On the Liver |
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In humans |
Levels of enzymes that are used as indicators of liver damage are higher in adolescents with alcohol use disorders |
Clark et al. 2001 |
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And in obese adolescents who drink more moderate amounts. |
Strauss et al. 2000 |
On the Endocrine System |
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In humans |
Drinking alcohol can lower estrogen levels in adolescent girls. |
Block et al. 1993 |
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Drinking alcohol can lower luteinizing hormone and testosterone levels in adolescent boys. |
Diamond et al. 1986; Frias et al. 2000a
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In both sexes, acute intoxication reduces levels of growth hormones. |
Frias et al. 2000b |
In rats |
In female rats, ingesting alcohol during adolescence is associated with adverse effects on maturation of the reproductive system. |
Dees et al. 2001 |
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Alcohol suppresses the secretion of certain female reproductive hormones, delaying the start of puberty. |
Emanuele et al. 2002a, b
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Alcohol not only disrupts the interaction between the brain, pituitary gland, and ovaries, but also impairs regulatory systems within the ovaries. |
Dees et al. 2001 |
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In male rats, alcohol consumption alters growth hormone and testosterone levels, which may have serious consequences for normal development. |
Little et al. 1992; Cicero et al. 1990; Tentler et al. 1997; Emanuele et al. 1998, 1999a, 1999b; Steiner et al. 1997
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In rhesus macaques |
In immature female monkeys, daily exposure to alcohol lowered levels of female hormones and affected the development of regular monthly cycles. |
Dees et al. 2000 |
On Bone Density |
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In humans |
Increased alcohol consumption is associated with lowered bone mineral density in adolescent males but not females. |
Fehily et al. 1992; Neville et al. 2002; Elgan et al. 2002; Fujita et al. 1999
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In rats |
In adolescent female rats, chronic alcohol consumption produced shorter limb lengths and reductions in bone growth, neither of which was fully reversed with abstinence. |
Sampson et al. 1996; Sampson and Spears 1999
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In adolescent male rats, chronic alcohol ingestion was associated with shorter limb length and reduced bone growth, which are not fully reversed with abstinence. |
Wezeman et al. 1999 |
On the Brain |
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In humans |
A history of alcohol abuse or dependence in adolescents was associated with reduced hippocampal volumes |
De Bellis et al. 2000 |
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And with subtle white-matter microstructure abnormalities in the corpus callosum. |
Tapert et al. 2003 |
In rats |
Chronic intermittent exposure to high alcohol doses (i.e., bingeing) results in long-lasting changes in memory in adolescent rats |
White et al. 2000 |
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And more damage to the frontal-anterior cortical regions of the brain than are produced in adult rats. |
Crews et al. 2000 |
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Prolonged alcohol exposure during adolescence produces:
Neurophysiological changes in the response to alcohol challenge and in the tolerance to alcohol’s sedative effects;
Enhanced expression of withdrawal behaviors; and
Long-lasting neurophysiological effects in the cortex and hippocampus.
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Slawecki et al. 2001; Slawecki 2002; Slawecki and Roth 2004
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