Extra weight may account for some brain injury among alcoholics, study finds

The trifecta of alcohol abuse, cigarette smoking and a high body mass index may be linked with alcohol-related brain injuries, a new study finds.

The study, published online Tuesday in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, looked at data on 54 male veterans age 28 to 66 who were dependent on alcohol and were in treatment and had not been drinking for about a month. In addition to noting the men’s BMI, researchers also did brain magnetic resonance imaging, looking at brain volume, blood flow and concentrations of metabolites in the brain. Metabolites are substances produced by metabolism.

After controlling for factors such as age, the average number of drinks someone had over their lifetime, and smoking, a higher BMI was linked with having lower N-acetylaspartate, a metabolite found in the central nervous system. Decreased NAA concentrations found via magnetic resonance may be an indicator of brain dysfunction or loss of neurons. A higher BMI was also associated with other markers related to brain injury. BMI was not associated, however, with brain volume.

“Excessive weight is not only a risk factor for cardiovascular disease or diabetes, but it is also a risk factor for developing dementia,” said Stefan Gazdzinski, the study’s lead author and researcher at Jagiellonian University in Poland, in a news release. “Obesity has been shown to be associated with worse decision making and problem solving throughout lifetime. We had previously observed lower concentrations of some brain metabolites, markers of brain injury, in healthy non-alcohol dependent people with BMIs in the overweight to obese range. Knowing that individuals in developed countries who overuse alcohol are usually heavier than individuals enjoying alcohol in moderation--because of the caloric intake--we wanted to investigate if excess weight accounts for some of the brain injury usually observed in alcoholics.”

--Jeannine Stein / Los Angeles Times