Can Alcohol Abuse Cause Brain Damage: The Link Between Alcohol Misuse and Brain Damage

Most people understand that serious alcohol-related brain damage can happen if they drink heavily for many years. However, what is surprising to many is that negative effects on the brain could begin after just a few sessions of heavy drinking.

According to a report by the Health Policy Institute of Ohio (2021), Ohio has a higher rate of excessive drinking than most other states. 

How does Alcohol Impact Brain Function?

Alcohol impacts brain function as it is linked to many diseases, injuries, and conditions. Alcohol, in general, is the cause of more than 18% of emergency department visits and over 22% of overdose deaths. Each year, over 140,000 people die from alcohol-related causes in the United States, as per a study of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism updated in 2024. 

Heavy drinking can take several years to cause diseases such as alcohol-related brain damage (ARBD). However, the negative impact of alcohol on the brain can begin after just a couple of drinks.

When a person consumes alcohol, they will start to feel the depressant effects of alcohol. Since your brain controls your entire body, the impairing effect of alcohol starts to impede the way your body normally functions. 

After a couple of drinks, it can be difficult for a person to walk. Their vision becomes blurred, their memory is compromised, and their reaction time slows. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, if a person drinks heavily or binge drinks, they can quickly and permanently damage their nervous system and brain.

Why does Alcohol-Related Brain Damage Develop?

Alcohol related brain damage develops because alcohol is both a toxin and a psychoactive substance. It has properties that produce dependence in certain individuals.

However, in many societies, the consumption of alcoholic beverages is part of the social landscape. Alcohol frequently accompanies socialising.

As such, many people ignore the social and health damage that is attributed to excessive alcohol consumption. When a person consumes alcohol, it goes from their stomach and intestines to their bloodstream. Alcohol immediately begins to affect different organs.

Alcohol crosses the blood-brain barrier, impacting the brain’s neurons directly. Each person has over 100 billion interconnected neurons in their central nervous system and brain. Since alcohol is a toxic substance, when it is consumed in excess, it damages and even kills neurons.

Alcohol is a depressant. It slows down the speed of the signals that travel between neurons.

It also impairs processes that are controlled by the cerebral cortex and the cerebellum. Alcohol can slow neurotransmitters.

This is why when people drink too much, their speech becomes slurred, and their reaction time diminishes.

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On the side of the hand, alcohol causes the body to release glutamate neurotransmitters at a rapid pace. These transmitters regulate the dopamine in the brain’s reward centre. This is why people feel relaxed, warm, and fuzzy when they drink. 

The short-term effects of alcohol are potentially dangerous on their own. However, what makes them even more dangerous is that they hide the long-term damage that alcohol causes.

When a person drinks excessively and blacks out, they experience short-term memory loss and the destruction of brain cells. If a person repeatedly drinks to the point of blacking out, the damage becomes so severe that the brain loses its ability to hold on to new memories. 

For example, a person might be able to talk with somebody about events that happened months ago. However, they do not remember that conversation a few hours later.

What are the Different Types of Alcohol-Related Brain Damage?

The different types of alcohol related brain damage are dementia, Wernicke’s Korsakoff syndrome, and hepatic encephalopathy. Owing to the complexity of the human brain, alcohol-related brain damage presents itself in several ways. 

Types of alcohol related brain damage include:

Dementia

One is alcohol-related dementia. A person with alcohol-related dementia will find it difficult to complete day-to-day tasks.

They may experience memory loss and difficulty solving problems. They will likely find complex tasks, like managing their finances, challenging.

Alcohol amnestic disorder is characterised by the inability to learn new information or to form new memories. A person experiences personality changes or finds themselves making up stories to fill in the spaces in their memory. Hallucinations, or seeing things that are not there, are other symptoms of this syndrome.

Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome 

This is a neurological disorder linked to the lack of vitamin B1. Symptoms include memory loss, tremors, vision problems, and disorientation. 

The condition develops because nerve cells and brain and spinal cord supporting cells are damaged from excessive drinking and the vitamin deficiencies that come with consuming excessive amounts of alcohol for an extended period.

Frontal lobe damage 

This is devastating, as the frontal lobe is key to forming ideas, planning, self-control, and making decisions. When alcohol negatively impacts the frontal lobe, people can find it difficult to control their urges and emotions. They act out without thinking about it, often in violent or sexually inappropriate ways. 

Hepatic encephalopathy

Hepatic encephalopathy occurs when the liver has been seriously damaged by alcohol consumption. As a result, it cannot remove harmful substances from the blood.

Why Does ARBD Happen?

ARBD happens due to the toxic nature of alcohol. The harmful nature of alcohol makes it dangerous to consume in large doses, as it damages brain cells.

