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Up to three drinks per day could keep Alzheimer's at bay
Study finds new benefit for imbibers
LONDON (AP) — A new study indicates daily moderate consumption of alcohol, which has already been shown to help prevent heart disease and strokes, may also ward off Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia.
The study, published in The Lancet medical journal, also found it doesn't seem to matter what people drink — the effect is the same.
The finding adds to a growing body of evidence for the health benefits of moderate drinking. Experts say moderation — between one and three drinks a day — is the key.
The adverse effect of excess alcohol is beyond question. Besides destroying the liver, excessive drinking can be toxic to the brain, several studies have shown. Alcoholics can end up with a shrunken brain, which is linked to dementia.
"For people who drink moderately, this is another indication that they are not doing any harm. And for those who don't, if they don't simply out of health concerns, they might want to rethink that position," said Meir Stampfer, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health, who was not involved in the study.
Scientists at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, Netherlands, conducted a six-year study of 5,395 people aged 55 and over who did not have signs of dementia. They were asked if they drank alcohol and if so, how often, and what exactly they drank.
The men mostly drank beer and liquor, while women preferred wine and fortified wine like port or sherry.
By the end of the study in 1999, 197 participants had developed Alzheimer's or another form of dementia. Those who drank between one and three drinks a day had a 42 per cent lower risk of developing dementia than non-drinkers. Those who weren't daily drinkers but had more than one drink per week had a 25 per cent lower risk, and those who drank less than a glass a week were 18 per cent less likely to develop dementia.
Researchers suggested the blood-thinning and cholesterol-lowering properties of ethanol in alcohol may ward off dementia, which is often caused by a blood vessel problem.
Another possibility, the study speculated, is that low levels of alcohol could stimulate the release of acetylcholine, a brain chemical believed to facilitate learning and memory.
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Fuck curing diseases the Dutch scientists are proving that drinking keeps you from loosing your mind.
Study finds new benefit for imbibers
LONDON (AP) — A new study indicates daily moderate consumption of alcohol, which has already been shown to help prevent heart disease and strokes, may also ward off Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia.
The study, published in The Lancet medical journal, also found it doesn't seem to matter what people drink — the effect is the same.
The finding adds to a growing body of evidence for the health benefits of moderate drinking. Experts say moderation — between one and three drinks a day — is the key.
The adverse effect of excess alcohol is beyond question. Besides destroying the liver, excessive drinking can be toxic to the brain, several studies have shown. Alcoholics can end up with a shrunken brain, which is linked to dementia.
"For people who drink moderately, this is another indication that they are not doing any harm. And for those who don't, if they don't simply out of health concerns, they might want to rethink that position," said Meir Stampfer, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health, who was not involved in the study.
Scientists at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, Netherlands, conducted a six-year study of 5,395 people aged 55 and over who did not have signs of dementia. They were asked if they drank alcohol and if so, how often, and what exactly they drank.
The men mostly drank beer and liquor, while women preferred wine and fortified wine like port or sherry.
By the end of the study in 1999, 197 participants had developed Alzheimer's or another form of dementia. Those who drank between one and three drinks a day had a 42 per cent lower risk of developing dementia than non-drinkers. Those who weren't daily drinkers but had more than one drink per week had a 25 per cent lower risk, and those who drank less than a glass a week were 18 per cent less likely to develop dementia.
Researchers suggested the blood-thinning and cholesterol-lowering properties of ethanol in alcohol may ward off dementia, which is often caused by a blood vessel problem.
Another possibility, the study speculated, is that low levels of alcohol could stimulate the release of acetylcholine, a brain chemical believed to facilitate learning and memory.
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Fuck curing diseases the Dutch scientists are proving that drinking keeps you from loosing your mind.
