Drinking by Teenagers Could Cause Long Term Irreversible Brain Damage

The Study Setup

A study published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors that compared brain scans of teenagers who drank heavily to those who did not was recently conducted by a team led by neuroscientist Susan Tapert of the University of California, San Diego.  It consisted of subjects 12 to 14 years old. 

The study began before any of them had used any drugs or alcohol.  Then, some of the participants of the study started to drink.  A few of them drank heavily, up to four or five drinks each time and exhibiting behavior of classic teenage binge drinking.  They were drinking this much once or twice a month, on average.

Study Results – Drinking and the Developing Teenage Brain

The research team compared the two groups—those that drank heavily and those who did not drink.  They used imaging to look at white matter (nerve tissue) in the brain and discovered that teens that drank had damage to that area of their brains.  According to Tapert, white matter is critical for the relay of information between brain cells and continues to develop during adolescence.  This damage worsens communication between brain cells.  It may account for a deficit in attention span among boys and negatively affects the ability to comprehend and understand visual information among girls.

The reason lies in the development of the teenage brain.  Adolescent brains are still maturing and as they grow, they could be more susceptible to the effects of substances such as alcohol.  Because of this growth process in critical areas of the brain, teens are more sensitive than adults to the toxic effects of drugs and alcohol.  The teenage binge drinkers did worse on cognitive tests, such as thinking and memory test. 

There were gender differences.  Girls that drank heavily did poorly on spatial functioning (links to mathematics and engineering) tests.  Boys that were binge drinkers could not focus on things they felt were boring.  This was discovered in the magnitude of about 10% and could be seen as a difference between a grade of an A and one of a B.

Teenagers and Drinking Behavior

The unique thing about teenagers, as compared to adults, is that they have a higher tolerance for the more immediate negative effects of binge drinking, such as illness, hangovers and nausea.  This allows them to drink higher amounts, while enjoying alcohol’s more euphoric aspects.  However, this is obviously dangerous in that it more easily creates addiction and cultivates binge drinking.

Another aspect of the teenage brain is that it is primed and prepared for learning.  It is a kind of thirst that allows for intense and consuming knowledge, where they can become passionate about such things as sports, games, or music and is part of being a teenager.  It is this same type of readiness that increases the likelihood that they could become addicted to a certain substance.

Reversibility of Damage to Brain Unknown

Tapert warns that the reversibility of the damage to the teenage brain is unknown.  There could be permanent damage caused by binge drinking at that young an age.  If you or a loved one is affected by alcoholism or alcohol abuse and need help, no matter what the age, we can help.  Please call us at 866-540-5242.

- article by Khoi Nguyen