Alcoholic Dementia: Definition, Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

The overlap between the two conditions points to alcohol use disorder as a potential risk factor for Alzheimer’s progression. Alcohol appeared to amplify some of the same molecular disruptions seen in Alzheimer’s, particularly in genes related to inflammation and neuron function. Led by Dr Arpita Joshi, researchers analysed gene expression patterns in the brains of individuals at different stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Using advanced techniques like single-cell transcriptomics, they focused on the neocortex – a brain region vital for memory and reasoning. “Alcohol has a half-life of four to five hours, so if you drink at happy hour at, say, 6 p.m., that alcohol will stick with you until around 11 p.m., which can be way too late to fall asleep anyway,” says Nicola. “Our findings regarding a initiation of mild alcohol consumption cannot be directly translated into clinical recommendations, thereby warranting additional studies to confirm these associations further,” Jeon said.

Study presents unexpected — and complicated — findings on link between alcohol and dementia

According to the World Health Organization, alcohol causes at least seven types of cancer, including bowel and female breast cancer. It has been proposed that for every ten grams of alcohol per day (one beer, wine, or shot of hard alcohol in the U.S. is about 10 to 12 grams of alcohol), the risk of breast cancer may increase anywhere from 4-13%, per Huberman. And the risk of developing cancer https://ecosoberhouse.com/ increases substantially the more alcohol is consumed. On average, people between 40 and 69 who drank a pint of beer or 6-ounce glass of wine per day for a month had brains that appeared two years older than those who only drank half of a beer, according to that previous study. If heavy drinkers reduced their drinking over time to a moderate level, their risk of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s fell by 12%, and the risk of all-cause dementia fell by 8%.

Findings

Their collective expertise shines through in each article, offering readers valuable guidance, the latest in addiction science, and inspiring stories of healing and transformation. The Grove Editorial Team is committed to educating, supporting, and empowering individuals and families on their journey toward a healthier, substance-free life. The two terms «alcoholism» and «aging» retrieved about 1,350 papers; adding phrases (for example, «postmortem» or «magnetic resonance») limited the number to fewer than 100 papers. As pertinent postmortem pathology papers were published in the 1950s and recent animal models of Alzheimer’s disease were created in the early 2000s, articles referenced span the years 1957 to 2024.

• Due to the adverse effects on other organ systems22 and higher mortality of alcohol-consuming individuals, these subjects may decease in-between intervals (attrition bias).
• “If you classify as a moderate drinker then you begin to see some of the negative effects of alcohol,” says Nicola.
• As pertinent postmortem pathology papers were published in the 1950s and recent animal models of Alzheimer’s disease were created in the early 2000s, articles referenced span the years 1957 to 2024.
• As there is some possibility of recovery in both of these disorders, they are not actual forms of dementia because dementia is an irreversible condition 2.
• To make matters worse, one study found that this bad bacteria meets up with pro-inflammatory cytokines (which are produced in the liver) in the brain.

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Abstaining from excessive drinking, staying physically active, and maintaining a nutritious diet are core factors in brain health. Support from peers or support groups also aids individuals to stay on track and handle their alcohol use. Another large study of nurses found that those who consumed a drink a day or less, on average, tended to perform better on memory tests than those who abstained from alcohol entirely or drank more heavily. Heavy drinkers, on the other hand, were 8 percent more likely to develop dementia than nondrinkers. Those who reduced their does alcohol cause dementia or alzheimer drinking from a heavy to a moderate level of consumption, however, had a 12-percent decreased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared to those who continued to drink heavily. Marchiafava-Bignami disease is another outcome linked to alcohol, predominantly affecting malnourished, heavy drinkers.

Cohort Studies

• Knowing the effects alcohol may have can help you make the best decisions for yourself.
• The resulting damage can cause a range of severe symptoms, including cognitive decline, inability to walk, slurred speech and muscle spasms.
• Belsomra (suvorexant) is a medication that causes drowsiness and is often given to people with Alzheimer’s to help them sleep at night.
• At Healthgrades, our Editorial Team works hard to develop complete, objective and meaningful health information to help people choose the right doctor, right hospital and right care.
• Some people may feel they can’t control their drinking, have negative feelings when they don’t drink, or believe that their alcohol consumption is negatively impacting their life.
• “Some non-drinkers may have a history of heavy alcohol use, and this makes it difficult to untangle links between drinking habits and health.

Alcohol appears to trigger the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines, elevating inflammation and promoting liver damage. Regular drinking can what is alcoholism also lead to alcoholic fatty liver disease—a build-up of fat cells in the liver linked to obesity and type 2 diabetes. People diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease should not take medications that do not mix well with alcohol. However, not all medications used to manage Alzheimer’s symptoms or to treat the disease itself interact poorly with alcohol.

“Alcohol use disorder and Alzheimer’s disease have significant commonalities in terms of dysregulations that they cause, suggesting a potential exacerbating effect of alcohol use disorder on Alzheimer’s disease progression,” Dr Joshi explained. Sure, some types of alcohol are less calorie-dense than others, while some simply bring people more joy. The argument that there’s benefit to a dirty martini (extra olives, of course) can always be made, one way or another. Whether you stick to vodka neat or a 500-plus-calorie margarita, the alcohol still has the same effects on your body. “Ethanol—which is the active ingredient in alcohol—blocks you from getting into deep sleep and REM sleep,” says Nicola. Meaning, whether someone struggles to fall asleep after drinking or not, alcohol diminishes sleep quality across the board.