--- title: What Binge Drinking During Adolescence Does to the Brain description: A new study in rats underlines the consequences of underage drinking canonical: https://time.com/3770755/binge-drinking-adolescence-brain/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-03T18:49:24.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T05:41:37.451Z article:section: Health og:title: What Binge Drinking During Adolescence Does to the Brain og:description: A new study in rats underlines the consequences of underage drinking og:url: https://time.com/3770755/binge-drinking-adolescence-brain/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What Binge Drinking During Adolescence Does to the Brain twitter:description: A new study in rats underlines the consequences of underage drinking twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # What Binge Drinking During Adolescence Does to the Brain ## Video: How $1,000 Could Help Your Health [Watch (HLS stream): How $1,000 Could Help Your Health](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/EILRa37f.m3u8) (2:01)  _Published 2014-08-22. From acupuncture to yoga, $1,000 can go a long way to improving your health._ by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Apr 3, 2015 6:49 PM UTC by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Apr 3, 2015 6:49 PM UTC Binge drinking during adolescence may interfere with brain development and have lasting consequences on genes and behavior, a [new study](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25814047) in rats shows. In the study, published in the journal _Neurobiology of Disease_, the researchers mimicked adolescent binge drinking in a population of rats, in order to see how the alcohol affected their brains. The rats, which were 28 days old, were given alcohol for two days in a row and then abstained for two days, alternating for nearly two weeks. Some of the rats in the study were observed into adulthood. The researchers discovered that the rats that binge drank when they were younger, preferred alcohol to water when they were older and displayed more anxiety-like behaviors compared to rats that didn’t drink. The researchers also noted epigenetic changes in the brains of the rats (changes to DNA caused by chemicals or environmental substances, like alcohol). The researchers believe that some of the rats’ behavior could be explained by these brain changes. Though the study was in rats and not in humans, the researchers believe it suggests some of the possible effects of adolescent drinking on growing brains, and underlines the potential lasting consequences. The researchers also found that a cancer drug was able to reverse some of these effects, which may hint at a possible treatment. 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