The Link Between Binge Drinking and Brain Damage

According to a new study by Tim McQueeny, a doctoral candidate in psychology at the University of Cincinnati, binge drinking can cause irreparable brain damage. Binge drinking is generally described as heavy episodic consumption of alcohol (four+ drinks for females and 5+ for males) over a short period of time with the primary purpose of becoming intoxicated. The practice is common amongst young adults, particularly on college campuses.

McQueeny studied high-resolution brain scans on a sample of 29 weekend binge drinkers between the ages of 18 and 25. He found that binge drinking was linked to cortical thinning of the pre-frontal cortex, the part of the brain associated with executive functions, including planning and making decisions, paying attention, processing emotions and controlling impulses. McQueeny also found that cortical thinning occurred as the number of drinks increased.

http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.aspx?id=13846