Alcohol Consumption, Drinking Patterns, and Cognitive Performance in Young Adults: A Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analysis

Abstract

Long-term alcohol abuse is associated with poorer cognitive performance. However, the associations between light and moderate drinking and cognitive performance are less clear. We assessed this association via cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses in a sample of 702 Dutch students. At baseline, alcohol consumption was assessed using questionnaires and ecological momentary assessment (EMA) across four weeks (‘Wave 1’). Subsequently, cognitive performance, including memory, planning, and reasoning, was assessed at home using six standard cognition tests presented through an online platform. A year later, 436 students completed the four weeks of EMA and online cognitive testing (‘Wave 2’). In both waves, there was no association between alcohol consumption and cognitive performance. Further, alcohol consumption during Wave 1 was not related to cognitive performance at Wave 2. In addition, EMA-data-based drinking patterns, which varied widely between persons but were relatively consistent over time within persons, were also not associated with cognitive performance. Post-hoc analyses of cognitive performance revealed higher within-person variance scores (from Wave 1 to Wave 2) than between-person variance scores (both Wave 1 and Wave 2). In conclusion, no association was observed between alcohol consumption and cognitive performance in a large Dutch student sample. However, the online cognitive tests performed at home may not have been sensitive enough to pick up differences in cognitive performance associated with alcohol consumption.

Alcohol milestones and internalizing, externalizing, and executive function: longitudinal and polygenic score associations

“…Although impairments in executive function are thought to be a consequence of prolonged alcohol use and AUD (Koob & Volkow, 2010, the present study found that performance on two executive function tasks was unassociated with alcohol milestones as both predictor and outcome. Few studies have previously explored the relationship between alcohol consumption or AUD and performance on these tasks, with mixed findings (Hendriks, van de Rest, Snippe, Kieboom, & Hogenelst, 2020;Meyers et al, 2019;Pandey et al, 2018). Explanations for the present findings include the restriction of EF analyses to individuals with EF assessments that preceded milestone onsets (i.e.…”

Applying the exposome concept to working life health

“…The Tenax TA will be analyzed for volatile organic compounds, and the PDMS will be analyzed for semivolatile compounds. 43,44 For the respiratory case study, electrostatic stationary dust samplers will be employed to collect dust samples in the participants’ home during one week and will be analyzed for microbial abundance and diversity using a microbiome approach. 45,46…”

“…To supplement sensor and passive sampler data collection, an app-based questionnaire 47 will be used to obtain information on daily habits and symptoms. This system involves questions on daily sleep and wakening times, commute times, working times, food/drink consumption times, use of personal protective equipment, stress, other exposure factors, symptoms, and contextual information regarding the occupational setting, i.e., use of personal protective equipment.…”

Mobile Data Collection of Cognitive-Behavioral Tasks in Substance Use Disorders: Where Are We Now?

“…They found no relationship with relapse reported in the months after this measurement. Hendriks et al [28] used six cognitive performance tasks (see Table 1) in the laboratory. Next, participants reported alcohol consumption in the field, but no association between the tasks and EMA measures was found.…”