THURSDAY, April 10, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- Heavy drinkers have an increased risk of developing brain lesions associated with memory and thinking problems, a new study says.

Folks who imbibe eight or more alcoholic drinks a week have an increased risk of hyaline arteriolosclerosis, or a thickening and narrowing of the small arteries that feed the brain, researchers reported April 9 in the journal Neurology.

This condition makes it harder for blood to flow, which can damage the brain over time, researchers said. It appears as lesions, or areas of damaged tissue in the brain.

“Heavy alcohol consumption is a major global health concern linked to increased health problems and death,” said lead researcher Alberto Fernando Oliveira Justo, an investigator at University of Sao Paulo Medical School in Brazil.

“Our research shows that heavy alcohol consumption is damaging to the brain, which can lead to memory and thinking problems,” Justo added in a news release.

For the study, researchers analyzed brain autopsies taken of nearly 1,800 people who died at an average age of 75.

The autopsies looked for signs of brain injury, including tau tangles associated with Alzheimer’s disease as well as instances of hyaline arteriolosclerosis.

Family members answered questions about the deceased’s drinking habits, and researchers compared each person’s drinking to the state of their brain.

Researchers defined one drink as having 14 grams of alcohol. That's about 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits.

Heavy drinkers had 133% higher odds of having brain lesions than those who never drank, results show.

Likewise, former heavy drinkers had 89% higher odds of brain lesions, while moderate drinkers who imbibed seven or fewer drinks a week had a 60% increased risk, researchers said.

Heavy drinkers also had an increased risk of developing tau tangles, 41% higher than non-drinkers, results show.

Former heavy drinking also was associated with brain shrinkage and worse cognitive abilities, researchers said.

Finally, heavy drinkers died an average 13 years earlier than those who never drank, researchers found.

“We found heavy drinking is directly linked to signs of injury in the brain, and this can cause long-term effects on brain health, which may impact memory and thinking abilities,” Justo said. "Understanding these effects is crucial for public health awareness and continuing to implement preventive measures to reduce heavy drinking."

More information

The National Institutes of Health has more on alcohol’s effects on the brain.

SOURCE: American Academy of Neurology, news release, April 9, 2025