When a person drinks to the point of intoxication, they may be more prone to get into fights or fall. Both lead to severe brain injuries. 

Also, alcohol is a diuretic. It makes a person urinate with greater frequency. This leads to dehydration, which shrinks or destroys brain cells.

Vitamin B1 absorption is diminished with excessive alcohol consumption. Vitamin B1 is important as it is a key building block of the brain.

Excessive alcohol consumption causes a person to lose their appetite. As a result, they’re not eating enough, nor are they getting the nutrients they need, including vitamin B1.

Drinking too much alcohol leads to systemic inflammation and vomiting. This also impacts a heavy drinker’s ability to pull the nutrients they need from their food.

Heavy drinking affects a person’s metabolism. The functioning of their heart and cardiovascular system can be impaired, leading to high blood pressure and increased risk for heart attacks, high cholesterol levels, and strokes, all of which lead to brain damage.

When a person with alcohol use disorder or addiction stops drinking, they may go through withdrawal, which damages the brain. It takes some time for the body’s chemistry to readjust to functioning without alcohol.

How Long Does It Take to Develop ARBD?

There is no definite timeline for developing ARBD. Each person is different, and how they are affected by alcohol is unique. So, there is no one-size-fits-all formula for determining the length of time a person will need to excessively use alcohol before developing ARBD. 

However, the more alcohol that a person consumes and the longer they drink, the greater the chances are that they will develop some type of ARBD.

Most people who are diagnosed with ARBD are in their 50s or 60s. However, there is an increasing trend of this disease being seen in individuals who are in their 30s or 40s.

Women are more vulnerable than men when it comes to developing alcohol-related brain damage. The same is true regarding nerve, heart, and liver damage. 

A person who begins drinking when they’re young and continues to drink heavily as they get older has an increased risk of developing the condition.

Alcohol-Related Brain Damage in Infants

Alcohol-related brain damage may be seen in infants who were subjected to alcohol while their mother was pregnant. There is no such thing as a safe level of alcohol to consume during pregnancy, owing to the risk of fetal alcohol syndrome. 

Alcohol will quickly travel through the umbilical cord to the fetus. Since the fetus’s body is undeveloped, it cannot process the toxic substance properly. 

Fetal alcohol syndrome leads to stillbirth, miscarriage, and developmental disorders, including small head size, hyperactivity, low IQ, and bone disorders.

Treating ARBD In Columbus, Ohio

You can treat ARBD in Columbus, Ohio, through detox, medication, and targeted treatment. ARBD includes various conditions caused by heavy drinking. 

Various treatments are used to help different people based on the type of brain damage that they have experienced. It is key to get the right diagnosis so that treatment can match the person’s needs. 

At White Light Behavioural Health, we pride ourselves on providing best-in-class treatment in the state of Ohio. We offer a full continuum of treatments for clients with substance use disorders. We have detox and inpatient programs that allow our guests to receive the highest standard of clinical experience in a safe, respectful, compassionate environment.

Typically, treatment is divided into five phases, beginning with physical stabilisation and withdrawal. First, we will guide you through your detox in a medically safe and stable environment and ensure that you are as comfortable as possible.

The next phase is a psychosocial assessment, followed by therapeutic rehabilitation. Adaptive rehabilitation allows a person to regain a good quality of life. Finally, social integration and relapse prevention help individuals build relationships and social networks that will nurture them moving forward.

How Does Alcohol Abuse Affect Brain Development In Teenagers?

Alcohol abuse affects brain development in teenagers by causing long-term cognitive deficits, impaired decision-making skills, and increased risk of alcohol addiction later in life. Since the teenage brain is still maturing, alcohol exposure can disrupt the development process.

How Does Addiction Affect Mental Health?

Addiction has profound effects on mental health, worsens existing mental health conditions, and leads to the development of new ones. 

Substance abuse disrupts the brain’s natural balance of neurotransmitters, which results in mood swings, anxiety, depression, and other psychiatric disorders. 

Additionally, the cycle of addiction leads to social isolation, financial problems, and strained relationships, further worsening mental well-being.

Can Alcohol Abuse Cause Permanent Brain Damage?

Yes, prolonged alcohol abuse can cause permanent brain damage. Chronic alcohol consumption leads to neuronal death, shrinkage of brain tissue, and structural changes in various brain regions. These changes result in cognitive deficits, memory impairment, and other neurological symptoms that may persist even after abstaining from alcohol.

Does Alcohol Abuse Increase The Risk Of Stroke?

Yes, alcohol abuse is a significant risk factor for stroke. Excessive alcohol consumption can raise blood pressure, disrupt blood clotting mechanisms, and contribute to the formation of plaques in the arteries, all of which increase the likelihood of experiencing a stroke.