The girl’s brain is more affected by drunkenness than boys’ of the same age, according to a study published in U.S., which warns that neurons are affected by alcohol and that this is worse than the hangover of the next day, informs France Presse.
Researchers from the University of California at San Diego and Stanford have studied the brains of 95 teenagers, 40 of them partaking in drunkenness (at least four glasses of drink one after another for girls, and five for boys).
The activity of several brain areas, especially attention and memory capacity, have been reduced due to alcohol, in comparison with teenagers who did not consume any alcohol, said Susan Tapert, a professor of psychiatry at Stanford and co-author of the study.
Girl’s brains are worse affected, primarily because the brain development is usually one or two years more advanced than in boys, said Susan Tapert. At the same age, damage is more serious in girls. Among other factors, the study lists the hormonal differences between the genders, a slower metabolism in girls, and a lower index of body fat and average weight.
Study participants were drunk in several series, followed by long periods of sobriety. But despite the rare drunkenness, the effects on the brain could be clearly identified, warned Edith Sullivan, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences from the School of Medicine at Stanford. “This study shows that in young people – college or high school age – the risks for cognitive brain functions persist long time after they recover from the hangover”, she concluded.