Your Brain is Shrinking due to Alcohol

By Billions Photos

Have you ever felt that after a night of drinking alcohol that you’re stuck in a foggy cloud that lingers for days?

While alcohol might feel like a quick escape—activating the brain’s reward system to temporarily boost pleasure while escaping negative emotions such as anxiety, stress and pain—it often comes at a cost.

That post-drinking haze isn’t just in your head; it’s your body struggling to rebalance after the disruption alcohol causes to your brain and nervous system.

Drinking in actuality disrupts our brain chemistry, depletes serotonin and dopamine and spikes the stress hormone cortisol, but also leads to shrinking of the brain.

According to a data analysis using more than 36,000 adults, the University of Pennsylvania found that light-to-moderate alcohol consumption was associated with reductions in overall brain volume. Even occasional overindulgence can accelerate brain shrinkage and raise the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

No amount of alcohol is good for the body, and the best thing is to reduce or remove it altogether.

Here are a few tips to guide you on your journey.

• Remove alcohol from your home and replace it with non-alcoholic options.

• Distract yourself when cravings occur with exercise.

• Journal your thoughts about why you drink in the first place.

• Use apps to track your drinking progress.

• Cultivate like-minded people who are on the same journey in reducing or removing alcohol.

Changing your drinking habits is a personal journey. By implementing healthy strategies to replace alcohol, you may find that cutting down or eliminating it is a benefit that is not worth ignoring.

If you want guidance with your health and wellness journey, please get in touch with me and book your free wellness call today!