Did COVID-19-Related Alcohol Sales Restrictions Reduce Alcohol Consumption? Findings from a National Online Survey in South Africa

Background: South Africa has a high prevalence of heavy episodic drinking (HED). Due to the high levels of alcohol misuse and violence, public hospital intensive care units were often overrun during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research investigated alcohol intake behaviour change during differing levels of lockdown restrictions, which included bans on alcohol sales. Methods: A self-reported Facebook survey ran from July to November 2020. The questions included socio-demographics, income, alcohol intake, purchasing behaviour, and reasoning. Chi-square tests/Fisher’s exact test for categorical data, Student’s t-test for normal continuous data, and the Mann–Whitney U test for non-normal data were applied. Multiple logistic regression was run for HED versus moderate drinkers. Results: A total of 798 participants took part in the survey, of which 68.4% were female. Nearly 50% of participants fell into the HED category and the majority bought alcohol illegally during restrictions. HED respondents who drank more alcohol than usual during restrictions reported that they felt stressed, needed to relax, and were bored. Conclusions: Policies intended to increase the pricing of alcohol may have the potential to reduce alcohol intake. Reducing stress and anxiety may be key to curtailing HED during emergency situations

第16回千葉カルシウム代謝研究会

Gene ontology term enrichments for RNA-Seq data from differentiated TSC2 deletion cell lines and microarray data of patient SEGAs (related to Fig. 2f). (XLSX 27.7 kb

Enabling white, Afrikaans-speaking adolescents towards post-divorce resilience: implications for educators

Using rich qualitative data, we describe the ecosystemically-embedded protective antecedents that enabled 10 white, Afrikaans-speaking adolescents from divorced families towards resilience. The description both confirms and extends what was known about the roots of adolescent resilience, post-divorce. We use these findings to capacitate educators who are mandated to care for needy learners, such as those from divorced homes. The findings provide more than mere implications for educators - given their simplicity, they make it possible for educators to make the most of these to champion resilience

Alcohol consumption patterns, suppliers and online alcohol marketing: Before and during COVID-19 alcohol bans

COVID-19-related alcohol sales bans and stay-at-home orders prompted the alcohol industry in South Africa to increase their online alcohol sales promotions. We investigated changes in alcohol-related behaviour and the drivers of illegal alcohol sales through a self-reported Facebook survey that ran from July to November 2020. Questions included socio-demographics and comparison of alcohol purchasing behaviour and intake during 2019 and 2020. Statistical tests were applied to find associations between illegal alcohol purchasing and alcohol-related behaviours. A total of 792 participants took part in the survey, 69.7% of whom were female. During lockdown periods, most participants (55.3%) bought alcohol illegally from illegal outlets or friends. Online alcohol-delivery marketing increased by 20 percentage points from 2019 to 2020, with participants stating that they saw a lot of advertisements per day and 80% of persons under 25 years were not asked to verify their age in 2020 upon delivery. Home-brewed beer and vodka intake increased in 2020 during the alcohol sales bans. Men from the Western Cape who engaged in daily or weekly heavy episodic drinking were more prone to purchase alcohol illegally. The Western Cape, which is South Africa’s most prolific wine-producing region, had the highest odds of people buying alcohol illegally, with wine being found to be the most frequently bought alcohol online and consumed by these participants. There is a need for further research into the differences in alcohol-related behaviour affecting illegal alcohol purchasing according to income group, proximity to alcohol producers and underage alcohol sales and marketing through online applications. Significance: Alcohol sales bans have the potential to reduce and stop the alcohol intake of moderate drinkers, but may make heavy episodic drinkers drink more than usual. During COVID-19 lockdown, illegal alcohol sales were taking place through unlicenced alcohol outlets and friends, and not through licenced online applications. Unlicenced alcohol outlets need to be addressed to prevent future illegal alcohol sales. Stricter regulations aimed at legal online alcohol sales applications should be put in place to prevent alcohol sales to minors and those who have already consumed too much alcohol. There should be a ban on marketing of addictive substances, such as alcohol

Additional file 2: Figure S2. of Genomic analysis of the molecular neuropathology of tuberous sclerosis using a human stem cell model

Loss of TSC2 triggers expression changes related to inflammatory response, metabolism, and neuronal function. (PDF 1.15 mb

Additional file 1: Figure S1. of Genomic analysis of the molecular neuropathology of tuberous sclerosis using a human stem cell model

Deregulated expression of neuronal and glial markers in the absence of TSC2. (PDF 2.73 mb

Additional file 9: Table S6. of Genomic analysis of the molecular neuropathology of tuberous sclerosis using a human stem cell model

Gene ontology term enrichments for ribosome profiling data (related to Fig. 3f). (XLSX 11 kb

Additional file 8: Table S5. of Genomic analysis of the molecular neuropathology of tuberous sclerosis using a human stem cell model

Gene set enrichment analysis of ribosome profiling data (related to Fig. 3d). (XLSX 11.1 kb

Additional file 11: Table S8. of Genomic analysis of the molecular neuropathology of tuberous sclerosis using a human stem cell model

Gene sets and associated genes that show after mTOR treatment a reversal of the change in expression detected in untreated TSC2 deletion cells (related to Fig. 4b). (XLSX 25.8 kb