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Message |
    
Nohero
Citizen
Username: Nohero
Post Number: 2516
Registered: 10-1999
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 8:54 pm: |     |
Study: Low to moderate drinking may cause people to lose brain tissueLow to moderate drinking may cause a loss of brain tissue in middle-age people, a study found.
The researchers also found that such alcohol consumption does not lower the risk of a stroke -- contradicting findings from previous studies.
"I think this is an interesting study because people talk about the beneficial effects of alcohol intake on cardiovascular disease and they try to extend that to stroke," said the study's lead researcher, Dr. Jingzhong Ding, a research associate at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. "Some studies find beneficial effects, but ours didn't."
Heavy drinking is known to raise the risk of both brain atrophy and stroke, but findings on the effects of low to moderate drinking have varied.
Low to moderate drinking may cause a loss of brain tissue in middle-age people, a study found.
The researchers also found that such alcohol consumption does not lower the risk of a stroke -- contradicting findings from previous studies.
"I think this is an interesting study because people talk about the beneficial effects of alcohol intake on cardiovascular disease and they try to extend that to stroke," said the study's lead researcher, Dr. Jingzhong Ding, a research associate at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. "Some studies find beneficial effects, but ours didn't."
Heavy drinking is known to raise the risk of both brain atrophy and stroke, but findings on the effects of low to moderate drinking have varied.
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wharfrat
Citizen
Username: Wharfrat
Post Number: 865
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 9:00 pm: | |
partypooper...
you got a problem, or something   .... |
1-2many
Citizen
Username: Wbg69
Post Number: 666
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 9:15 pm: | |
nohero: the last sentence of that article essentially takes it all back.
I have been doing a fair amount of research lately on US alcohol prejudice and how it affects consumption, science, and norms. my research indicates exactly the opposite of your post is true. not only is low to moderate drinking good for you, it seems, consistency is key! i.e., you need to be sure do it regularly!! a New York Academy of Medicine (I may not have this name exactly right) in 2001 supported issuing a statement something like, "If you drink, do so in moderation. If you don't, talk to your doctor. You are at increased risk for disease."
a comprehensive website I’ve found: http://www2.potsdam.edu/alcohol-info
it's put up by a sociology professor who has compiled a lot of research.
I initially expected to find that our anti-alcohol attitudes were Puritan in origin. in fact, they aren't: the Puritans had a healthy respect for alcohol. it seems what we're actually in now might be accurately characterized as a Prohibition hangover. those "alcohol is just plain bad!" campaigns continue to have viability, in the USA.
funny, though, how definitions of drinking vary from country to country. in the US, "binge drinking" is defined as more than 5 drinks on one "occasion" for men, 4 for women. Occasion is not defined. funnily enough, there is no other provision in the definition requiring say, actual intoxication, or destructive or interfering behavior that results from the intoxication. the labels are arbitrary.
in Italy, 8 drinks per day is considered normal. in the UK, consuming more than 2 bottles of wine or 1/2 litre spirits is considered binge drinking. in Holland more than 11 drinks at once is considered binge drinking.
from what I read, US scientists are disagreeing with our prohibitionist binge drinking definition, saying binge drinking is truly considered being intoxicated for two or more days and dropping out of life's other activities as a result.
just some food for thought. from my research it seems safe to say, go do yourself some good, and have some wine! |
ml1
Citizen
Username: Ml1
Post Number: 1396
Registered: 5-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 9:20 pm: | |
These were the findings of Dr. Jingzhong Ding. This guy's name is identical to the sound of my front door bell.
Not sure what that means... |
Nohero
Citizen
Username: Nohero
Post Number: 2518
Registered: 10-1999
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 9:47 pm: | |
1-2: I'll drink to that!  |
Dave Ross
Supporter
Username: Dave
Post Number: 5814
Registered: 4-1998
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 10:53 pm: | |
ml1-
You're confusing him with Dr. Ding Dong |
kevin
Citizen
Username: Kevin
Post Number: 125
Registered: 2-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 10:54 pm: | |
Something to think about:
Buffalo Theory...
A herd of buffalo can move only as fast as the slowest buffalo, and when
the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that
are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a
whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps
improving by the regular culling of the weakest members.
In much the same way the human brain can only operate as fast as the
slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, we all know, kills off
brain cells, but naturally it attacks the slowest and weakest brain
cells first. In this way, regular consumption of alcohol eliminates the
weaker brain cells, constantly making the brain a faster and more
efficient machine.
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patty
Citizen
Username: Patty
Post Number: 394
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 11:30 pm: | |
Interesting, and not the first time we've heard this, but I don't think it will ultimately wash. And next year's report will say......
I've never myself anticipated any dain bramage.
Slainte. |
Ignatius J
Citizen
Username: Ignatius_j
Post Number: 131
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 11:31 pm: | |
If you want your flowers and trees to bloom to their full potential you have to cut off the dead little flowers and branches. The same goes for brain cells which is why I prefer to think of my alcohol consumption as pruning... |
ml1
Citizen
Username: Ml1
Post Number: 1397
Registered: 5-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, December 4, 2003 - 11:41 pm: | |
well Dave,
I guess it's moderate consumption that's the source of my confused state. |
mem aka "toots"
Citizen
Username: Mem
Post Number: 2359
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Friday, December 5, 2003 - 10:28 am: | |
Brain tissue is overrated.
Urp...
Cheers! |
1-2many
Citizen
Username: Wbg69
Post Number: 668
Registered: 6-2002
| | Posted on Friday, December 5, 2003 - 10:34 am: | |
I'm no expert, but someone who is an expert says:
"Contrary to a common misperception, alcohol does not destroy brain cells. In fact, the moderate consumption of alcohol is often associated with improved cognitive functioning. 5"
5 is "Roueche, Berton. The Neutral Spirit. Boston, Massachusetts: Little, Brown & Co., 1960, p. 76; Christian, J. C., et al. Self-reported alcohol intake and cognition in aging twins. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 1995, 56, 414-416; Dufouil, C. Sex differences in the association between alcohol consumption and cognitive performance. American Journal of Epidemiology, 1997, 146(5), 405-412; Elias, P., et al. Alcohol consumption and congitive performance in the Framingham Heart Study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 150(6), 550-589; Galanis, C., et al. A longitudinal study of drinking and cognitive performance in elderly Japanese American men: the Honolulu-Asia Aging Study, American Journal of Public Health, 2000, 90(8); Baum-Baicker, C. the psychological benefits of moderate alcohol consumption: a review of the literature. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 1985, 15."
see http://www2.potsdam.edu/alcohol-info/FunFacts/HealthAndSafety.html
and also http://www.alcoholfacts.org/
it seems generally "accepted" that alcohol kills brain tissue. but, this seems to be one of those things that's just been repeated so often it's accepted as true... without ever having had any scientific support.
kind of like the myth that the Biggest Shopping Day of the Year is the day after Thanksgiving. though media constantly cite it as an indisputable fact, the fact is, it's not... http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/shopping.asp
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Cedar
Citizen
Username: Cedar
Post Number: 105
Registered: 10-2002
| | Posted on Friday, December 5, 2003 - 5:17 pm: | |
IgJ - Too many laughs to even try to make excuses for! |
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