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Alcohol-related brain damage [1] [2] alters both the structure and function of the brain as a result of the direct neurotoxic effects of alcohol intoxication or acute alcohol withdrawal. Increased alcohol intake is associated with damage to brain regions including the frontal lobe , [ 3 ] limbic system , and cerebellum , [ 4 ] with widespread ...
The long-term impact of alcohol on the brain has become a growing area of research focus. While researchers have found that moderate alcohol consumption in older adults is associated with better cognition and well-being than abstinence, [ 1 ] excessive alcohol consumption is associated with widespread and significant brain lesions .
Neuroscientists believe that drug addicts’ behavior is a direct correlation to some physiological change in their brain, caused by using drugs. This view believes there is a bodily function in the brain causing the addiction. This is brought on by a change in the brain caused by brain damage or adaptation from chronic drug use. [1] [2]
These adverse effects are believed to be due to the neurotoxic effects of repeated withdrawal from alcohol on aberrant neuronal plasticity and cortical damage. Repeated periods of acute intoxication followed by acute detoxification has profound effects on the brain and is associated with an increased risk of seizures as well as cognitive deficits.
Alcohol acts as a general central nervous system depressant, but it also affects some specific areas of the brain to a greater extent than others. Memory impairment caused by alcohol has been linked to the disruption of hippocampal function—particularly affecting gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) neurotransmission which negatively impacts long-term potentiation ...
Drug addiction, which belongs to the class of substance-related disorders, is a chronic and relapsing brain disorder that features drug seeking and drug abuse, despite their harmful effects. [31] This form of addiction changes brain circuitry such that the brain's reward system is compromised, [ 32 ] causing functional consequences for stress ...
“The brain changes, and it doesn’t recover when you just stop the drug because the brain has been actually changed,” Kreek explained. “The brain may get OK with time in some persons. But it’s hard to find a person who has completely normal brain function after a long cycle of opiate addiction, not without specific medication treatment.”
The rewarding effects of alcohol are attributed to dopamine, serotonin, GABA, endocannabinoids, serotonin and opioid peptides. [8] Alcohol is the most recreationally used drug internationally; [64] throughout history it has played a variety of roles, from medicine to a mood enhancer. Alcoholism and alcohol abuse, however, have undergone ...