@article{ref1,
title="Alcohol doesn't always compromise cognitive function: exploring moderate doses in young adults",
journal="Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs",
year="2015",
author="Hoffman, Laurena and Nixon, Sara Jo",
volume="76",
number="6",
pages="952-956",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to clarify inconsistent findings regarding the acute cognitive effects of subintoxicating alcohol doses (i.e., <80 mg/dl) by controlling for and evaluating variables that might modulate dose-related outcomes. <br><br>METHOD: The current study examined the effects of sex/gender and alcohol concentration on select cognitive functions in 94 individuals (49 men) between 25 and 35 years of age. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three dose conditions: target peak breath alcohol concentration of 0 mg/dl (placebo), 40 mg/dl (low), or 65 mg/dl (moderate). After beverage consumption, they completed tasks assessing psychomotor, set-shifting, and working memory ability. <br><br>RESULTS: Analyses revealed no significant effect of dose for any cognitive domain. A trend-level effect of dose on psychomotor performance was observed, with the low-dose group performing somewhat better than the moderate-dose and placebo groups. No sex main effects or interactions were revealed. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with our previous studies, these data suggest that low and moderate doses of alcohol may not compromise cognitive ability in non-problem drinkers under certain task conditions. Given the outcomes, sex differences cannot be meaningfully addressed. Future consideration of potentially influential variables and assessment of similarly well-defined cohorts might yield a clearer interpretation of alcohol's behavioral consequences.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1937-1888",
doi="",
url="http://dx.doi.org/"
}