Alcohol is the most widely consumed drug among young people in Western countries, with around eight in 10 European students ages 15 to 16 having had a drink in the last year. Binge drinking, or consuming large quantities of alcohol in short periods of time, is the most common form of drinking among teens. As binge drinking is often normalized in festive atmospheres — teen parties, for example — it can be easy for young people to overlook the potential consequences. However, a recent article published in The Conversation sheds light on how just a few binge drinking sessions can affect the still-developing brains of teens.
How Binge Drinking Impacts the Body
To understand how binge drinking impacts teen brain development, it’s essential to grasp how alcohol is absorbed within the body. Per The Conversation, alcohol is mainly metabolized in the liver. The organ processes the alcohol, breaking it down with various enzymes and transforming it into substances that the body can more readily eliminate. However, when the liver becomes saturated with alcohol, as it does during a binge drinking session, it loses its ability to absorb and eliminate alcohol. Instead, the alcohol passes into the brain, disrupting neurotransmitters and causing the telltale effects of drunkenness, including lack of coordination. But while that loss of coordination is temporary, binge drinking has long-lasting effects on the nervous system and the immune system, hindering brain development along the way.
Alcohol and Brain Development in Teens
Alcohol is particularly harmful to teens, as young brains are vulnerable to the effects of controlled substances. When young brains are still developing, alcohol can interfere with two key neurodevelopmental phenomena:
- Myelination: This is described as “the process by which neurons coat their axons with myelin to improve signal transmission.” Myelinated axons display the brain’s white matter, and neuroimaging studies show that the integrity of that white matter is reduced in the brains of binge-drinking teens.
- Synaptic pruning: This process removes “unnecessary neuronal connections to optimize brain function,” similar to pruning a tree.
These changes may cause certain areas of the brain to mature more quickly than other areas, and this discord may explain why some teenagers are prone to engaging in risky behavior.
Unfortunately, this behavior can cause lifelong neurological changes. For example, researchers have identified volume changes in the ventral striatum, anterior cingulate cortex, and medial frontal gyrus, all areas that are essential for reward processing, monitoring of relevant stimuli, and working memory. Excessive drinking further changes the functionality of the salience and /or frontoparietal networks that are relevant to properly focus our attention and regulate behavior to reach short- and long-term goals. Additionally, neuroimaging studies show an excessive activation of brain structures associated with impulse control, decision-making, and processing of alcohol-related stimuli.
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Young people who engage in binge drinking experience significant brain changes. These changes are also often irreversible, leading to a host of cognitive problems later in life. Additionally, early alcohol consumption can lead to health problems, including substance abuse, early onset dementia, and heart disease. As the article notes, early awareness and education around these issues is crucial. By emphasizing the long-term effects of binge drinking, educators and family members can hopefully prevent long-lasting complications in brain development for young people.
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