“First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you,” the great F. Scott Fitzgerald once said.
“Drinking in moderation” is the rule of thumb when it comes to alcohol, but one doctor argues it all factors into age.
Like most people who experienced drinking in their 20’s, a hangover might not be as potent due to the youthful organs able to combat this, but why?
“The liver and brain have the most resilience during that time,” Dr. Elizabeth Landsverk, a San Francisco geriatrician and dementia expert, told HuffPost. “The frontal lobes (reasoning, and judgment) are not quite developed. One is more likely to be open to drinking more or taking more risks, and this can set habits that will cause problems down the line.”
Now, this wouldn’t necessarily have to do with anything like alcohol poisoning, as that can stem from an over consumption of drinking.
Landsverk stated drinking a glass of wine once a week is more than fine, with some doctors preaching a glass a day isn’t all that bad either — though, the geriatrician says all together it becomes “neurotoxic, and that can catch up with you.”
The term neurotoxic refers to anything of toxic substance, either man-made or natural, to a person’s brain as well as peripheral nervous system.
“Ask yourself: How is your health otherwise? Obesity, which is epidemic in America, increases the risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver,” Landsverk says. “Alcohol increases the risk of liver disease and scarring (cirrhosis).”
When a person reaches their 40’s — the cause and effects of alcohol come back to haunt them with familiar health issues many face today.
“Obesity, diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol all increase the risk for heart attacks, strokes and small stroke dementia,” Landsverk cited. “If you’re living with any of these conditions, even a small amount of alcohol can further increase your risk of events like heart attacks or strokes, so keep that in mind.”
When a person’s reaches their 50s to 60s, alcohol deteriorates the body drastically due to the loss of an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogena and are unable to metabolize alcoholic beverages.
“I can speak from experience,” Landsverk said. “I can ski or swim a mile, but a glass of wine makes me feel ill and slow the next day.”
That’s when the serious health scares like cancer and dementia may trickle in as alcohol drinkers age.
“Alcohol, besides the vascular damage and dementia risks, increases the risk of breast cancer, esophageal cancer and liver cancer (after disease),” Landsverk said. “Because cancer risk drastically increases as we age, adding any amount of alcohol into the mix will only further increase that risk.
“Plus, as we age, good sleep is more elusive,” she added. “Substances like caffeine, cigarettes and alcohol all hinder sleep.”
To lighten up the mood, Landsverk made the analogy of alcohol to a candy bar, recommending people should think about how “nice” they are but how they can’t be eaten with every meal.
“They’re nice with some meals, but they can increase your weight and blood sugar, and over decades adds to cancer risk and chronic illnesses that can lead to poor health,” she joked.