Many know that studies have suggested that alcohol in moderation may promote heart health, and even ward off diabetes and dementia. But fewer people know that no study has ever proved a causal relationship between moderate drinking and lower risk of death, only that the two often go together.
In other words, it is just as likely that moderate drinking is just something healthy people tend to do, not something that makes people healthy.
Dr. Tim Naimi, an epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says that, “The bottom line is there has not been a single study done on moderate alcohol consumption and mortality outcomes that is a ‘gold standard’ kind of study — the kind of randomized controlled clinical trial that we would be required to have in order to approve a new pharmaceutical agent.”
Alcohol has been tied to breast cancer, can lead to accidents even when consumed in small amounts, and is linked with liver disease, cancers, heart damage and strokes when consumed in larger amounts.
Via: Igor Normann | Shutterstock
Some of the WEAKEST science we have is epidemiological observations, and that is precisely the type of science that has been used to support the idea that drinking wine in moderation is healthy for you.
Additionally, to examine the effects of alcohol on the brain, researchers examined eight men and seven women who drank alcohol through a straw while lying in an MRI scanner.
Only 6 minutes after consuming an amount of alcohol equivalent to three beers, changes had already taken place in their brain cells, Live Science reports. Their brains began to run on the sugar in alcohol instead of glucose, the normal brain food.
The concentration of substances such as creatine, which protects brain cells, also decreased as the concentration of alcohol increased. Choline, a component of cell membranes, was also reduced. This probably means that alcohol triggers changes in the composition of cell membranes.
I’m sure you’ve heard that alcohol can be beneficial when consumed in low to moderate quantities (about 1-3 standard glasses of alcohol per day), but there are thousands of studies on alcohol consumption and its effects on your health, and researchers still can’t prove that moderate drinking leads to a longer, healthier life.
What they have found, however, is plenty of evidence showing structural damage in your brain as well as other detrimental effects, even when consumed in small quantities.
I think that is far more telling than anything else. It’s hard to imagine any significant health benefit that could outweigh its destructive influence on your brain.
Although some research points to the possibility that moderate alcohol consumption may actually reduce your risk of dementia, numerous studies clearly indicate that alcohol consumption causes too many directly negative neurological complications to say that it has any real benefit.
Via: georgemphoto | Shutterstock
How Alcohol Damages Your Brain
In the study mentioned above, researchers discovered that creatine and choline concentrations in your brain decrease as the concentration of alcohol increases. Creatine is involved in energy metabolism and protects your brain cells, and choline is a component of your cell membranes.
Researcher Armin Biller said:
“That probably indicates that alcohol triggers changes in the composition of cell membranes.
Our follow-ups on the next day showed that the shifts in brain metabolites after moderate consumption of alcohol by healthy persons are completely reversible. However, we assume that the brain’s ability to recover from the effect of alcohol decreases or is eliminated as the consumption of alcohol increases.
The acute effects demonstrated in our study could possibly form the basis for the permanent brain damage that is known to occur in alcoholics. “
Another recent study published in the April issue of Human Psychopharmacology addresses the chronic effects of low to moderate alcohol consumption on the structural and functional properties of your brain.
Using Magnetic Resonance Induction (MRI) studies, they found a linear negative effect of alcohol consumption on brain volume. They concluded that the brain shrinkage reported as a result of low to moderate alcohol consumption offers more support for the contention that alcohol is, overall, more detrimental than beneficial to your brain health and cognition.
Yet another study published in the March/April issue of Alcohol & Alcoholism adds to the most recent lineup of studies linking regular alcohol consumption with various forms of brain damage.
In that study the researchers concluded that:
“Even heavy social drinkers who have no specific neurological or hepatic problems show signs of regional brain damage and cognitive dysfunction.
Changes are more severe and other brain regions are damaged in patients who have additional vitamin B1 (thiamine) deficiency (Wernicke–Korsakoff syndrome).”
Other Health Hazards of Alcohol Consumption
My position is that it’s never a good idea to drink alcohol.
After all, alcohol is a neurotoxin — it can poison your brain. Even moderate amounts of alcohol are not recommended, because alcohol can also:
- Make you more vulnerable to various preventable cancers.
- Harm your body’s delicate hormonal balance.
- Cause liver damage.
It goes without saying that alcohol should be entirely avoided during pregnancy as it can cause severe damage to your unborn child.
