Do you drink often with friends? Whether you’re casually drinking with coworkers and friends after a long day or drinking at a party, you’re increasing your risk for dementia. Earlier.
By now, countless studies prove that constant drinking can cause liver complications. It’s also known to negatively affect fetus development during pregnancy. But what if I told you that one of the consequences of excessive drinking is dementia?
A recent paper from earlier this March says so. Dementia is a condition where an individual’s cognitive abilities slowly degrade such as memory. Heavy drinkers are not only at a greater risk for dementia, but they can also be diagnosed a lot earlier.
Mimosas, an alcoholic beverage. Image from Flickr.
In the national study conducted in France between 2008 and 2013, Dr. Schwarzinger’s team found that almost 40% of early-onset dementia were alcohol related. Individuals who are diagnosed with dementia prior to 65 years is considered early onset dementia.
What’s even more surprising is that alcohol-related brain damage leading to dementia jumped from 6.7% to 46.1% in men for early onset dementia. The following graph indicates new dementia cases during 2011 and 2013 by age, where many newly diagnosed cases still occur in elderly individuals over 75.
Newly diagnosed cases of dementia in France between 2011-2013. Graph by Jacqueline Zheng. Data from ScienceDirect
Alcohol also affects a specific type of dementia known as vascular dementia, which influences critical thinking. As much as 38% of vascular dementia cases were primarily related to excessive drinking; although, other health factors also play a role in increasing the risk of dementia, including high blood pressure and smoking.
Not knowing the consequences of drinking can be scary, especially since dementia usually occurs in our elderly years. Next time, you might want to think twice before grabbing drinks during happy hour.
– Jacqueline Zheng
