Article content
If you drink more than 14 glasses of alcohol during 1 week, you can develop dementia. However, alcohol abstinence will not save you; even people who avoid alcohol suffer from dementia in old age. The development of this disease differs only minimally between people who drank alcohol and those who did not.
Dementia
As time goes by, people’s lifespans are lengthening, but with that the number of people with dementia is also increasing.
Scientific research on dementia
Researchers expect that their number should increase significantly by 2050. As a result, you should know how unbalanced alcohol use or even abstinence affects your psychological well-being in your later years.
Studies have shown that if you consume alcohol only marginally, this reduces the risk of dementia. Furthermore, if you give up alcohol completely or, conversely, drink too much alcohol, you may not avoid dementia. It is not yet known why this happens.
Researchers from the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research INSERM and a London university decided to investigate the relationship between moderate alcohol use and dementia in adulthood.
Researchers also analyzed how cardiovascular diseases (stroke, coronary artery disease and diabetes) affect these relationships.
9 087 employees of the British government participated. This investigation examined how social, behavioral and environmental factors can affect individuals’ well-being over many years.
Experts evaluated member information for the years 1985-1993. They were keen to know how many individuals drank alcohol and whether they were dependent on it from then on. The age of those examined was approximately 50 years.
Specialists further examined data from 1985 to 2004. Here they examined whether alcohol use led to dementia.
Researchers found that from 1991 participants began regularly attending clinics for illnesses associated with alcohol and dementia. A significant number of these individuals also began to experience the harmful effects of cardiovascular disease.
The examination continued for 23 years. Of the 9087 members, 397 cases of cognitive impairment were recorded. Researchers saw that from the age of 76 dementia appears very frequently.
They found that most people suffering from dementia were either individuals who did not drink alcohol or who drank more than 14 glasses of alcohol during 1 week.
How much of each type of alcohol can you drink per week?
- 14 glasses of wine 76 ml = 1,06 l
- 14 vodka shots, 50 ml = 0,7 l
- 14 glasses of lager or low-alcohol beverages 250 ml = 3,5 l
- 14 bourbon shots 25 ml = 0,35 l
Research results
Researchers found that if individuals drink alcohol at these levels, they have a greater resistance to developing dementia in the future.
If you drink 14 glasses of alcohol every week or increasingly often, with each seventh glass there is a risk of dementia increasing by 17%.
In the United Kingdom, 14 glasses of alcohol is the standard for two people. In any case, in many countries this number is much higher.
Researchers examined data on patients with persistent ailments related to alcohol. It appears that dementia is many times more common among these individuals.
Sevil Yasar, one of the study’s authors, said
“This is an important report because it can fill several gaps in the information. Keep in mind that we should remember not to change the current recommendations on alcohol use based on epidemiological studies.”
“If you drink 1 to 14 glasses of alcohol during 1 week, it may help maintain your emotional well-being. Regardless of drinking alcohol, consider all associated risks, including cancer and disease development, Yasar said.”
