Abstract
It is well-known that Native Americans (NA) clinically present with a very high rate of alcoholism and other drugs of abuse. It is also known that NA also display a very high rate of suicide compared to other ethnic groups. Furthermore, individuals with various psychiatric disorders (e.g., depression) also have higher rates of suicide that are frequently alcohol related. Males are as much as four times more likely to die from suicide than females. Studies comparing Native to other populations within the same geographic regions in North America divulged, almost universally, that alcohol involvement is higher among Native suicides than among the local, non-Native people. Unfortunately, suicide is the eighth leading cause of death in the U.S. and is the third cause of death in those ages 15-24. With these disappointing statistics, we are hereby proposing that because of such a high genetic risk as supported by the work of Barr and Kidd showing that NA carriers the DRD2 A1 allele at the rate of 86%, compared to a highly screened reward deficiency free control of only 3%. It seems reasonable that early identification, especially in children, be tested with the Genetic Addiction Risk Score (GARS) and concomitantly be offered the precision pro-dopamine regulator (KB220PAM), one that matches their unique brain polymorphisms involving serotonergic, endorphinergic, glutaminergic, gabaergic and dopaminergic pathways among others. We believe that using the Precision Addiction Management (PAM) platform at an early age may be prophylactic, while in adults PAM may reduce substance craving affecting tertiary treatment and even relapse and mortality prevention.
Highlights
Heavy Drinking Linked to Suicide in Native –Americans (NA)The consensus of the scientific literature is that Native –Americans (NA) have a unique romance with alcohol and conclude that as high as 95 % drink alcohol with a very high rate linked to suicide ideation [1,2]
On a Pro-dopamine regulator (KB220PAM), we have shown in both animal and abstinent Chinese severe heroin-dependent patients, BOLD dopamine activation across the brain reward circuitry revealed increases in resting state functional connectivity as well volume connectivity
This becomes more critical when it refers to the Native-American population because it is well known that this population has a higher risk for many reward deficiency behaviors including increased Body Mass Index (BMI), diabetes and even gambling in alcohol dependence [11,30,31]
Summary
The consensus of the scientific literature is that Native –Americans (NA) have a unique romance with alcohol and conclude that as high as 95 % drink alcohol with a very high rate linked to suicide ideation [1,2]. The understanding of the role of catecholamines in the Brain Reward Cascade (BRC) first reported by Blum et al [5] acted as a blueprint for the seminal finding of the first association of a genetic variant in the dopamine D2 receptor gene (DRD2A1) and severe alcoholism in the general population [6]. It is known that published nutrigenomic (coupling gene polymorphisms with altered KB220PAM) studies reveal improved clinical outcomes related to obesity This becomes more critical when it refers to the Native-American population because it is well known that this population has a higher risk for many reward deficiency behaviors including increased BMI, diabetes and even gambling in alcohol dependence [11,30,31]. While some suggest that the high risk for alcoholism in Native- Americans may be due to culture in the opinion of key neuroscientists, it is the combination of both genetics and epigenetics that predisposes this population especially with the co-morbidity of a TRIAD known as alcoholism, diabetes, and depression [34,35]
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