After a few drinks, older adults more impaired than they think

March 06, 2009

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Older, active people who have a drink or two might be more impaired afterward than they think, according to a report today from a University of Florida research group in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

Although people 50 or older in the study metabolized alcohol similar to how younger people did, they performed worse on special tests after having moderate amounts of alcohol and did not always realize when they were impaired. Soon after having alcohol, older adults also took on average five seconds longer to complete a test than their counterparts who did not have a drink.

"That doesn't sound like much, but five seconds is a big difference if you're in a car and need to apply the brakes," said lead author Sara Jo Nixon, Ph.D., a psychiatry professor at UF's McKnight Brain Institute. "It can mean the difference between a wreck, and not-a-wreck."

In 2007, an estimated 12,998 people were killed in crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

"We still have a tremendous overhead in the United States of terrible tragedy with drinking and driving," said Edith Vioni Sullivan, Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine. "We usually hear about the deaths; we seldom hear about the serious accidents that put people into nursing homes and hospitals for the rest of their lives."

More than half of adults older than 55 drink socially, according to a 2008 report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. But few studies have focused on the short-term effects of social drinking among older adults. Previous research mainly investigated consumption of large amounts of alcohol at one time, and generally in young people. But results from studies of younger adults might not be applicable to older people because of age-related declines in cognitive skills, as well as changes in how alcohol is metabolized and removed from the body.

Nixon's group aimed to expand understanding of the effects over time of moderate levels of alcohol consumption in healthy, active older adults.

"You want to know how long does it take for them to become sober enough to engage in potentially dangerous activity such as driving," Sullivan said.

The study involved 68 nonsmokers - one group aged 50 to 74 and a comparison group aged 25 to 35 - who had at least one drink a month. Within each group, some individuals were given alcohol while others were given a placebo beverage that did not elevate their breath alcohol levels. The groups were carefully matched by gender, body mass index, history of alcohol consumption and other demographic characteristics.

When a person consumes alcohol, concentration in the blood builds to a peak, then dissipates. During the first phase of the metabolic process, alcohol has a stimulating effect. During the second phase, there is a sedative or depressive effect.

During each phase - at 25 minutes and 75 minutes after alcohol consumption, respectively - participants were given tests that required them to draw lines connecting numbered and lettered dots on a paper, in chronological order, without lifting the pen from the paper. They were timed and evaluated for how many errors they made. The first test involved numbers, while the second involved alternating between numbers and letters. Those tests give clues about a person's mental processing related to movement, and about the ability to mentally shift from one problem-solving strategy to another. The researchers also asked participants to rate on 10-point scales how intoxicated they felt, and how much they thought the alcohol impaired their performance.

Older adults who had alcohol took longer to complete the tasks than younger adults who had alcohol. But there was no such age difference between the older and younger groups that had not had alcohol. The researchers found that even though blood alcohol levels for participants in both groups rose at a similar rate right after drinking and reached the same peak, the older adults did worse on tests. That suggested the performance gap seen after moderate amounts of alcohol was not because of age-related differences in how the body processes the substance, but because of other factors influencing how alcohol affected the individuals.

In the test portion during the "stimulating" alcohol phase, older adults who had alcohol were slower than those who had not had any. In contrast, alcohol seemed to give the younger group a performance boost during that phase.

"People shouldn't take it to mean that younger people can drink with impunity," Sullivan said.

During that same post-drinking phase, when the older adults were impaired, they didn't think they were. And in the second phase - an hour and 15 minutes after having alcohol - older adults thought their performance was impaired, even when it wasn't.

"An older person might say 'Really, I feel all right, I'm sure I can drive,'" Sullivan said. "But the study shows that you can't always take someone at their word."

So what advice would Nixon give to active, older adults?

"If you have a couple of drinks at dinner, sit around, have dessert - don't drive for a while."

The researchers didn't evaluate the role of interactions between alcohol and prescription and other medicines.

They hope to conduct studies with larger numbers of people, more age groups and a wider range of alcohol intake levels. Future studies in which subjects take multiple, more difficult tests; the same individual is observed under different circumstances; and differences between the sexes are evaluated might shed more light on alcohol effects in older active adults.

