There is no safe amount of alcohol to consume for the brain, and even “moderate” alcohol consumption negatively affects almost every part of it, according to a study of more than 25,000 people in the UK.
Research, which will still be peer-reviewed, suggests that the more alcohol consumed, the smaller the brain volume. In fact, the more you drink, the worse your brain works.
“There is no threshold of alcohol consumption for harm – any alcohol is worse. It seems that almost the entire brain is affected, not just individual areas, as previously thought, ”said lead author of the study Anya Topivala, senior lecturer in clinical practice at the University of Oxford.
Using the UK Biobank, an extensive database designed to help researchers decipher the genetic and environmental factors that cause disease in some people and others not, the researchers in this study analyzed data from 25,378 participants, such as age, gender, education, self-reported alcohol consumption, brain size and health status as measured by MRI scans, information on hospital and outpatient visits, and memory tests.
Higher alcohol consumption per week was associated with lower gray matter density – the researchers found that alcohol explained a change in gray matter volume of up to 0.8% even after adjusting for individual biological and behavioral characteristics.
This may sound like a small number, but it is a larger contribution than any other modifiable risk factors. For example, that’s four times more than smoking or BMI, Topivala said.
Widespread negative associations have also been seen between alcohol consumption and the integrity of the white matter, the brain fibers that support the billions of neurons that make up the gray matter. In addition, the researchers found that underlying human conditions such as high blood pressure and high BMI exacerbate the negative association between alcohol and brain health.
Contrary to previous studies that suggested moderate wine consumption is beneficial over beer or spirits, the study found no evidence that the type of alcoholic beverage affects the risks to the brain.
The authors hypothesized that the association of wine consumption with college education and socioeconomic status may explain perceived health benefits. “If you look at those who drink in moderation, at least in this country, they are better educated, richer people who do much better on a memory test … just because of who they are than people. with less education, ”Topivala said. …
According to Colin Angus, senior research fellow at the Alcohol Research Group at the University of Sheffield, the findings support many of the alternative assumptions.
“By and large, these effects seem insignificant, although they are difficult to compare with alcohol’s effects on other health outcomes, such as an increased risk of cancer, without further research to understand how the relationship between alcohol and brain health feeds through to more tangible outcomes such as like dementia or Alzheimer’s. “
In 2016, the UK Department of Health introduced a new alcohol policy in the UK that recommends that men and women drink no more than 14 units of alcohol per week.
Drowning said the study showed evidence of harm below that threshold.
.