Just three drinks of alcohol a day can double the risk of getting the shakes later in life, researchers warned today.
Three units is generally said to be the safe limit for male drinking – but the new study links it to brain damage causing involuntary tremor.
The findings come from a study of more than 3,000 elderly people in central Spain. Some 56 per cent of these drank alcohol regularly, the researchers report in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.
Some 76 of these developed tremor – and the researchers said the regular drinkers were twice as likely as others to develop the problem, even allowing for other factors such as smoking.
Researcher Dr Elan Louis, of Columbia University, New York, USA, writes: “Paradoxically, alcohol is often used to relieve symptoms in those who have already been diagnosed with essential tremor. But it may, in fact, hasten progression of the condition and worsen symptoms.”
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians of London, UK, said the findings highlighted the need to avoid daily drinking.
He called for improved training of health professionals to identify patients at risk from drink.
He said: “Despite the fact that mental disorders account for the largest number of alcohol-related hospital admissions, insufficient attention is paid to the link between alcohol misuse and neurological illness.
“This study underlines how important it is to stay within the recommended limits, and to adopt a few alcohol-free days during the course of the week.”
J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2009; doi 10.1136/jnnp.2008.162701
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