University of Florida

---

---

	How to Change Your Drinking: a Harm Reduction Guide to Alcohol (2nd edition) by Kenneth Anderson (Author), G. Alan Marlatt PhD (Preface), Patt Denning PhD (Preface) Harm reduction is the single most effective approach to drug and alcohol problems because harm reduction uses pragmatic, evidence-based strategies that work. This book is the first comprehensive compilation of harm reduction strategies aimed specifically at people who drink alcohol. Whether your goal is safer drinking, reduced drinking, or quitting alcohol altogether, this is the book for you. It contains a large and detailed selection of harm reduction tools and strategies which you can choose from to build your own individualized alcohol harm reduction program. There are many practical exercises to help people change their behaviors, including risk-ranking worksheets, drinking charts, goal choice worksheets, and many more. There are also innumerable practical tips from folks who "have...
	Alcohol Lied To Me : The Intelligent Way To Escape Alcohol Addiction by Viral Success Limited Craig Beck is a well-regarded family man with two children, a nice home and a successful media career. A director of several companies & at one time the trustee of a large children’s charity. Craig was a successful & functioning professional man in spite of a ‘2 bottles of wine a night’ drinking habit. For 20 years he struggled with problem drinking, all the time refusing to label himself an alcoholic because he didn't believe he met the stereotypical image that the word portrayed. He tried countless ways to cut down; attempting ‘dry months’, banning himself from drinking spirits, only drinking at the weekend & special occasions (and found that it is amazing how even the smallest of event can suddenly become ‘special’). All these 'will power' based attempts to...
	Alcohol: A Dangerous and Unnecessary Medicine, How and Why What Medical Writers Say This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
	7 Weeks to Safe Social Drinking: How to Effectively Moderate Your Alcohol Intake by Donna J. Cornett (Author) Drink less, crave less and prevent alcoholism in the comfort and privacy of your home with the Drink/Link Moderate Drinking Program! Established in 1988, Drink/Link has helped thousands of drinkers worldwide to cut back on their alcohol intake. Over 80% of the drinkers who have completed the program have significantly reduced their alcohol consumption and no meetings, drugs, belief in a higher power or professional help are required for you to succeed! First, you learn five safe-drinking guidelines, then, each week you learn clinically-proven behavioral, cognitive, motivational and lifestyle strategies and techniques to help you stay within those guidelines. The result? You enjoy controlled drinking and no problems. It's an easy, commonsense moderate drinking program that works! ...
	Drink: A Cultural History of Alcohol by Iain Gately (Author) A spirited look at the history of alcohol, from the dawn of civilization to the modern day Alcohol is a fundamental part of Western culture. We have been drinking as long as we have been human, and for better or worse, alcohol has shaped our civilization. Drink investigates the history of this Jekyll and Hyde of fluids, tracing mankind's love/hate relationship with alcohol from ancient Egypt to the present day. Drink further documents the contribution of alcohol to the birth and growth of the United States, taking in the War of Independence, the Pennsylvania Whiskey revolt, the slave trade, and the failed experiment of national Prohibition. Finally, it provides a history of the world's most famous drinks-and the world's most famous drinkers. Packed with trivia and colorful...
	Alcohol: How to Give It Up and Be Glad You Did by Philip Tate PhD (Author), Albert Ellis (Introduction) This practical, comprehensive, and easy to use book helps alcohol abusers understand their behavior, but provides practical steps that anyone can use to solve an alcohol problem. Written by a cognitive-behavioral psychologist, this book includes chapters on overcoming low self-esteem, depression, stress, attending self-help groups, and living a better life after quitting. Each chapter contains specific self-help techniques. Recommended by SMART Recovery.
	Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs: Challenging Myths, Assessing Theories, Individualizing Interventions, 2nd Edition by Ann A. Abbott (Author) The misuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs has severe emotional and financial consequences for users, their families, and society. The collective effects are often devastating, because the magnitude of the problems associated with alcohol, tobacco, and drug dependency (ATOD) is far-reaching. Social workers in practice areas related to children and families, older adults and aging, and health and wellness are well aware of the need for effective ATOD interventions to address these problems. Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs: Challenging Myths, Assessing Theories, Individualizing Interventions, 2nd Edition, prepares new social workers as well as updates seasoned professionals for the new realities and challenges in this specialization.NASW Press NASW Press, a division of National...
	Allen Carr's Easy Way to Control Alcohol by Allen Carr (Author) Allen Carr established himself as the world's greatest authority on helping people stop smoking and his internationally best-selling Easy Way to Stop Smoking has been published in over 40 languages and sold more than 10 million copies. In his Easy Way to Control Alcohol Allen applies his revolutionary method to drinking. With startling insight into why we drink and clear, simple, step-by-step instructions, he shows you the way to escape from the "alcohol trap" in the time it takes to read this book. His unique method removes the feeling of deprivation and works without using willpower. Allen dispels our illusions about alcohol, removes the psychological dependence and sets you free to enjoy life to the full.
	Buzzed: The Straight Facts About the Most Used and Abused Drugs from Alcohol to Ecstasy (Third Edition) by Cynthia Kuhn (Author), Scott Swartzwelder (Author), Wilkie Wilson (Author) The third edition of the essential, accessible source for understanding how drugs work and their effects on body and behavior.Together, the first two editions of Buzzed have sold over 120,000 copies—and now the authors have revised and updated the book to include the most recent discoveries about drugs, including new information on the energy drinks craze, prescription drugs such as OxyContin and Ambien, and the date-rape drug GHB. Scientifically accurate and easy to read, this no-nonsense handbook gives the most balanced, objective information available on the most often used and abused drugs, from alcohol, caffeine, and ...
	Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Behavior: Psychological Research Perspectives by John R. Jung (Author) Providing a psychological perspective on the use and abuse of alcohol and other psychoactive drugs, this Second Edition includes more coverage of the theories of alcohol and other drug use and abuse, as well as broad conceptual issues related to the nature of addiction and recent developments in research methods. Key FeaturesFocuses on alcohol, which is used more widely than any other drug, and the one that is  associated with the most societal harmEvaluates important studies on major issues, concepts, and theories rather than providing exhaustive literature reviewsTeaches students to become educated consumers of research findings, rather than passive or uncritical recipientsAncillariesA Student Study Site at www.sagepub.com/jungstudy with chapter summaries, multiple-choice...