Hangovers Make You Dumb

Think before you guzzle down another bottle of wine, for it may not only give you a hangover but will also affect your memory.

A latest research states that hangover affects the functioning of the brain. "What's more the symptoms of alcohol hangover are not just physiological - they affect cognitive functioning and mood as well which may lead to numerous undesirable life consequences," lead researcher Dr Lauren Owen, Marie Curie postdoctoral research fellow at Keele University's school of psychology, told The Telegraph.

The researchers explained that people with hangover cannot perform simple mental arithmetic.

Dr Owen said that the there were reports on the ill-effects of alcohol but none on hangover. Some doctors believe that it is a symptom of dehydration and chemicals in the liquor cause hangover. The result of the study was presented at Keel University conference.

The study's preliminary result found a five to 10 percent drop in working memory's performance. It also found that the errors increased nearly 30 percent after the hangover and there were differences in reaction times too. Some people in their 20s with hangovers reacted like people in their 40s.

The general notion of hangover is that it increases with age. However, the researchers said that the older people suffered fewer hangovers. "This is probably because older people learn what they can drink and what they cannot. We have still to compare an older person with a younger person who drink the same thing," Dr Richard Stephens, a senior psychology lecturer at Keele University who has organized the conference, said.