Saturday, April 18, 2009

Margarita Me BAAAAAAAAABY

I read MSN through the day and find some very interesting news on there on a regular basis. When I read this article, my mouth started to water for my favorite frozen drink. God bless science.
So much for drinking and Darwinism. (killing off of the weak brain cells, anyone? anyone?)

Myth: Drink enough alcohol and you'll start killing brain cells.

Reality
: Drunken frat boys head-butting one another in a bar may give you pause to consider this one, but alcohol does not kill neurons or create holes in the brain. However, there's no denying that alcohol and other drugs of abuse impact brain systems. It's their effect on the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin that goose the brain's reward system, leading to feelings of euphoria—and, when more of the drug is needed to create the same effect, to tolerance and addiction."Over the short-term, alcohol and drugs alter brain function rather than affecting brain structure," Molnar-Szakacs clarifies. "Slurred speech, impaired motor response, and impaired judgment are all symptomatic of compromised frontal lobes, the centers of the brain that direct higher-level decision making."Rarely, a chronic drinker may develop
Wernicke-Korsakoff's Syndrome, a condition characterized by atrophy or shrinking of the thalamus and hypothalamus and the inability to recall or form memories. This syndrome's not a direct effect of drinking, but rather a secondary result of alcohol abuse so severe that absorption of vitamin B-1 is prevented, leaving the brain malnourished.

1 comment:

Marketing Gurl said...

That is hilarious!