neurological disorders. Nowhere is this more evident than in crippling…
Neurological disorders can have a devastating impact on the lives of sufferers and their families. Symptoms of these disorders differ extensively - from motor dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease, memory…
MATTERS OF THE MIND – a series which examines the clinician’s bible for diagnosing mental disorders, the DSM, and the controversy surrounding the forthcoming fifth edition. The term “addiction” is conspicuously…
Mephedrone (4-methylmethcathinone) is a fairly new “party” drug that has exploded in popularity over the last few years. On the street, it has a variety of names: Drone, M-Cat, Bubbles, Meow. It’s also…
Jhodie Duncan, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health
Criminalisation of many drugs of abuse has done little to deter their use. Recent estimates tell us nearly one in 20 individuals aged between 15 and 64 are experimenting with illicit drug use worldwide…
Watered-down poker machine reforms designed to protect problem gamblers will go ahead after Tasmanian Independent MP Andrew Wilkie reluctantly gave his support to the Government legislation. Mr Wilkie…
I am a Warcraft widow, an affectionate term given to those who have “lost” a partner to World of Warcraft (WoW) as a result of excessive game-playing. I have first-hand experience of the way games such…
About one in seven people diagnosed with lung cancer report that they keep smoking, as do one in 11 colorectal cancer patients, despite smoking reducing the effectiveness of their treatment and significantly…
The Greens yesterday released the party’s problem gambling discussion paper. The paper advocates, among other things, for general practitioners to play a greater role in screening and treating problem…
Cannabis remains the most commonly consumed illicit drug in the world, with more than a third of Australians reporting that they have used it at some point in their lives. This is despite growing evidence…