In addition, alcohol consumption has also been found to blunt the responsiveness of your hypothalamus to immune and other non-immune signals. An impaired physical stress response is believed to affect several body systems, including your immune system’s ability to fight infection, and, again, can hinder your brain cells’ ability to learn and remember.
Via: Michael Nivelet | Shutterstock
What About Red Wine?
Red wine is often cited as being a good source of resveratrol, a potent antioxidant that has been shown to increase lifespan in a manner similar to calorie restriction. But what is frequently overlooked is the fact that there are many other, far safer sources of resveratrol.
For example, instead of red wine, you can use a grape seed supplement such as Purple Defense. Because although resveratrol is found in grapes, it is likely that there are other accessory micronutrients and trace elements that enhance resveratrol’s benefits, so taking the entire whole unprocessed food (minus the carbohydrate loaded sweet pulp) will give you the most benefit. Resveratrol is also found in raspberries, mulberries and peanuts.
Other potent sources of antioxidants include grape pomace, blueberries, and green tea.
Red wine is definitely NOT your best source of antioxidants, as some studies would suggest. There are major benefits to consuming the bioflavonoids that are present in grape seeds and grape skins, but NOT in the alcohol caused by fermenting the sugar in the grape pulp.
Consuming large amounts of wine will also increase your insulin levels, which will eventually have a negative impact on your health.
Via: tankist276 | Shutterstock
How to REALLY Boost Your Brain Health
Drinking alcohol to reduce your risk of heart disease or dementia is clearly not your best option.
Heart disease, for example, is actually fairly easy to prevent by implementing simple lifestyle changes, which I’ve discussed at length in previous articles.
And as for fighting age-related cognitive decline, there are far healthier, safer, and proven ways to stay mentally sharp into old age. Here are a few of my most effective strategies:
- Eat a nutritious diet, paying particular attention to avoiding sugar and consuming plenty of vegetables.
- Eat plenty of high-quality omega-3 fats.
- Avoid most fish and remove mercury from your body.
- Avoid aluminum found in drinking water, antiperspirants, cookware, etc.
- Exercise regularly.
- Challenge your mind with activities such as traveling, learning to play an instrument or doing crossword puzzles.
- Try Purple Defense, an all-natural supplement made from muscadine grape seeds; natures number one source for resveratrol, which can cross your blood-brain barrier to help protect brain cells
[-] Sources and References
- New York Times June 15, 2009
- Live Science June 15, 2009
- Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism May 2009; 29(5):891-902
A whole article so the doctor can merchandise a specific brand of supplement? Right…
While drinking alcohol is detrimental to the brain, there are serious preventative measures you can take before drinking alcohol to diminish these effect – plus keep the hangovers away.
I think Reset.me should let me write a POWERFUL hangover prevention article for them…
There’s no mention of raising your body’s glutathione levels in this article. That would be step number ONE before I was going to drink. You’ve got to raise those glutathione levels if you want to protect against hangovers and cognitive function.
If you’re serious about legitimate brain-saving hangover prevention methods, check out http://www.avoidinghangovers.com
Hopefully someday Amber Lyon will let me write a lil sumpin’ for her..
Thanks! Let me know if you have further questions!
1-3 standard drinks per day is not moderate drinking. AMA limits on alcohol are: for women 2 drinks per day and not more than 7 per week. For men 3 drinks per day and not more than 14 per week. Other countries have different standards, often more liberal.
Yeah…I wonder what the doc’s cut on Purple Defense is. Kinda rendered the whole article as limp & useless. There should be an editorial policy against articles that shill product.
I’m gonna go have a drink.
No mention of how alcohol can also turn any medication your on into their own nuerotoxins. Also the simple fact that alcohol is fermented sugar. I suggest eating lots of spirulina and chlorella as it will purify the blood by alkalizing it and balancing the blood ph. Once this is done and there is more oxygen in the blood then you are more prone to have more energy and a better quality of it as well. To go a step further you can also get maqui berry and grapeseed extract which will push your antioxidant levels through the roof. Very good stuff. Also try Lily of the Valley Aloe Vera, as it helps the immune system immensely (80% of it is located in the intestines) by allowing up to 300% more absorbtion of nutrients.
Couldn’t agree more.
Of course, LIFE ITSELF is damaging to your brain, as well as helpful. So I’ll have another drink.
I thought it was interesting.
The dietary polyphenols trans-resveratrol and curcumin selectively bind human CB1 cannabinoid receptors with nanomolar affinities and function as antagonists/inverse agonists.
