The brains of alcoholic individuals have to work harder in order for them to perform simple tasks, such as tapping the fingers, according to a new study from Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The study indicated that alcoholism may cause a lack of brain flexibility.
- Dr. Peter Martin and his colleagues asked ten people, who met the criteria for alcoholism to match up with ten 10 people who are normal drinkers.
- After each person was hooked up to an MRI machine which scans the brain, he or she was asked to tap their fingers according to white arrow on a TV screen.
"The alcoholic group work was not as consistent or accurate," Dr. Martin said. "They brought into play large additional parts of their brains to accomplish the task. They used a bulldozer to shovel a rosebush."
The MRI scans showed that the alcoholics activated all their brain regions, including areas that the other subjects did not use.
The study appeared in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
Posted By: Aspen/CRC