How long it takes for brain to recover from drinking alcohol and timeline of reversing effects
It’s fair to say plenty of Brits will have woken up with a bit of a sore head this morning (1 January), ready for a day on the sofa eating leftover Christmas chocolate.
And while you’re waiting around for The Traitors tonight, you might be plotting out how you’re going to go without alcohol for the next few weeks.
But while it can do both your body and mind the world of good to ditch the booze, it doesn’t necessarily happen overnight.
Recent research examining brain impairment after heavy drinking looks at how long it takes for it to recover.
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And it turns out, that timeline of reversing the effects of all those pints could be a little longer than you thought.
With few exceptions, it was found that even when alcohol is no longer measurable in the blood, our cognitive abilities (such as attention and memory) are still debilitated.
Lead study author lead Craig Gunn, from the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, explained: “Impaired performance in these abilities reflects poorer concentration and focus, decreased memory and reduced reaction times.”
This basically happens because of how heavy drinking often causes us to become so dehydrated. And to make up for that, organs work to draw in as much fluid as they can – leaving the brain fighting through.
With our body losing all this fluid, its also losing the necessary nutrients for cognitive functioning and they’re not immediately replaced once the alcohol has vanished.
Instead, recovery takes its time.
According to science, the brain won’t return to form for many hours, perhaps even over a day in some cases – so remember that when you’re planning on logging into work the morning after a heavy night.
Without the brain back and kicking, our attention, memory, reaction time, and decision-making abilities aren’t fully engaged until it is.
Essentially, the research analysis shows we can just dive head-first into our regular routines and give our full mind to something is a load of sh*te.
Senior study author Sally Adams from University of Bath’s Department of Psychology added: “Our findings demonstrate that hangover can have serious consequences for the performance of everyday activities such as driving and workplace skills such as concentration and memory.”
Dry January is a campaign developed by Alcohol Change UK, you can find support and resources for taking part here.
Please drink responsibly. If you want to discuss any issues relating to alcohol in confidence, contact Drinkline on 0300 123 1110, 9am–8pm weekdays and 11am–4pm weekends for advice and support.
Jess Battison