Drinking and brain health: People who consume three or more alcoholic drinks a day experience hemorrhagic strokes roughly a decade earlier than lighter drinkers, and with larger, deadlier brain bleeds, according to research published in Neurology, the journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Harvard-led researchers examined 1,600 adults with an average age of 75 who were hospitalised for intracerebral haemorrhage, a stroke caused by bleeding within the brain. About 7% were classified as heavy drinkers, defined as three or more daily drinks, where one drink equals a 12-ounce beer, a 5-ounce glass of wine or a 1.5-ounce shot of liquor.
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During hospitalisation, patients or their family members reported alcohol consumption patterns, and brain scans were used to assess the severity and location of bleeding and signs of cerebral small vessel disease.
Heavy drinkers had strokes at an average age of 64, compared with 75 for non-heavy drinkers, an 11-year difference. Their brain bleeds were also about 70% larger on average. They were twice as likely to have bleeding deep in the brain and nearly twice as likely to have intraventricular extension, where bleeding spreads into the brain’s fluid-filled spaces. Severe white matter damage, associated with cognitive decline and brain ageing, was three times more common among heavy drinkers.
Lead author Dr M. Edip Gurol said the findings suggest heavy alcohol use may accelerate small vessel disease, leaving the brain more vulnerable to severe strokes and slower recovery. He noted that reducing heavy drinking could lower the risk of bleeding stroke, slow progression of small vessel disease and decrease the chances of recurrent stroke, cognitive decline and long-term disability. Experts also pointed out that heavier drinking is strongly linked to high blood pressure, a key contributor to this type of stroke.
The study has limitations. It was cross-sectional, so it cannot prove that heavy drinking caused the strokes, and alcohol use was self-reported, which can lead to under- or overestimation. Lifetime drinking histories were not available.
