Hibernating female big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) adjust huddling and drinking behaviour, but not arousal frequency, in response to low humidity.

Many mammals hibernate during winter, reducing energy expenditure via bouts of torpor. The majority of a hibernator's energy reserves are used to fuel brief, but costly, arousals from torpor. Although arousals likely serve multiple functions, an important one is to restore water stores depleted during torpor. Many hibernating bat species require high humidity, presumably to reduce torpid water loss, but big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) appear tolerant of a wide humidity range. We tested the hypothesis that hibernating female E. fuscus use behavioural flexibility during torpor and arousals to maintain water balance and reduce energy expenditure. We predicted: (1) E. fuscus hibernating in dry conditions would exhibit more compact huddles during torpor and drink more frequently than bats in high humidity conditions; and (2) the frequency and duration of torpor bouts and arousals, and thus total loss of body mass would not differ between bats in the two environments. We housed hibernating E. fuscus in temperature- and humidity-controlled incubators at 50% or 98% relative humidity (8°C, 110 days). Bats in the dry environment maintained a more compact huddle during torpor and drank more frequently during arousals. Bats in the two environments had a similar number of arousals, but arousal duration was shorter in the dry environment. However, total loss of body mass over hibernation did not differ between treatments, indicating that the two groups used similar amounts of energy. Our results suggest that behavioural flexibility allows hibernating E. fuscus to maintain water balance and reduce energy costs across a wide range of hibernation humidities.

Use of fidget and drinking behaviour in combination with facial infrared thermography for diagnosis of bovine respiratory disease in a spontaneous model.

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is a highly prevalent multi pathogen infectious disease (70-80%) in newly received feedlot cattle, causing significant economic losses and reduced animal welfare. Current BRD diagnosis involves stressful and invasive methods that can increase the incidence and transmission of BRD. An alternative is the use of an automated infrared thermography (IR) platform that can monitor facial temperature and behaviour traits to diagnose BRD in a non-invasive manner. The objective of this study was to investigate the use of fidget and drinking behaviours in conjunction with facial temperature as method of BRD diagnosis in beef calves. Sixty-five weaned calves (N = 65) were monitored over a 21-d period after 6 h transportation to predispose calves to BRD infection. Data collected from an automated IR platform placed at a water station included the number of IR frames during drinking (Fidget), number of drinking visits (Drinking bouts), total drinking duration, average drinking duration, average cheek temperature (AVG temp), and maximum orbital temperature (Max temp). Fidget, drinking behaviours, and IR were compared to a clinical score assessment based on respiratory, digestive, and lethargy signs (visual observation) and haematology analysis using a receiver operating characteristics curve analysis to identify the accuracy of each metric and combinations of metrics for BRD diagnosis. The greater accuracies observed were Fidget, Youden's index (J): 0.25 J), Drinking bout (0.28 J), and Total drinking duration (0.22 J). The average IR temperature accuracy resulted in 0.88 J and Max temp 0.77 J. Thirty-five combinations of drinking behaviour and facial IR metrics were evaluated to identify BRD calves. Optimum accuracy (100%) was achieved when combining Fidget, Drinking bout, Average drinking duration, AVG temp, and Max temp 1.00 J. Similar evaluations were performed at 48 and 24 h before d 0 using the most accurate Fidget, Drinking behaviour, and IR combination, resulting in 0.44 J 48 h prior to d 0 and 0.45 J 24 h prior to d 0. Combining fidget and drinking behaviour metrics increased the sensitivity to detect the onset of BRD infection and the specificity to discriminate true positive BRD calves from true negative BRD calves.

Recurrent severe hypernatraemia in a young patient: a disconnect between osmoreceptor function and drinking behaviour.

