Why people get aggressive after drinking

Researchers have used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans that measure blood flow in the brain to understand why people become aggressive and violent after drinking alcohol. After only two drinks, the researchers noted changes in the working of the prefrontal cortex of the brain, the part involved in tempering a person's levels of aggression. The study was led by Thomas Denson of the University of New South Wales in Australia in the journal Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience.

According to most theories, alcohol-related aggression is caused by changes in the prefrontal cortex. However, there is a lack of substantial neuroimaging evidence to substantiate these ideas. In this study, Denson and his team recruited fifty healthy young men. The participants were either given two drinks containing vodka, or placebo drinks without any alcohol. While lying in an MRI scanner, the participants then had to compete in a task which has regularly been used over the past 50 years to observe levels of aggression in response to provocation.

The functional magnetic resonance imaging allowed the researchers to see which areas of the brain were triggered when the task was performed. They could also compare the difference in scans between participants who had consumed alcohol and those who hadn't. Being provoked was found to have no influence on participants' neural responses. However, when behaving aggressively, there was a dip in activity in the prefrontal cortex of the brains of those who had consumed alcoholic drinks. This dampening effect was also seen in the areas of the brain that are involved reward. Also, heightened activity was noted in the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with people's memory.

Although there was an overall dampening effect of alcohol on the prefrontal cortex, even at a low dose of alcohol there is a significant positive relationship between dorsomedial and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activity and alcohol-related aggression. These regions may support different behaviors, such as peace versus aggression, depending on whether a person is sober or intoxicated.

The results are largely consistent with a growing body of research about the neural basis of aggression, and how it is triggered by changes in the way that the prefrontal cortex, the limbic system and reward-related regions of the brain function. The results of the current study are also consistent with several psychological theories of alcohol-related aggression.
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Effects of repeated alcohol comsumption on the brain

Drinking more than one glass of wine a night is enough to kill cells in key regions of a woman's brain. A study on mice found that drinking alcohol is damaging to the subventricular region of the brain, where new brain cells are created to sustain brain function, and protect against tumors and neurodegenerative diseases.

Research showed that female brains displayed more severe deficits after drinking than males, who would need more than 14 drinks a week to suffer significant damage. Prolonged alcohol abuse can cause severe brain damage and neurodegeneration. The number of nerve cells in the adult brain was fixed early in life and the best way to treat alcohol-induced brain damage was to protect the remaining nerve cells.

Research has shown that adult brains produce stem cells that create new nerve cells and alcohol is suppressing that process. Researchers used a technique that allowed them to tag brain stem cells and observe how they migrate and develop into nerve cells over time. This allowed them to study the impact of long-term alcohol consumption on the cells.

The female brains displayed more severe intoxication behaviors and greatly reduced the pool of stem cells in the subventricular zone, where the new cells are generated. The findings show that the effects of repeated alcohol consumption differed across brain regions. And the region most susceptible to the effects of alcohol was one of two brain regions where new cells are created in adults.

Drinking a glass of wine, or five ounces with a 12 percent alcohol content, can lower one's risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, research found. But the report does warn that heavy drinking increases the risk of mortality and the development life-threatening illnesses.
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Yoga and meditation improve brain function

Practicing yoga and mindfulness meditation can boost the brain's executive functions, cognitive abilities linked to goal-directed behavior and the ability to control emotional responses, habitual thinking patterns and actions.

Yoga and mindfulness meditation focus on the brain's conscious processing power on a limited number of targets like breathing and posing, and also reduce processing of non essential information.

Mindfulness meditation and yoga were both effective for improving energy levels, physical exercise like yoga releases endorphins, increased blood flow to the brain, and reduced focus on ruminative thoughts. Yoga improves flexibility and strengthen the body.

It involves physical postures and breathing exercises combined with meditation. Mindfulness mediation involves observing thoughts, emotions and body sensations.
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Social activities can prevent dementia

Brain cells may die as we get older, mental and social activities promote new connections between cells. Keeping the brain active increases connections between brain cells and builds up cognitive reserve.

Regular mental activities can keep the brain healthy, learn something new everyday. Challenging yourself with mentally stimulating activities can prevent dementia.

Cognitive stimulating activities like reading, playing games and dancing can improve brain functions and prevent dementia. Regular mental activities can keep the brain healthy.

Socialising reduces risk of depression that can result from isolation. Social interaction is also good for the brain because it stimulates connections between brain cells. Combining physical and mental activity are very effective in preventing dementia.
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Regular sexual activity can boost brain function in older adults

According to the latest research, regular sexual activity could improve verbal fluency and ability to visually perceive objects and the spaces between them.

Participants filled in a questionnaire on how often, on average, they had engaged in sexual activity over the past 12 months whether monthly or weekly and answering questions about their general health and lifestyle.

The 28 men and 45 women participated in a standardized test, used to measure different patterns of brain function in older adults, focusing on attention, memory, fluency, language and visuospatial ability.

Older adults who were sexually active scored higher on cognitive tests than those who were not sexually active.
The results suggested that frequency of sexual activity was not linked to attention, memory or language but cognitive. In these tests, the participants performed just as well regardless of  their frequent time of having sex.

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