Binge Drinking Negatively Impacts Brain Development in Young Adults
Ever wondered a young binge drinker may struggle academically in college?
Evidence of the impact of alcohol on the brain grows by the day. Excessive alcohol use accounts for 4% of the global burden of disease. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines binge drinking as an excessive alcohol intake in a short period of time (about 2 hours) resulting in a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 grams. This usually becomes evident after about 5 drinks or more in men and about 4 drinks or more in women within 2 hours. Astonishingly, this act is most prevalent in young adults (18 - 34 years) according to the CDC.
Binge drinking is becoming an increasing health issue. A new review article published in Cortex highlights the significant changes in brain function and structure that can be caused by alcohol misuse in young people.
Functional signs of brain damage from alcohol misuse in young people mainly include deficits in visual learning and memory as well as executive functions. These functions are controlled by the hippocampus and frontal structures of the brain, which do not fully mature until around 25 years of age. Structural signs of alcohol misuse in young people include shrinking of the brain and significant changes to white matter tracts. This implies that a young binge drinker may not attain peak brain development and may later suffer the consequences of this in school and later in life.
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Evidence of the impact of alcohol on the brain grows by the day. Excessive alcohol use accounts for 4% of the global burden of disease. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines binge drinking as an excessive alcohol intake in a short period of time (about 2 hours) resulting in a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 grams. This usually becomes evident after about 5 drinks or more in men and about 4 drinks or more in women within 2 hours. Astonishingly, this act is most prevalent in young adults (18 - 34 years) according to the CDC.
Binge drinking is becoming an increasing health issue. A new review article published in Cortex highlights the significant changes in brain function and structure that can be caused by alcohol misuse in young people.
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| Young alcohol addicts may notice significant changes in brain function |
Functional signs of brain damage from alcohol misuse in young people mainly include deficits in visual learning and memory as well as executive functions. These functions are controlled by the hippocampus and frontal structures of the brain, which do not fully mature until around 25 years of age. Structural signs of alcohol misuse in young people include shrinking of the brain and significant changes to white matter tracts. This implies that a young binge drinker may not attain peak brain development and may later suffer the consequences of this in school and later in life.
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