Chronic hypernatraemia is a rare clinical entity. In the younger population, hypernatraemia is often a consequence of failure to generate thirst in response to osmotic stimuli.We report the case of a male patient admitted with severe hypernatraemia (plasma sodium 175 mmol/L) on return from holidays. His urine was maximally concentrated at 894 mOsm/kg-suggestive of normal vasopressin reserve. MRI of the brain showed a large extra-axial cyst, with preservation of the posterior pituitary bright spot. Formal osmoregulatory studies demonstrated normal osmoregulated vasopressin secretion and normal thirst, but no appropriate drinking behaviour.This patient illustrates a unique pathophysiological disconnect between thirst appreciation and the central drive to drink, in the context of normal osmoregulatory function. It is likely that this disconnect is related to the patient's large intracranial cyst.The management challenge is to maintain appropriate fluid intake in order to prevent recurrent severe hypernatraemia.

Longitudinal Relations Among Parental Substance Use Disorder and Adolescent Drinking Behavior: The Role of Temperament, Negative Urgency, and Maternal Parenting.

Research suggests that parental substance use disorder is associated with adolescent drinking indirectly through negative urgency, a form of impulsivity that is particularly associated with high-risk drinking. Moreover, childhood mechanisms of risk may play a role in this developmental chain such that childhood temperament and parenting may be mechanisms through which parental substance use disorder is associated with adolescent negative urgency and drinking behavior. Therefore, the current study tested whether parental substance use disorder was indirectly associated with adolescent drinking frequency through childhood temperament (i.e., "dysregulated irritability") and adolescent negative urgency, and whether relations differed by levels of maternal support and consistency of discipline. Data come from a multigenerational, longitudinal study of familial substance use disorder (N = 276, Mage in childhood = 6.28 (SD = 1.16), Mage in adolescence = 15.86 (SD = 1.56), 45.3% female). Findings indicated that parental substance use disorder indirectly predicted adolescent drinking through both childhood dysregulated irritability and adolescent negative urgency (mediated pathways). This indirect relation was stronger at higher vs. lower levels of maternal support but did not vary by maternal consistency of discipline. Parental substance use disorder also indirectly predicted adolescent drinking separately through childhood dysregulated irritability and negative urgency. Findings thus suggest that childhood dysregulated irritability may be an early marker of risk toward high-risk personality traits and behavior in adolescence that are associated with having a parental history of substance use disorder. Findings also suggest that increased maternal support may only be helpful in buffering risk for those with low levels of dysregulated irritability. Prevention efforts focused on childhood emotion regulation and emotion-based action may be useful in preventing adolescent risk behavior.

Analysis of Genetic Polymorphism of Bitter Taste Receptor TAS2R38 and TAS2R46, and Its Relationship with Eating and Drinking Habits in Japanese ToMMo Subjects.

Human type 2 taste receptor (TAS2R) genes encode bitter-taste receptors that are activated by various bitter ligands. It has been said that TAS2R38 may detect bitter substances and then suppress their intake by controlling gustatory or digestive responses. The major haplotypes of TAS2R38 involve three non-synonymous, closely-linked single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), leading to three amino acid substitutions (A49P, V262A and I296V) and resulting in a PAV or AVI allele. The allele frequency of AVI/PAV was 0.42/0.58 in this study. The genotype frequency distributions of TAS2R38 were 18.32%, 46.95% and 33.95% for AVI/AVI, AVI/PAV and PAV/PAV, respectively, and were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Five haplotype combinations of minor alleles were identified: AVI/AAV, AVI/AVV, AAI/PAV, AVI/PVV, AVI/AAI, with corresponding frequencies of 0.49%, 0.10%, 0.10%, 0.05%, 0.05%, respectively, in 2,047 Japanese Tohoku Medical Megabank Organization (ToMMo) subjects (2KJPN). The 16 subjects with these minor alleles were excluded from the questionnaire analysis, which found no significant differences among the major TAS2R38 genotypes (AVI/AVI, AVI/PAV and PAV/PAV) in the intake frequency of cruciferous vegetables or in the frequency of drinking alcohol. This result differs from previous data using American and European subjects. This is the first study to analyze the relationship between TAS2R38 genotype and the eating and drinking habits of Japanese subjects. It was also shown that there were no relationships at all between the genetic polymorphism of TAS2R46 and the phenotypes such as clinical BMI, eating and drinking habits among the 3 genotypes of TAS2R46 (∗/∗, ∗/W, W/W) at position W250∗ (∗stop codon).

