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Studies have always shown that alcohol consumption in a limited and controlled manner improves the functioning of the mind and the brain. This is because when alcohol is consumed, the flow of blood to the brain increases making it more alert and alive.
Moderate Alcohol on Older Women
Studies have been conducted in Toronto to find out the effect of moderate alcohol consumption on older women , those who are aged between 70 to 79 years of age. It has been seen that these women had better mental functioning. In fact, the researchers say their cognitive functioning was the same as that would have been, had they been one or two years younger.
Moderate Alcohol Improves Memory
When the older women consumed moderate alcohol, their memory improved. This has been found out by the University of Texas. Dr. Graham, the researcher who headed the entire team, says, “Moderate drinkers reported less depression, had higher self-reported health, preformed better on instrumental everyday tasks, had stronger memory self-efficacy and improved memory performance.”
Various tests like retelling a story, hidden objects, connecting random letters and members, etc. were given to both the groups-those who drank and those who didn’t. The former scored better than the latter in nearly all the cases. Dr. McDougall said that he noticed the confidence level of those who drank to be also much higher than those who didn’t drink.
The key here is to remember the word ‘moderate’. Though this would vary from person to person, the study emphasizes the limit as up to two drinks of wine, beer or any other spirits in a day.
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