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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Smoking and drinking together cause double damage to central nervous system cells in the brain, a recent Australian study said.
The study was conducted by researchers from the School of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Adelaide and published in the latest issue of the journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience.
Smoking causes many chemical changes, oxidative stress and inflammation of the brain, and the consumption of alcohol can have similar effects, the researchers said.
To monitor this effect, the team followed a group of mice, divided them into two groups, gave alcohol and tobacco together for 28 days, while the second group did not drink alcohol or did not breathe tobacco smoke.
After comparing the brains of both groups, the researchers found that rats treated with tobacco and alcohol increased levels of cytokines, a group of proteins that stimulate brain inflammation compared to other groups .
The researchers also found that the first group decreased neurotransmitter levels in the brain, a growth factor that helps existing neurons survive and stimulates the growth of new cells in the brain.
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