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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.
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 ...
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 ...
The level of ethanol consumption that minimizes the risk of disease, injury, and death is subject to some controversy. [16] Several studies have found a J-shaped relationship between alcohol consumption and health, [17] [18] [2] [19] meaning that risk is minimized at a certain (non-zero) consumption level, and drinking below or above this level increases risk, with the risk level of drinking a ...
Alcohol is a potent neurotoxin. [5] The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism has found, "Alcoholism may accelerate normal aging or cause premature aging of the brain." [6] Another report by the same agency found, "Chronic alcohol consumption, as well as chronic glucocorticoid exposure, can result in premature and/or exaggerated ...
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research is a scientific journal covering research concerning alcohol abuse and its treatment. It is published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Research Society on Alcoholism and the International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism .
Alcohol (from Arabic al-kuḥl 'the kohl'), [11] sometimes referred to by the chemical name ethanol, is the second most consumed psychoactive drug globally behind caffeine, [12] and alcohol use disorders are the most prevalent of all substance use disorders worldwide. [13]
Most research has shown that the major part of the brain that reinforces addiction through neurochemical reward is the nucleus accumbens. The image to the right shows how dopamine is projected into this area. Long-term excessive alcohol use can cause dependence and addiction. How this addiction occurs is described below. [citation needed]