Just two beers a day can ‘age your brain by 10 years’, scientists claim
JUST two beers a day can age the brain by the equivalent of 10 years, scientists have claimed.
Drinkers have been warned to keep a lid on their bad habits, especially those of middle-age.
The study found that a couple of pints or glasses of wine with dinner in the evening could be accelerating ageing.
Researchers analysed MRI brain scans of 36,000 adults in the UK, then asked them about their drinking habits.
Their results suggested someone 50 years of age with a habit of two daily drinks (four units) had a brain 10 years older than if they lay off the booze entirely.
The link became worse the more a person drank, show the findings published in .
Even those that drink just one pint of beer a day, or a glass or wine, had brains around two years older.
This is not deemed a dangerous amount of alcohol, given that the chief medical officer’s recommended weekly alcohol intake is 14 units for Brits - six pints of average-strength beer or 10 small glasses of lower-strength wine.
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Guidelines are similar in the US but allow men to drink more than women.
Professor Henry Kranzler, a psychiatrist who directs the Penn Center for Studies of Addiction, said: “These findings contrast with scientific and governmental guidelines on safe drinking limits.
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“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.”
Co-corresponding author Remi Daviet, now at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, suggested the “one more drink” mentality is damaging.
He said: “There is some evidence that the effect of drinking on the brain is exponential.
“So, one additional drink in a day could have more of an impact than any of the previous drinks that day.
“That means that cutting back on that final drink of the night might have a big effect in terms of brain ageing.”
The study showed that while three units per day aged the brain by 3.5 years, just one more unit more increased this to five years.
Assistant professor Gideon Nave, a corresponding author on the study, said: “This study looked at average consumption, but we’re curious whether drinking one beer a day is better than drinking none during the week and then seven on the weekend.
“There’s some evidence that binge drinking is worse for the brain, but we haven’t looked closely at that yet.”
The part of the brain that was affected was grey matter (the spongy tissue on the outside of the organ) and white matter (the tissue on the inside).
Brain matter is home to brain cells and the connections between them - and much, much more. When diseased, it can lead to conditions like dementia and multiple sclerosis.
The lower brain volume was not localised to any one brain region, the scientists found.
Everyone who likes a drink is aware it can change the chemistry of the brain, causing feelings of relaxation, recklessness and more.
But it’s impact on the brain over the long-term is far more serious and could be permanent.
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While booze is detrimental to many organs, it takes its toll on the brain.
It’s been shown to impair cognitive function - everything from problem solving to concentration - shrink the hippocampus, the brain region involved in memory, and cause thiamine deficiency.