By Debjani Baidyaray

Mumbai, March 18: It is smoking, more than alcoholism that may have long term negative effects on the memory, especially in female smokers, suggests a new study.

Smoking is one highly addictive habit that can adversely affect your health. A research study conducted at the Institut Natioanl de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale, in Villejuif, France concluded that smoking has a deep connection with memory loss. The study showed that smokers in their middle ages had a higher rate of decline in memory and also in their reasoning ability. It was also found that long term smokers who quit eventually were less likely to to score poorly on tests on vocabulary and verbal fluency.

The study involving 287 men and women aged 31 to 60, revealed that participants addicted to alcohol in the past performed similarly on standard tests of cognitive function like those without any drinking problems. The findings were not so positive in case of tobacco.

The March issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs reported that women addicted to smoking in comparison to their non-smoking counterparts and the men score low in certain cognitive tests.

There are, however, no concrete reasons why smoking is more dangerous than alcohol abuse and whether alcohol addiction may have less harmful effects on memory and cognitive abilities of a person. Most participants, in this study, met the criteria for alcohol abuse with their past drinking problems rather than the more serious diagnosis of dependence.

The criteria of alcohol abuse was met when the respondents agreed to one symptom of problem drinking like drinking and driving or facing obligations due to drinking. The criteria of dependence needed the respondents to agree to at least three symptoms such as needing to drink more and more to achieve the same effects and also experiencing physical withdrawal symptoms when they did not drink.

According to Dr Kristin Caspers, the lead author of the study and an assistant research scientist in the department of psychiatry at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, the results on cognition would differ with the difference in the alcohol dependency level. She also claims that people with a history of alcohol abuse may be destined to suffer cognitive effects when current levels of drinking are in the light to moderate range.

Quitting the habit of cigarette smoking may not be easy but by keeping off the temptations and changing your habits while you get the urge to smoke can help you quit. 

Also read: Smoking contributes to aging

TAGS: smoking, alcoholism

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