As Little as 8 Alcoholic Drinks a Week Can Contribute to Dementia, Research Says

• A new study found that heavy drinkers are more likely to develop brain injuries that are associated with memory loss
• Researchers studied the brain tissue of deceased individuals and interviewed their family members about their drinking habits to back up their findings
• “We found heavy drinking is directly linked to signs of injury in the brain, and this can cause long-term effects on brain health, which may impact memory and thinking abilities,” the study’s author said

Scientists believe they have discovered a link between the drinking of alcoholic beverages and dementia, according to new research.

Per the study, published this month via the scientific journal Neurology, researchers found that heavy drinkers who consume eight or more alcoholic drinks a week have an increased risk of developing brain lesions that are associated with diseases like Alzheimer’s.

As individuals develop these brain lesions — known as hyaline arteriolosclerosis — their blood vessels narrow, becoming thick and stiff. It then becomes harder for blood to flow, which damages the brain over time, the study said.

“Heavy alcohol consumption is a major global health concern linked to increased health problems and death,” the study’s author — Alberto Fernando Oliveira Justo of the University of Sao Paulo Medical School in Brazil — said in a press release.

“We looked at how alcohol affects the brain as people get older, [and] our research shows that heavy alcohol consumption is damaging to the brain, which can lead to memory and thinking problems,” he added.

The study included information from 1,781 people who had brain autopsies after their deaths and were an average age of 75 years old when they died.

Researchers interviewed their family members to learn how much alcohol they drank on a regular basis, and they then examined their brains for injuries, such as the lesions, or tau tangles — a biomarker associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

“We found heavy drinking is directly linked to signs of injury in the brain, and this can cause long-term effects on brain health, which may impact memory and thinking abilities,” Justo said.

The final results showed that 40% of people who never drank had brain injuries, 45% of moderate drinkers had injuries, 44% of heavy drinkers had injuries and 50% of former heavy drinkers had injuries.

The study also showed that heavy drinkers were more likely to have tau tangles, with 41% higher odds than other groups. Former heavy drinkers, meanwhile, were 31% more likely to have the markers.

“Understanding these effects is crucial for public health awareness and continuing to implement preventive measures to reduce heavy drinking,” Justo stated.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Researchers similarly found that former heavy drinkers also had a lower brain mass ratio and worse cognitive abilities. Justo explained, however, that no link was found between these health issues and current drinkers.

The new Neurology study even found that heavy drinkers died an average of 13 years earlier than those who never drank.

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans currently recommends that men over 21 should not drink more than two drinks per day, and woman over 21 should only have one drink per day.

Leana Wen, an emergency physician and adjunct associate professor at George Washington University, who did not work on this study, told CNN that the findings were “compelling” and should make people consider how much alcohol we consume.

“It’s especially telling that former heavy drinkers have evidence of sustained damage, although halting that heavy drinking does appear to lower risk,” she told the outlet.

Wen added, “It is important to point out that these findings are associations that are suggestive, rather than proof of cause and effect. In addition, one limitation of the study is that it didn’t measure duration of alcohol consumption or distinguish between those people who regularly consumed one or two drinks a night versus those who drank sporadically but heavily.”

According to Wen, there likely won’t be one single consensus on just how unhealthy alcohol consumption is, as clinicians and public health experts have debated the issue for decades.

What’s more important, she explained, is for those who drink alcohol to make sure they have a healthy relationship with the beverage.