A BONUS FOR SENIORS WHO INDULGE

HERE’S A LITTLE something to look forward to in the senior years! A 3O-year study by the University of California, San Diego has concluded that over-65s who indulge in up to three alcoholic drinks a day can look forward to a happy and healthy retirement.  In fact, they said, moderate to heavy drinkers are more likely to live to the age of 85 without dementia or other cognitive impairments than non-drinkers.  The study, which tracked more than 1OOO middle class white men and women in California, builds on a swell of recent research linking alcohol intake to longevity.  However, the researchers warned that excessive alcohol intake is known to cause alcohol-related dementia.  “This study is unique because we considered men and women’s cognitive health at late age and found that alcohol consumption is not only associated with reduced mortality, but with greater chances of remaining cognitively healthy into older age,” said lead author Dr. Linda McEvoy.

The data derive from a relatively homogenous population in one specific region of San Diego County: Rancho Bernardo, a white-collar, middle-to-upper-middle-class suburb.  The researchers tracked 1344 older adults, including 728 women and 616 men, from 1984 to 2O13.  Ninety-nine percent of them were white with at least some college education.  Cognitive health was assessed every four years over the course of the 29-year study, using a standard dementia screening test known as the Mini Mental State Examination.  The researchers found that people who drank “moderate to heavy” amounts of alcohol five to seven days a week were doubly likely to be cognitively healthy than non-drinkers.  The study defined moderate, heavy and excessive drinking using gender and age-specific guidelines from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

The researchers warned that the study does not suggest drinking is responsible for increased longevity and cognitive health.  They underscore that people who drink moderate amounts of wine on a regular basis tend to have higher incomes and education levels.  They also tend to smoke less and have better access to health care.  The UC San Diego School of Medicine research team adjusted the statistical analyses to remove confounding variables, such as smoking or obesity.  “It is important to point out that there were very few individuals in our study who drank to excess, so our study does not show how excessive or binge-type drinking may affect longevity and cognitive health in aging,” Dr. McEvoy stated.  Lead author Erin Richard, a graduate student, added: “This study shows that moderate drinking may be part of a healthy lifestyle to maintain cognitive fitness in aging.”