How Sucrose Preference Is Gained and Lost: An In-Depth Analysis of Drinking Behavior during the Sucrose Preference Test in Mice.

The sucrose preference test (SPT) is a widely used preclinical assay for studying stress-sensitive reward behaviors and antidepressant treatments in rodents, with some face, construct, and predictive validity. However, while stress-induced loss of sucrose preference is presumed to reflect an anhedonic-like state, little detail is known about what behavioral components may influence performance in the SPT in stress-naive or stressed rodents. We analyzed the licking microstructure of mice during the SPT to evaluate how preference is expressed and lost following chronic stress. In stress-naive mice, preference is expressed as both longer and more numerous drinking bouts at the sucrose bottle, compared with the water bottle. We also found evidence that memory of the sucrose bottle location supports preference. Through manipulations of the caloric content of the sweetener or caloric need of the mouse, we found that energy demands and satiety signals do not affect either preference or the underlying drinking behavior. Both acute and chronic stress impaired sucrose location memory and reduced the number of drinking bouts at the sucrose bottle, the latter of which explained the loss of sucrose preference in stress susceptible mice compared with stress resilient mice. Female mice generally exhibited similar drinking behavior to male mice but may be less susceptible to chronic stress and display better memory performance than male mice, both before and after chronic stress. Our data suggest that chronic stress inhibits a sucrose preference by reducing reward seeking behavior without affecting palatability.

Exploratory inference of the ingestive behavior of pigs in the finishing phase in an air-conditioned environment.

The objective of this research is to apply exploratory analysis and modeling associated with abiotic factors, physiological and behavioral variables of swine in the semi-arid region. The experimental design used was completely randomized, in a 3 × 3 factorial scheme, randomly distributed in nine pens, with three animals. The behavior of the animals was recorded using images and analyzed within 10-min interval. The data analysis used was multivariate, using the clustering method (tree diagram) and principal component analysis (PCA), in order to establish the main predictors of swine ingestive behavior, using multiple linear regression models. The PCA showed satisfactory results, in which the lowest eigenvalue observed was 2.82 and the accumulated variance for the treatments ranged from 69.70 to 94% for the first two principal components. Through exploratory data analysis, it was possible to identify the relationship between biotic and abiotic factors with the ingestive behavior of pigs in the finishing phase. Based on the results of the multivariate analysis, the most promising predictor variables for estimating the regression models were determined. Adiabatic evaporative cooling associated with 18 h of light was the combination of factors with the best results, presenting models for eating and drinking behavior, i.e. a complete ingestive characterization.

Microinjection of NMDA-neurotoxin into the superior salivatory nucleus of the rat: Short-term secretory and long-term drinking behavior effects.

The anatomical location of the superior salivatory nucleus (SSN), the site of origin of the parasympathetic preganglionic cell bodies that innervate the submandibular-sublingual salivary glands, is well established in rats. However, as of yet there is no functional data that convincingly shows the secretory nature of this region. Previous studies have not been able to differentiate between interventions on efferent or afferent fibers connected to the SSN versus interventions on the salivatory nucleus itself. Taking advantage of the fact that salivatory neurons express NMDA-receptors on their somas, in the present study SSN cell bodies were activated and lesioned sequentially by means of intracerebral application of NMDA-neurotoxin. In exp. 1 two effects, a short- and a long-term effect, were observed following NMDA administration. The first effect was high submandibular-sublingual saliva secretion during the hour following administration of the neurotoxin and the second was a profound change in drinking behavior once the animals recovered from the lesion. Thus, on post-surgery days 16, 17 and 18, the rats exhibited hyperdipsia in the presence of dry food but not in the presence of wet food. In expt. 2 results showed that saliva hypersecretion observed after NMDA-microinjection was completely blocked by the administration of atropine (a cholinergic blocker) but not after the administration of dihydroergotamine plus propranolol (α and ß-adrenergic blockers, respectively). From a functional perspective, these data suggest that the somata of the parvocellular reticular formation control the secretory activity of the submandibular-sublingual salivary glands and thus constitute the SSN.

