Can Low to Moderate Consumption of Alcohol Protect Against Cognitive Decline?
Written By: Nayada Deevisetpunt
July 12, 2020
Drinking alcohol is considered a central part of most cultures around the world. Apart from the negative effects of a hangover, drinking alcohol in excess also has associations with a variety of poor health results. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), heavy drinking (more than 8-15 drinks a week), binge drinking (drinking 4-5 drinks in about 2 hours), or even drinking while pregnant or underage is considered as excessive alcohol use. Some of the adverse effects due to alcohol consumption are damage to the liver, inflammation of the pancreas, increased risk of cancer, hypertension, and even psychological disorders. In fact, research has shown that any level of alcohol drinking increases the risk of having high blood pressure and stroke, and that the misuse of alcohol can lead to illness and death.
However, some evidence has shown that a lower alcohol consumption could actually be beneficial and could have a positive effect on health. Testing out this idea, a longitudinal study in the U.S. involving about 20,000 participants (adults of middle age or older) took place. The sample used in this research was representative of the U.S. population, in which the research tracked the participants for approximately 9.1 years. The research team assessed the participants’ cognitive functioning by using three measures: total work recall, mental status, and vocabulary. Those with constantly high scores during this time were then split into different groups with those with constantly low scores. The participants gave their information to the researchers on the amount of alcohol they consumed on average. They were classified into 3 groups: those who have never drunk, those who used to drink, and those who currently drink (the drinkers were then separated further more into low-to-moderate drinkers or heavy drinkers).
After the data has been analyzed, the researchers discovered that those consuming a low-to-moderate amount of alcohol were associated with better cognitive outcomes across all the three measures. It is true, however, that other factors such as age, sex, race/ethnicity, educational level, and body mass index (BMI) could be responsible for this association; however, after taking into account of all these factors, the association between high cognitive scores and low-to-moderate drinking still existed.
Nevertheless, the researchers are not certain why this is the case. Dr. Ruiyuan Zhang of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics of the University of Georgia College of Public Health, suggested an idea: “The role of alcohol drinking in cognitive function may be a balance of its beneficial and harmful effects on the cardiovascular system. Among low-to-moderate drinkers, the beneficial effects may outweigh the harmful effects on the cardiovascular system.”
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