The Association of Alcoholism, Alcohol Use and Dementia

The discussion concerning alcoholism and dementia has a long and complicated history. In this paper, I review this topic, showing that alcohol can rarely cause Korsakoff’s dementia through a thiamine deficiency. In this syndrome, the ability to encode new memory is affected. However, the question of whether alcohol leads to more common forms of dementia is more complicated. Light to moderate drinking seems to be protective against the development of Alzheimer’s disease or vascular dementia. Heavy drinking will increase the risk of dementia from Alzheimer’s disease or vascular dementia (from stroke). Traumatic brain injury often accompanies the behaviors associated with heavy drinking, and brain injury is a risk factor for developing dementia later in life.