Lack of sex and estrous stage effects on compulsive behavior assessed using a schedule-induced polydipsia procedure in rats.

Preclinical behavior models used for screening pharmacological treatments for mental disorders have generally used only male research subjects, and for studies that have included female subjects, few have utilized sex as a study variable. In fact, many mental disorders vary by prevalence and symptomatology between sexes, creating a need to evaluate established subject models for sex differences. Compulsive behavior is a feature shared across many mental disorders and effective treatments have been examined pre-clinically using the schedule-induced polydipsia procedure in rats. Drugs effective for reducing polydipsia include psychostimulants, such as d -amphetamine. Virtually no studies have examined sex differences using this procedure. For the present study, male and female rats were examined in the schedule-induced polydipsia paradigm. Rats were food-restricted and trained on a fixed-interval food reinforcement schedule and given free access to water during experimental sessions. Estrous stages were assessed during training and test sessions. The psychostimulant d -amphetamine was also tested once stable water consumption occurred. Excessive water intake developed over the course of training. Females required significantly more sessions to reach a stable level of drinking. Treatment with d -amphetamine (1.0 mg/kg, but not 0.25 or 0.5 mg/kg) significantly reduced drinking in both male and female rats. No sex differences were observed across other study variables including comparisons between diestrus and proestrus stages. Overall, these findings suggest that schedule-induced polydipsia procedures that employ similar methods can produce results generalizable across male and female subjects.

A randomized controlled trial of an online alcohol and sexual risk prevention program for college students studying abroad.

INTRODUCTION: American college students who study abroad experience increases in their drinking behavior, concerning risky sexual behaviors, and high rates of sexual violence while abroad. Despite these concerns, institutions offer limited programming to students prior to departure to address these risks and no empirically supported interventions currently exist that are targeted toward preventing increased drinking, risky sexual behavior, and sexual violence abroad. To help address alcohol and sexual risk abroad, we designed a brief, single-session online predeparture intervention focused on risk and protective factors known to associate with alcohol and sexual risk abroad. METHODS: Using a sample of 650 college students from 40 home institutions, we conducted a randomized controlled trial of the intervention and tested its effects on drinking (drinks per week, binge drinking frequency, alcohol related-consequences), risky sexual behaviors, and sexual violence victimization during the trip abroad (first month, last month abroad) and one-month and three-months after return home. RESULTS: We observed small, but nonsignificant, intervention effects on drinks per week and binge drinking days during the first month abroad and three months after they had returned home to the United States, and small, significant effects on risky sexual behaviors during the first month abroad. The study found no observable effects at any time point for alcohol-related consequences or for sexual violence victimization abroad. CONCLUSIONS: Though mostly nonsignificant, small initial intervention effects were promising in this first empirical test of an alcohol and sexual risk prevention program for study abroad students. However, students may need more intensive programming with booster sessions to experience lasting intervention effects during this particularly high-risk period. GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT03928067.

Drink safely: common swifts (Apus apus) dissipate mechanical energy to decrease flight speed before touch-and-go drinking.

Flight is an efficient way of transport over a unit of distance, but it can be very costly over each unit of time, and reducing flight energy expenditure is a major selective pressure in birds. The common swift (Apus apus) is one of the most aerial bird species, performing most behaviours in flight: foraging, sleeping and also drinking by regularly descending to various waterbodies and skimming over the surface. An energy-saving way to perform such touch-and-go drinking would be to strive to conserve mechanical energy, by transforming potential energy to kinetic energy during the gliding descent, touching water at high speed, and regaining height with minimal muscular work. Using 3D optical tracking, we recorded 163 swift drinking trajectories, over three waterbodies near Rennes, France. Contrary to the energy conservation hypothesis, we show that swifts approaching a waterbody with a higher mechanical energy (higher height and/or speed 5 s before contact) do not reach the water at higher speeds, but do brake, i.e. dissipate mechanical energy to lose both height and speed. Braking seems to be linked with sharp turns and the use of headwind to some extent, but finer turns and postural adjustments, beyond the resolving power of our tracking data, could also be involved. We hypothesize that this surprisingly costly behaviour results from a trade-off between energy expenditure and safety, because approaching a water surface requires fine motor control, and high speed increases the risk of falling into the water, which would have serious energetic and survival costs for a swift.

