Too many drinks shrink the brain
The habitual consumption of alcohol reduces the size of brain mass. This suggests a study in Neurology magazine.
The more we drink, the more our brains will decrease. To suggest this is a report of Wellesley College, Massachusetts, published in the journal Archives of Neurology (a publication of Jama) and this week the American Academy of Neurology.
We know that the volume of the brain decreases with age (about 1.9 percent every ten years). This physiological reduction is accompanied by an increase in white matter lesions and both factors - reminiscent of the authors - are related to cognitive problems like memory.
While some scholars have suggested a possible positive effect of alcohol on reducing the normal volume of brain mass, this new study suggests just the opposite. Data was collected on a sample of over 1,800 individuals aged between 55 and 64 years, most consumers of alcohol or ex-drinkers, which carried out magnetic resonance (participants in the Framingham Offspring fall Study, a study of the cardiovascular problems started in 1971, for which it was collected information on weekly consumption of alcohol, sex, body mass index and other physiological parameters). The results show that there is a significant correlation between alcohol intake and reduction of brain volume, especially in women which usually consume less alcohol than men.
The more we drink, the more our brains will decrease. To suggest this is a report of Wellesley College, Massachusetts, published in the journal Archives of Neurology (a publication of Jama) and this week the American Academy of Neurology.
We know that the volume of the brain decreases with age (about 1.9 percent every ten years). This physiological reduction is accompanied by an increase in white matter lesions and both factors - reminiscent of the authors - are related to cognitive problems like memory.
While some scholars have suggested a possible positive effect of alcohol on reducing the normal volume of brain mass, this new study suggests just the opposite. Data was collected on a sample of over 1,800 individuals aged between 55 and 64 years, most consumers of alcohol or ex-drinkers, which carried out magnetic resonance (participants in the Framingham Offspring fall Study, a study of the cardiovascular problems started in 1971, for which it was collected information on weekly consumption of alcohol, sex, body mass index and other physiological parameters). The results show that there is a significant correlation between alcohol intake and reduction of brain volume, especially in women which usually consume less alcohol than men.
The relationship between the volume of the skull and brain size of those who consumed drink in youth is also lower, 1.6 percent on average compared to those who declare that they've quit drinking. Other studies should now be conducted to confirm the comments.
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