How Alcohol Affects the Brain

Did you know that alcohol causes changes in your brain? Some of them can even be permanent.

Your brain has systems that control the different parts of your body. When you drink alcohol, the messages that your brain sends become confused or do not arrive. This can change the way your body acts. It can also change the way you feel.

If you drink a lot of alcohol, there can even be permanent changes to the structure of your brain. This can lead to a variety of effects, including:

  • Stumbling and poor balance
    Alcohol can damage your cerebellum, which could cause permanent changes in your coordination and sense of balance.
  • Poor memory
    Alcohol can keep the chemicals in your brain from working. It can also stop the parts of your brain that are used to remember things. This is why heavy drinking can prevent you from remembering things that happened.
  • Mood changes
    Over time, heavy alcohol use can shrink the size of your brain. This can cause a wide range of changes, including poor sleep and mood swings.

Some of these changes could even be permanent. The more alcohol you consume, the more it can change your brain. If you have liver damage or other health problems, alcohol can affect you even more.

Make sure that you always drink responsibly and in moderation.