Seely KA, et al, J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2009 Jul;330(1):31-9. doi: 10.1124
The dietary polyphenols trans-resveratrol [5-[(1E)-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethenyl]-1,3-benzenediol; found in red wine] and curcumin [1,7-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1E,6E-heptadiene-3,5-dione] (found in curry powders) exert anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects via poorly defined mechanisms.
It is interesting that cannabinoids, derived from the marijuana plant (Cannabis sativa), produce similar protective effects via CB1 and CB2 receptors.
We examined whether trans-resveratrol, curcumin, and ASC-J9 [1,7-bis(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-5-hydroxy-1E,4E,6E-heptatriene-3-one] (a curcumin analog) act as ligands at cannabinoid receptors. All three bind to human (h) CB1 and mouse CB1 receptors with nanomolar affinities, displaying only micromolar affinities for hCB2 receptors. …
Upon repeated administration, the polyphenols also reduce body weight in mice similar to that produced by a CB1 antagonist/inverse agonist.
Finally, trans-resveratrol and curcumin share common structural motifs with other known cannabinoid receptor ligands. Collectively, we suggest that trans-resveratrol and curcumin act as antagonists/inverse agonists at CB1 receptors at dietary relevant concentrations.
Therefore, these polyphenols and their derivatives might be developed as novel, nontoxic CB1 therapeutics for obesity and/or drug dependence.
– Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 W. Markham Street, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19359525
Endocannabinoids, FOXO and the metabolic syndrome: redox, function and tipping point–the view from two systems.
Nunn AV, et al, Immunobiology. 2010 Aug;215(8):617-28. doi: 10.1016
The endocannabinoid system (ECS) was only ‘discovered’ in the 1990s. Since then, many new ligands have been identified, as well as many new intracellular targets–ranging from the PPARs, to mitochondria, to lipid rafts. It was thought that blocking the CB-1 receptor might reverse obesity and the metabolic syndrome. This was based on the idea that the ECS was dysfunctional in these conditions. This has met with limited success.
The reason may be that the ECS is a homeostatic system, which integrates energy seeking and storage behaviour with resistance to oxidative stress. It could be viewed as having thrifty actions.
Thriftiness is an innate property of life, which is programmed to a set point by both environment and genetics, resulting in an epigenotype perfectly adapted to its environment. This thrifty set point can be modulated by hormetic stimuli, such as exercise, cold and plant micronutrients.
We have proposed that the physiological and protective insulin resistance that underlies thriftiness encapsulates something called ‘redox thriftiness’, whereby insulin resistance is determined by the ability to resist oxidative stress. Modern man has removed most hormetic stimuli and replaced them with a calorific sedentary lifestyle, leading to increased risk of metabolic inflexibility.
We suggest that there is a tipping point where lipotoxicity in adipose and hepatic cells induces mild inflammation, which switches thrifty insulin resistance to inflammation-driven insulin resistance.
To understand this, we propose that the metabolic syndrome could be seen from the viewpoint of the ECS, the mitochondrion and the FOXO group of transcription factors.
FOXO has many thrifty actions, including increasing insulin resistance and appetite, suppressing oxidative stress and shifting the organism towards using fatty acids. In concert with factors such as PGC-1, they also modify mitochondrial function and biogenesis. Hence, the ECS and FOXO may interact at many points; one of which may be via intracellular redox signalling.
As cannabinoids (aktive component in marijuana) have been shown to modulate reactive oxygen species production, it is possible that they can upregulate anti-oxidant defences. This suggests they may have an ‘endohormetic’ signalling function.
The tipping point into the metabolic syndrome may be the result of a chronic lack of hormetic stimuli (in particular, physical activity), and thus, stimulus for PGC-1, with a resultant reduction in mitochondrial function and a reduced lipid capacitance.
This, in the context of a positive calorie environment, will result in increased visceral adipose tissue volume, abnormal ectopic fat content and systemic inflammation. This would worsen the inflammatory-driven pathological insulin resistance and inability to deal with lipids. The resultant oxidative stress may therefore drive a compensatory anti-oxidative response epitomised by the ECS and FOXO.
Thus, although blocking the ECS (e.g. via rimonabant) may induce temporary weight loss, it may compromise long-term stress resistance.
Clues about how to modulate the system more safely are emerging from observations that some polyphenols, such as resveratrol and possibly, some phytocannabinoids, can modulate mitochondrial function and might improve resistance to a modern lifestyle.
– Metabolic and Molecular Imaging Group, MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College, Du Cane Road, London W12OHS, UK.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19457573