The effect of alcohol on the brain

Most people know that large amounts of drinking can affect organs like your liver, however what people often don’t realise is that it can also do some serious damage to your brain – and for uni students, the brain is a pretty important organ!

CT scans have shown that there is a link between heavy drinking and physical brain damage, even if there is no evidence of chronic liver disease or dementia. Scans have shown that the brain shrinks in people who have high levels of alcohol intake – especially in the cortex of the frontal lobe, which is the location of higher cognitive faculties.

This brain shrinkage is significantly higher than normal age-related shrinkage and correlates with the amount of alcohol consumed. Shrinkage also occurs in deeper brain regions. This includes brain structures associated with memory, and in the cerebellum which helps regulate coordination (Alcohol Alert, 2000).

All of this can impact upon behaviour, mood, thinking and your studies.

People with alcohol related brain damage can:

  • have aggressive and angry outbursts
  • be moody
  • be confused
  • withdraw from family and friends
  • have problems with motivation
  • be untidy and have poor hygiene habits
  • display sexually inappropriate behaviour
  • have poor control of emotions, for example being excessively tearful (Better Health Channel, 2006).

However, there is evidence that if alcoholics with cognitive impairment abstain from alcohol for a year, there will be at least some improvement in brain structure and functioning. Some patients will take longer than this (NIAAA, 2004).

Alcohol, sleep and memory

Having alcohol prior to going to bed can help you relax and assist you to get to sleep. However, the alcohol wears off during the second half of the night and this results in disturbed sleep (Lack et al, 2003). Alcohol also affects REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, which is believed to be essential for the consolidation of memories. Experiments have demonstrated that REM sleep deprivation leads to poor performance on recall tests or logical tasks.

Memory loss also occurs if sleep is deprived either the same night or two nights after material has been learned (Miller, 1998). Therefore, if you have a big night of drinking after you have been at uni, your ability to retain the information learned in that day may be significantly affected. Similarly, if you drink prior to an exam, test or any situation in which you need to recall material, your performance may not be at the same level than had you not had alcohol.

Alcohol and guilt

Alcohol has been associated with a range of immediate consequences that can include:

  • waking up with a hangover
  • having unprotected sex
  • physical pain due to injuries from a fight or fall
  • nausea
  • remembering something that you wish you hadn’t done whilst intoxicated
  • being contacted by a friend who tells you what you did whilst intoxicated that you may or may not remember.

Any of these can have you feeling embarrassed, humiliated, sick or guilty. None of these emotions have been proven to assist in any way with study, and indeed are well known to cause problems with motivation and concentration.

Effects of binge drinking on campus

An American study looked at drinking levels of college students. Frequent binge drinkers were 21 times more likely than non-binge drinkers to have:

  • missed class
  • fallen behind in school work
  • engaged in unplanned sexual activity
  • not used protection when having sex
  • damaged property
  • been hurt or injured
  • gotten in trouble with campus security
  • driven a car after drinking.

These behaviours also impacted upon other students who reported experiences of:

  • interrupted sleep or study
  • having to take care of an intoxicated student
  • being insulted or humiliated
  • unwanted sexual advances
  • serious arguments
  • property damage
  • being pushed, hit or assaulted
  • being the victim of a sexual advance assault or 'date rape'.

So how much alcohol is okay?

To minimise the risks of drinking, the recommended levels are as follows.

Males:

  • No more than 4 standard drinks a day on average.
  • No more than 6 standard drinks on any one day.
  • No more than 28 standard drinks in a week.

Females:      

  • No more than 2 standard drinks a day on average.
  • No more than 4 standard drinks on any one day.
  • No more than 14 standard drinks in a week.

And:

  • 1-2 alcohol free days per week for both genders (DASSA 2006).

What’s a standard drink?

Standard drinks are much smaller than most people realise, and it will depend on the alcohol content of the liquid. The number of standard drinks for a given drink is written in small print on the bottle or cask.

For example – a small glass of wine (100ml), a shot or nip of spirit (30ml), or a schooner of beer (275ml) is equal to 1 standard drink.

You can download a full guide from the Australian Government's alcohol.gov.au website.

How does your drinking compare with the recommended guidelines?

So, if you are going to drink – keep to recommended levels and factor in the information about memory recall and a 'recovery period'.

Make sure you don’t have an exam the next day, or a big assignment to write on the day you are nursing the king of all hangovers or broken arm from falling over!

If you are concerned about your drinking, or have any questions regarding other personal issues or your study, please contact the Health and Counselling Services on (08) 8201 2118.

References

Australian Government, Department of Health and Ageing website, www.alcohol.gov.au.

Better Health Channel (2006), 'Alcohol related brain injury – behaviour', [accessed April 2007].

DASSA (Drug & Alcohol Services South Australia) (2006) Alcohol and Young People, produced in conjunction with the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner.

Lack L, Wright H & Bearpark H (2003) Insomnia: How to Sleep Easy, Australian Women’s Weekly Health Series, ACP & Media 21 Publishing, Sydney.

Miller R (1998), 'Memory Consolidation and REM Sleep', Web Report #2, Neurobiology and Behavior, [accessed April 2007].

NIAAA (2000), 'Alcohol Alert' , National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, No 47, [accessed April 2007].

NIAAA (2004), 'Alcohol Alert – Alcohol’s Damaging Effects on the Brain', National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, No 63, [accessed April 2007].