Researchers at the Center for Alcohol Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill studied inebriated rats. They found that new cell growth in the brain's key memory center dropped below half of normal following extended periods of intoxication.

"We found that the number of newly-formed cells was decreased by 57 percent when compared to the no-alcohol group," said Dr. Kim Nixon, lead author. One month after alcohol exposure, Nixon said, "the number of newly-formed cells was decreased by 97 percent."

Since rat and human brains are similar in many aspects of structure and function, Nixon said the study's findings suggest that "high doses of alcohol negatively affect the formation of new brain cells" in humans as well.

The study's findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, held recently in San Diego, Calif.

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