A Drink a Day May Keep Alzheimer's Away

[Guest guest]

Light to moderate drinking seems to reduce the risk for dementia and

cognitive decline, according to a new study published in the August issue of

*Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment*.

A meta-analysis of 143 studies on the effects of alcohol on the brain showed

that moderate drinking, defined as no more than 2 drinks a day for a man and

no more than 1 drink a day for a woman, reduced the risk for Alzheimer's

disease and other forms of dementia by 23%.

" It doesn't seem to matter if it's beer, wine, or spirits, as long as the

drinking was moderate, " J. Neafsey, PhD, from the Department of

Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics at Loyola University Medical Center,

Maywood, Illinois, told *Medscape Medical News*.

Dr. Neafsey and coauthor A. , PhD, became interested in

seeing whether alcohol might be protective of human brains after their

experiments showed that rat brains exposed to low doses of alcohol for a few

days demonstrated resiliency when subsequently treated with a toxin.

" If the rat brain slices were treated for 5 or 6 days with low alcohol and

then the toxin was administered, there was hardly any damage, whereas if

they didn't get the pretreatment with alcohol, there was significant damage.

This led us to ask if there was anything in the human literature that would

fit with this protective effect of alcohol, " Dr. Neafsey explained.

The researchers reviewed studies dating from 1977 up to the present. The

studies fell into 2 categories: those that provided ratios of risk between

drinkers and nondrinkers (n = 74) and those that rated cognition in drinkers

as " better, " " no different, " or " worse " than cognition in nondrinkers (n =

69).

*Heavy Drinking a Different Story*

Light to moderate drinking conferred a similar benefit, but heavy drinking

(more than 3 - 5 drinks/day) was associated with a nonsignificantly higher

risk for dementia and cognitive impairment.

Most of the studies did not distinguish between the different types of

alcohol, but in a few studies, wine appeared to be more beneficial than beer

or spirits. " It really seemed to be that alcohol per se was protective, not

the type, because the few studies that did make the distinction reported no

difference among the effects of the different types of alcohol, " Dr. Neafsey

said.

The protective effect of moderate drinking held after adjusting for age,

education, sex, and smoking.

A number of explanations for the protective effect of moderate alcohol have

been proposed. Some dementias are related to cardiovascular system problems,

such as atherosclerosis, and alcohol may be protective because it raises the

level of high-density lipoprotein (the good) cholesterol and might improve

blood flow in the brain.

One theory that Dr. Neafsey and Dr. are working on now holds that

alcohol acts as a mild stressor for brain cells and " preconditions " them,

making them better able to ward off stress.

" Alcohol doesn't kill the brain cells, but it's a slight stress. When the

cells are exposed they increase levels of various protective compounds,

so...they are prepared when something more stressful that might kill or

damage them comes along. The theory is called 'preconditioning,' where a

mild stress given a few days before a severe stress causes a significant

protection. "

Understanding the mechanism of alcohol's protective effect could lead to a

treatment to prevent cognitive impairment and dementias, Dr. Neafsey said.

" Whether it's treatment with a pill or a lifestyle change, if we could

understand the mechanism, it would improve our ability to deal with these

illnesses, " he said.

*Novel Approach*

*Medscape Medical News* asked Anton P. Porsteinsson, MD, the B. and

Sheila Konar professor of psychiatry at the University of Rochester School

of Medicine, New York, to comment on this study.

" This is a well-done meta analysis. The findings are consistent with other

meta analyses that have been done. Am I tremendously surprised at the

findings? No, because they are looking at the same pool of studies, " Dr.

Porsteinsson said.

" The fact that they approach it in slightly different ways and yet find

similar outcomes makes me confident that this is what the data are actually

signaling to us: that very modest alcohol consumption is protective, " he

said.

The next step is to figure out how moderate alcohol consumption exerts its

protective effect.

" Is it some direct effect of the alcohol on the brain? Are people who

consume moderate amounts of alcohol different in some way, in their diet, or

their level of exercise? Are low concentrations of alcohol neuroprotective?

Is it through some metabolic impact? " Dr. Porsteinsson said.

Also interesting was that alcohol appeared to protect against all types of

dementia, he said.

" This makes it less likely to have a direct effect on beta amyloid or tau,

but more of a global effect. It is an interesting review. They made it a

pleasure to read. "

*The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Neafsey,

Dr. , and Dr. Porsteinsson have disclosed no relevant financial

relationships.*

*Neuropsychiatric Dis Treat*. 2011;7:465-484.

Abstract<http://www.dovepress.com/moderate-alcohol-consumption-and-cognitive-ris\

k-peer-reviewed-article-NDT>

www.medscape.com

--

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