The nomological network of drinker identity: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Despite the growing interest in the construct of drinker identity and empirical evidence for its role in drinking behavior, there is a paucity of papers that evaluate and integrate the results of studies on drinker identity, leaving a gap in our knowledge of the importance of the drinker identity construct. The current paper addresses this gap by reviewing and integrating the results of the studies of drinker identity. METHODS: The scoping review identified, retrieved, and evaluated the existing literature regarding drinker identity. English language studies from EBSCOHost, PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Scopus databases were reviewed. Studies were included in the review if they were data-based studies or theoretical publications with drinker identity as the primary topic published in peer-reviewed journals. Studies were reviewed and coded based on their reported methodology and findings and codes were used to integrate and present findings. RESULTS: This review advances this line of research in four ways. First, the operationalization of drinker identity is evaluated by examining the theoretical frameworks defining the construct. Second, the conceptualization and measurement of drinker identity is assessed, with suggestions for future measurement research. Third, an integrated framework of predictors, outcomes, moderators, and mediators is presented. Finally, the research gaps, future recommendations, and clinical implications are discussed. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need for continued research, specifically research which aims to standardize and improve measurement of drinker identity, considers longitudinal and developmental processes, and broadens the research samples and settings.

Passive radio frequency identification and video tracking for the determination of location and movement of broilers.

Phenotypes on individual animals are required for breeding programs to be able to select for traits. However, phenotyping individual animals can be difficult and time-consuming, especially for traits related to health, welfare, and performance. Individual broiler behavior could serve as a proxy for these traits when recorded automatically and reliably on many animals. Sensors could record individual broiler behavior, yet different sensors can differ in their assessment. In this study a comparison was made between a passive radio frequency identification (RFID) system (grid of antennas underneath the pen) and video tracking for the determination of location and movement of 3 color-marked broilers at d 18. Furthermore, a systems comparison of derived behavioral metrics such as space usage, locomotion activity and apparent feeding and drinking behavior was made. Color-marked broilers simplified the computer vision task for YOLOv5 to detect, track, and identify the animals. Animal locations derived from the RFID-system and based on video were largely in agreement. Most location differences (77.5%) were within the mean radius of the antennas' enclosing circle (≤128 px, 28.15 cm), and 95.3% of the differences were within a one antenna difference (≤256 px, 56.30 cm). Animal movement was not always registered by the RFID-system whereas video was sensitive to detection noise and the animal's behavior (e.g., pecking). The method used to determine location and the systems' sensitivities to movement led to differences in behavioral metrics. Behavioral metrics derived from video are likely more accurate than RFID-system derived behavioral metrics. However, at present, only the RFID-system can provide individual identification for non-color marked broilers. A combination of verifiable and detailed video with the unique identification of RFID could make it possible to identify, describe, and quantify a wide range of individual broiler behaviors.

Can a simple plan change a complex behavior? Implementation intentions in the context of water drinking.

Underhydration has significant adverse physical and mental health effects, yet many people drink too little water. Implementation intentions have been found to effectively promote many health behaviors, but little is known about the processes underlying their effects in naturalistic settings, and whether they could improve water drinking. This mixed-methods study assessed the impact and potential underlying processes of using implementation intentions to increase self-reported water intake over a five-day follow-up. Ninety-five participants (Mage = 39, SD = 12) received an educational quiz to increase their water drinking motivation before being randomly assigned to the control or intervention group. Participants also completed a qualitative survey that assessed the processes underlying their attempts to increase water intake. Quantitative results suggested that most participants increased their average daily water intake regardless of group. Qualitative results indicated that implementation intention participants struggled with remembering and the perceived effort of preparation and drinking behaviors, which reduced the effect of planning on behavior. This study provides essential theoretical and methodological considerations for researchers studying implementation intentions, as the effects and mechanisms of implementation intentions in real-life situations may be more complex than previously assumed. For example, the results suggest that implementation intentions did not automatize remembering and performing the behavior in ways the current literature theorizes. Other kinds of interventions may be needed to improve the complex daily-life behaviour of water drinking.

