Low doses of alcohol help the brain to clear

Prolonged and excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages causes serious disturbances in the functioning of the body. The nervous system and the brain are particularly vulnerable to the effects of alcohol. Studies have shown that chronic alcohol abuse leads to cognitive impairment, neurotransmitter imbalance, general brain atrophy and dementia.

In people who drink, the amount of brain substance can decrease by 10%. Along with this, there is also data on the positive effect of small doses of alcohol on health.

American scientists have tested on laboratory animals how different doses of alcohol affect the work of the brain's purification system – the glyphatic. This system was discovered by them relatively recently, in 2012. Its main function is to eliminate the byproducts of brain cell metabolism. The key role of the glyphatic system is played by the cerebrospinal fluid that enters the brain and discharges the waste – beta-amyloid and tau protein, whose accumulation in neurons is recognized as a factor in the development of neurodegenerative pathologies. , like Alzheimer's disease. It is known that the glyphotic system reduces its function after injuries and strokes and is activated in sleep and during sports.

Mice received low, medium, and high doses of alcohol. The lowest dose was 2.5 standard drinks per day (1 drink in the United States – 120 milliliters of dry wine or 40 grams of vodka), and the highest – 4 times more.

High and medium doses of alcohol caused increased inflammation in the brains of mice. Scientists have observed high levels of molecular markers of inflammation – cytokines – in astrocyte cells that play a key role in the glyphatic system. Due to this function has gotten worse. There was also a violation of the cognitive abilities and motricity of the animals.

But, in fact, rodents who received low doses of alcohol, on the contrary, showed a decrease in markers of inflammation in the brain. Their blood system worked more efficiently to eliminate waste even compared to a control group where there were mice that did not receive alcohol at all.

"Naturally, this study conducted on mice should not be considered as a recommendation.Nevertheless, our badysis is the first report of an increase in glyphatic function following low consumption of alcohol. "

The study is published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Although experiments show a moderate benefit of certain types of alcohols (including wine) for the human body, but do not forget that alcohol for a person is toxic. It breaks the balance of neurotransmitters, and for infants in the uterus is deadly.