Alcohol drinking and cognitive functions: findings from the Cardiovascular Risk Factors Aging and Dementia (CAIDE) Study.
BACKGROUND
Moderate alcohol drinking is suggested to be beneficial for cognitive functions, but the results of previous studies have varied greatly. Little is known about the effects of midlife alcohol drinking on the cognitive functions later in life.


METHODS
Participants were derived from random, population-based samples studied in Eastern Finland in 1972, 1977, 1982, or 1987. A total of 1,341 participants were reexamined in 1998, after an average follow-up period of 21 years, at ages 65-79 years.


RESULTS
The participants who did not drink alcohol at midlife had a poorer performance in episodic memory, psychomotor speed, and executive function in late life as compared with infrequent and frequent drinkers, adjusted for sociodemographic and vascular factors. Also late-life nondrinkers had poorer psychomotor speed and executive function. These findings were evident especially among nonsmokers. Further, no interactions between apolipoprotein E4 and alcohol or sex and alcohol were found.


CONCLUSIONS
Alcohol drinking both at midlife and later is favorably related to the function in several cognitive domains, including episodic memory, psychomotor speed, and executive function, in late life. However, it is not clear whether the association is causal, what is the possible mechanism, and what would be a safe limit of drinking for the best cognitive function.
Ngandu
Tiia
T
Aging Research Center (ARC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. tiia.ngandu@ki.se
Helkala
Eeva-Liisa
EL
Soininen
Hilkka
H
Winblad
Bengt
B
Tuomilehto
Jaakko
J
Nissinen
Aulikki
A
Kivipelto
Miia
M
D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015984:Causality; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000187:drug effects*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000187:drug effects*