Development and Evaluation of a Measure of Drinking Behavior in Response to Acculturation Stressors for Latinx Adults Entering Alcohol Treatment.

Introduction: The current study presents the development of a scale to assess drinking behavior in response to acculturation and immigration stress. Methods: The 19-item Measure of Immigration and Acculturation Stressors (MIAS) and a parallel assessment, a Measure of Drinking in Response to Immigration and Acculturation Stressors (MDRIAS), were administered at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months in a completed randomized controlled trial testing culturally adapted motivational interviewing to reduce heavy drinking and related problems in Latinx individuals who met criteria for heavy drinking (n=149). Results: Exploratory factor analysis of the MIAS showed best fit for a four-factor solution (Relational Stress, Perceived Ethnic Discrimination, Attenuated Aspirations, and Sense of Alienation) with 15 items. The MIAS subscales and the four corresponding MDRIAS subscales were shown to have good reliability (i.e., internal consistency, intercorrelations, and test-retest) and criterion-related validity (i.e., concurrent, convergent, and predictive). Conclusions: These findings suggest that the MIAS can be used to assess different types of immigration and acculturation stressors for Latinx adults and the MDRIAS can be used to assess drinking in response to those experiences. The MIAS and MDRIAS could be used in the future to adapt alcohol interventions to relevant stressors that contribute to Latinx adults' alcohol use.

Mediterranean Alcohol-Drinking Patterns and All-Cause Mortality in Women More Than 55 Years Old and Men More Than 50 Years Old in the "Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra" (SUN) Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Most of the available epidemiological evidence on alcohol and chronic disease agrees on recommending alcohol abstention to young people, but some controversy exists about the most appropriate recommendation for alcohol abstention for people of older ages. A growing body of evidence suggests that the pattern of alcohol consumption is likely to be a strong effect modifier. The Mediterranean Alcohol Drinking Pattern (MADP) represents a score integrating several dimensions of drinking patterns (moderation, preference for red wine, drinking with meals, and avoiding binge drinking). Our aim was to clarify this issue and provide more precise recommendations on alcohol consumption. METHODS: We prospectively followed-up 2226 participants (men older than 50 years and women older than 55 years at baseline) in the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) cohort. We classified participants into three categories of adherence to the MADP score (low, moderate, and high), and we added a fourth category for abstainers. Cox regression models estimated multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HR) of all-cause death and 95% confidence intervals (CI) using low MADP adherence as the reference category. RESULTS: The strongest reduction in risk of mortality was observed for those with high adherence to the MADP, with an HR of 0.54 (95% CI: 0.37-0.80). The moderate adherence group (HR = 0.65, 95% CI: 0.44-0.96) and the abstention group (HR = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.36-0.98) also exhibited lower risks of mortality than the low MADP adherence group. CONCLUSIONS: based on the available evidence, a public health message can be provided to people older than 50 years as follows: among those who drink alcohol, high adherence to the MADP score could substantially reduce their risk of all-cause mortality.

[Status and related factors on the drinking behavior among primary and secondary students in China rural middle and western regions in 2019].

