Does Alcohol Kill Brain Cells?
Quick Questions explains what alcohol does -- and doesn't do -- to your brain cells. Enjoy this episode responsibly! Hosted by: Michael Aranda ---------- Like SciShow? Want to help support...
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[Intro] The claim that alcohol kills brain cells dates back to the temperance movement of the early twentieth century when Prohibition advocates wanted to make alcohol illegal in the United States. These people, who warned that a couple of gin rickeys would eat away your brain were the same ones that also circulated claims that, say, alcoholics could catch fire and burn alive because of all the alcohol in their blood. Neither claim is true, I'm happy to report, although parents and teachers have repeated the first one enough over the last century that it's often passed off as fact. Very roughly speaking, your brain has about 100 billion nerve cells called neurons, and the active ingredient in intoxicating beverages is ethyl alcohol. When you drink it,...
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[Intro] The claim that alcohol kills brain cells dates back to the temperance movement of the early twentieth century when Prohibition advocates wanted to make alcohol illegal in the United States. These people, who warned that a couple of gin rickeys would eat away your brain were the same ones that also circulated claims that, say, alcoholics could catch fire and burn alive because of all the alcohol in their blood. Neither claim is true, I'm happy to report, although parents and teachers have repeated the first one enough over the last century that it's often passed off as fact. Very roughly speaking, your brain has about 100 billion nerve cells called neurons, and the active ingredient in intoxicating beverages is ethyl alcohol. When you drink it,...
