The results of a brain-scan study conducted by scientists in Germany show that females can become addicted to alcohol faster and suffer alcohol related brain damage more quickly than males.

158 people including 76 alcoholics and 82 healthy people, volunteered to have their brains scanned for the study, which was conducted at the University of Heidelberg.

“Women have generally not been considered in brain-imaging studies, or samples have not been large enough to differentiate between women and men,” said study author Karl Mann. “Conversely, male patients with alcohol dependence have historically been easier to recruit because the majority of alcoholic patients are male and the first evaluations of larger samples were carried out in soldiers.”

“Furthermore, study results were thought to be generally applicable to both genders,” added Mann. “Yet gender differences in the development, course and consequences of alcohol dependence have to be considered in early diagnosis as this probably will lead to different therapeutic strategies.” According to Deborah Condon of IrishHealth.com,

The study found that both male and female alcoholics lost a few per cent of their total brain volume. This is a well-known effect of alcohol abuse. However it also found that alcoholic women suffered the same extent of brain damage after an average of 5.5 years, as men who had been alcoholics for 10.4 years.

The findings appear to indicate that despite the fact that women tend to start drinking later in life than men, consume less alcohol overall and are less likely to develop alcohol addiction, they seem to suffer more quickly if they become alcoholics.

“Not only is the prevalence of alcoholism somewhat higher in men than women, thus increasing the chances of recruiting men over women in research programs,” said Professor Edith Sullivan, from Stanford University School of Medicine. “but some speculate that women, with household and motherly responsibilities, have greater difficulty in finding time to participate in studies.”

Mr. Mann also noted that other alcohol-related disorders like heart problems, depression and liver disease, occur earlier in women than in men. He said that it is important for women to be treated for alcohol abuse early.

Chris is a staff writer for Murdok. Visit Murdok for the latest ebusiness news.