Objective: To analyze the daily drinking behavior and related factors of primary and middle school students in the Nutrition Improvement Program for Rural Compulsory Education Students (NIPRCES) pilot regions. Methods: Multi-stage stratified random cluster sampling method was used to select one to three national pilot counties in 22 provinces in central and western China where the NIPRCES was implemented in 2019. According to different feeding patterns, two primary schools and two middle schools were selected as key monitoring schools. One or two classes were selected from grade 3 to grade 9. The student questionnaire was used to collect the basic information and daily drinking behavior. Taking whether the drinking water ≥5 cups every day as the dependent variable, multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the related factors of drinking behavior among students. Results: A total of 27 374 students were included. On average, primary and middle school students in the regions where NIPRCES was implemented had 3.9 cups of water every day. Logistic regression model showed that boys (OR=1.230, P<0.001), primary school students (OR=1.379, P<0.001), father worked outside the home (OR=1.169, P<0.001), both parents worked outside the home (OR=1.228, P<0.001), non-resident students (OR=1.142, P<0.001), the school in the village (OR=1.638, P<0.001) or township (OR=1.358, P<0.001), school feeding (OR=1.252, P<0.001), the school building with flush toilets (OR=1.384, P<0.001) and the central regions (OR=1.300, P<0.001) students were more likely to drink ≥5 cups water every day. Conclusion: The water consumption of primary and middle school students in the pilot regions of NIPRCES is low, and their drinking behaviors are affected by many factors.

Associations between Drinking Behaviors and Meaning in Life: Evidence from Primary Care Professionals in China.

(1) Background: Although the associations between drinking behaviors and emotional problems have been supported in several previous studies, the associations between drinking behaviors and meaning in life have not been explored until now. We aimed to test the associations between drinking behaviors and meaning in life among primary care professionals, after controlling for depression. (2) Methods: In the current study, we collected 1453 valid questionnaires based on a cross-sectional design. Meaning in life, drinking behaviors, physical diseases, depression, work-related variables, and some other social-demographic variables were evaluated. (3) Results: The results support that after controlling for depression, regular milk drinking (ß = 1.387, p = 0.026), and regular juice drinking (ß = 2.316, p = 0.030) were associated with higher meaning in life, while regular water drinking (ß = −1.448, p = 0.019) was negatively associated with meaning in life. In addition to this, the results showed that the older age (ß = 0.098, p = 0.001), preventive medicine majors (ß = 4.281, p = 0.013), working fewer days per week (ß = −0.942, p = 0.004), licensed (assistant) technician qualification (ß = 2.921, p = 0.036), and no depression (ß = −0.203, p < 0.001) were positively associated with meaning in life. (4) Conclusion: This study supported the association between drinking behaviors and meaning in life, even after controlling depression. These findings imply that we can further explore this association and its mechanisms in future studies.

Does state repeal of alcohol exclusion laws increase problem drinking?

BACKGROUND: For decades, alcohol exclusion laws (AELs) have allowed insurance companies to reject claims for physical injuries caused by alcohol consumption, including injuries from impaired driving. A central premise of AELs is that they function as a deterrent to risk-taking behaviors, such as excessive drinking. If this assumption is correct, state repeal of these laws should result in increased drinking. This study examines whether the repeal of AELs by some states affects drinking behaviors. METHODS: Data were obtained from the 1993 to 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System nationwide survey. Exploiting the natural experiment presented by state repeal of AELs, we assessed the impact on current drinking and binge drinking. We used a rigorous quasi-experimental difference-in-differences analysis and conducted a battery of sensitivity analyses to assure robust findings. RESULTS: Overall, the study found no discernable impact of state repeal of AELs on alcohol consumption. While the repeal of AELs significantly decreased the odds of reporting drinking in the past 30 days compared to those living in states with AELs or that never had AELs, the effects were small (aOR = 0.98, 95% CI = 0.96, 0.99). Likewise, there were higher odds of binge drinking among individuals living in states that repealed AELs compared to those living in states without AELs, yet with small effects (aOR = 1.03, 95% CI = 1.01, 1.05). After additionally adjusting for state-varying characteristics and state-specific time trends, no significant effects were identified regarding current and binge drinking. Findings from the sensitivity analyses were largely consistent with the main analysis. CONCLUSION: This study found no evidence supporting the idea that repealing AELs increased alcohol consumption or binge drinking. Future studies should consider other state-specific dimensions within the Uniform Accident and Sickness Policy Provision Law.