Forget about the big heads of people who drink alcohol. More alcohol shrinks the total brain volume of drinkers, according to a study reported in the October 2008 issue of the journal, Archives of Neurology. United States researchers, Carol Ann Paul and colleagues studied 1,839 adults (aged 33 to 88 years). These adults had had seven health examinations over a period of 4 to 8 years for the past 30 years. From 1999 through August 2001, the researchers took the magnetic resonance images of participant’s brain and matched their findings with reported alcohol consumption, and other factors. "There was a significant negative linear relationship between alcohol consumption and total cerebral brain volume," the researchers wrote. In other words, the more alcohol an individual drinks, the smaller his or her total brain volume. The effect was more pronounced in women than in men, although both groups were negatively affected. “Alcohol is absorbed more rapidly in women than in men, and in general women are more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol than men,” the researchers explained. But alcohol is not the only factor that shrinks the brain volume. Studies have shown that brain volume declines with age at an estimated rate of 1.9% per decade. Since the total brain volume is not the only part of the brain responsible for intelligence, having a decline in total brain volume may not necessarily lead to low intelligence. It has been previously thought that alcohol protects the brain, thus causing many consumers to embrace more alcohol. But US researchers, Carol Ann Paul and colleagues give a blow to alcohol drinkers: “This study suggests that alcohol consumption does not have any protective effect on brain volume.” Story by Bernard Appiah The author is a graduate student in science and technology journalism at Texas A&M University.