Even
moderate drinking linked to changes in brain structure,
study finds
Send a link to a friend
[June 07, 2017] By
Kate Kelland
LONDON (Reuters) - Drinking even moderate
amounts of alcohol is linked to changes in brain structure and an
increased risk of worsening brain function, scientists said on Tuesday.
|
In a 30-year study that looked at the brains of 550 middle-aged
heavy drinkers, moderate drinkers and teetotallers, the researchers
found people drank more alcohol had a greater risk of hippocampal
atrophy - a form of brain damage that affects memory and spatial
navigation.
People who drank more than 30 units a week on average had the
highest risk, but even those who drank moderately - between 14 and
21 units a week - were far more likely than abstainers to have
hippocampal atrophy, the scientists said.
"And we found no support for a protective effect of light
consumption on brain structure," they added.
The research team - from the University of Oxford and University
College London - said their results supported a recent lowering of
drinking limit guidelines in Britain, but posed questions about
limits recommended in the United States.
U.S. guidelines suggest that up to 24.5 units of alcohol a week is
safe for men, but the study found increased risk of brain structure
changes at just 14 to 21 units a week.
A unit is defined as 10 milliliters (ml) of pure alcohol. There are
roughly two in a large beer, nine in a bottle of wine and one in a
25 ml spirit shot.
Killian Welch, a Royal Edinburgh Hospital neuropsychiatrist who was
not directly involved in the study, said the results, published in
the BMJ British Medical Journal, underlined "the argument that
drinking habits many regard as normal have adverse consequences for
health".
"We all use rationalizations to justify persistence with behaviors
not in our long term interest. With (these results) justification of
'moderate' drinking on the grounds of brain health becomes a little
harder," he said.
[to top of second column] |
The study analyzed data on weekly alcohol intake and cognitive
performance measured repeatedly over 30 years between 1985 and 2015
for 550 healthy men and women with an average age of 43 at the start
of the study. Brain function tests were carried out at regular
intervals, and at the end of the study participants were given a MRI
brain scan.
After adjusting for several important potential confounders such as
gender, education, social class, physical and social activity,
smoking, stroke risk and medical history, the scientists found that
higher alcohol consumption was associated with increased risk of
brain function decline.
Drinking more was also linked to poorer "white matter integrity" - a
factor they described as critical when it comes to cognitive
functioning.
The researchers noted that with an observational study like this, no
firm conclusions can be drawn about cause and effect. They added,
however, that the findings could have important public health
implications for a large sector of the population.
(Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
|