Nervous System
Chronic heavy alcohol consumption impairs brain development, causes brain shrinkage, dementia, physical dependence, increases neuropsychiatric and cognitive disorders and causes distortion of the brain chemistry. Some studies however have shown that moderate alcohol consumption may decrease risk of dementia, including Alzheimer disease, although there are studies which find the opposite. At present, due to poor study design and methodology, the literature is inconclusive on whether moderate alcohol consumptions increases the risk of dementia or decreases it. Evidence for a protective effect of low to moderate alcohol consumption on age related cognitive decline and dementia has been suggested by some research, however, other research has not found a protective effect of low to moderate alcohol consumption. Some evidence suggests that low to moderate alcohol consumption may speed up brain volume loss. Chronic consumption of alcohol may result in increased plasma levels of the toxic amino acid homocysteine; which may explain alcohol withdrawal seizures, alcohol-induced brain atrophy and alcohol-related cognitive disturbances. Alcohol's impact on the nervous system can also include disruptions of memory and learning (see Effects of alcohol on memory), such as resulting in a blackout phenomenon.
Read more about this topic: Long-term Effects Of Alcohol
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