We’ve all received weird WhatsApp messages describing the amount of alcohol that is good for heart health, kidneys, etc. However, a recent study has refuted this belief, revealing that even light-to-moderate drinking can cause damage to the brain.
The study was published in the journal “Nature Communications.”
The study, which used a dataset of over 36,000 adults, found that going from one to two drinks per day was related to brain changes equivalent to aging by two years. Drinking more heavily was linked with a higher toll. People who drink heavily have changes in their brains that are linked to cognitive impairments.
According to the study, even moderate alcohol usage — such as a few beers or glasses of wine each week — can harm the brain.
Director of the Penn Center for Studies of Addiction, Kranzler, said: “These findings contrast with scientific and governmental guidelines on safe drinking limits.”
“For example, although the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism recommends that women consume an average of no more than one drink per day, recommended limits for men are twice that, an amount that exceeds the consumption level associated in the study with decreased brain volume,” he added.
There has been a lot of research conducted on the link between drinking and brain health, with mixed results. While there was strong evidence that heavy drinking caused changes in brain structure, such as significant reductions in grey and white matter all through the brain, other studies have suggested that moderate alcohol consumption may have no effect, or even that light drinking may benefit the brain among older adults.
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