Alcohol consumption can cause inflammation in the brain, which continues to damage nerve tissue even after weeks of abstinence. In Germany, only three percent of adults completely abstain from alcohol, with 1.3 million people being alcohol-dependent and another two million drinking alcohol abusively. The consequences of alcohol abuse include liver damage, a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer, and damage to the brain, which affects concentration, memory, and learning processes. Researchers at the Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim have investigated how long the brain takes to recover after abstaining from alcohol. The study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, contradicts previous assumptions that alcohol-related damage would decrease after a short period of abstinence.
The study involved 91 alcohol-dependent patients and 36 healthy control subjects. Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the researchers examined how the microstructure of the white matter in the brain, which plays a central role in learning and memory, changed when alcohol-dependent patients began a detoxification program. The results showed that even after six weeks of abstinence, there was no recovery of the white matter. Surprisingly, the damage to the nervous system was even greater than before the detoxification program. The researchers suspect that an inflammation reaction triggered by excessive alcohol consumption is responsible for this. To verify that alcohol is indeed causing the observed brain changes, the researchers conducted animal experiments with rats. The MRI examinations of the rats showed the same brain changes as the patients.
The study’s authors recommend long-term abstinence periods to prevent alcohol-related brain damage, which should also be observed by non-alcohol-dependent individuals. The study’s findings highlight the importance of addressing alcohol abuse and its consequences for public health.
