Drinking eight glasses of wine or pints of beer a week more than doubles the risk of brain damage compared to teetotallers, suggests new research.
Boozers who down eight or more alcoholic drinks every week have an increased risk of brain lesions associated with memory and thinking problems, say scientists.
They explained that the condition, caused hyaline arteriolosclerosis, causes the small blood vessels to narrow, becoming thick and stiff - making it harder for blood to flow, which can damage the brain over time.
It appears as lesions, areas of damaged tissue in the brain.
Heavy drinkers also died an average of 13 years earlier than those who never drank, according to the study published online by the journal Neurology,
The Brazilian research team says their findings don't prove that heavy drinking causes brain injury, but they do show an association.
Study author Dr. Alberto Fernando Oliveira Justo, of the University of Sao Paulo Medical School , said: “Heavy alcohol consumption is a major global health concern linked to increased health problems and death.
“We looked at how alcohol affects the brain as people get older.
"Our research shows that heavy alcohol consumption is damaging to the b r ain , which can lead to memory and thinking problems."
The study included 1,781 people who had an average age of 75 when they died. All had brain autopsies.
The research team examined brain tissue to look for signs of brain injury , including tau tangles - a biomarker associated with Alzheimer's disease - and hyaline arteriolosclerosis.
They also measured the brain weight and the height of each participant, while family members answered questions about the participants' alcohol consumption.
The research team then divided the participants into four groups: 965 people who never drank, 319 "moderate drinkers" who had seven or fewer drinks per week; 129 "heavy drinkers" who had eight or more drinks per week; and 368 former heavy drinkers.
One drink was defined for the study as having 14 grams of alcohol, which is about 350 milliliters of beer, 150 mls of wine or 45 ml of distilled spirits.
Four out of 10 (40%) of those who never drank had vascular brain lesions. Of the moderate drinkers, 45% had vascular brain lesions while 44% of the heavy drinkers had vascular brain lesions. Of the former heavy drinkers, 50% had vascular brain lesions.
After adjusting for factors that could affect brain health - including age at death, smoking and physical activity - heavy drinkers had 133% higher odds of having vascular brain lesions compared to those who never drank, former heavy drinkers were 89% more likely and moderate drinkers, had 60%.
The research team also found heavy and former heavy drinkers were more likely to develop tau tangles with 41% and 31% higher odds, respectively.
Former heavy drinking was also associated with a lower brain mass ratio, a smaller proportion of brain mass compared to body mass, and worse cognitive abilities.
No link was found between moderate or heavy drinking and brain mass ratio or cognitive abilities.
Dr. Justo noted that in addition to brain injuries, impaired cognitive abilities were observed only in former drinkers.
He said: “We found heavy drinking is directly linked to signs of injury in the brain, and this can cause long-term effects on brain health, which may impact memory and thinking abilities."
Dr. Justo added: "Understanding these effects is crucial for public health awareness and continuing to implement preventive measures to reduce heavy drinking."
By Stephen Beech
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