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While social drinking can make it hard to remember what happened last Saturday night, a new study by Loyola University suggests it could help prevent cognitive impairment in the long run.

An analysis of 143 studies by Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine found that moderate drinkers were 23 percent less likely to develop cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia compared to non-drinkers, according to a press release issued by the school. Researchers defined moderate drinking as a maximum of two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women.

To evaluate this theory, study authors Edward J. Neafsey and Michael A. Collins, both professors in the school’s Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, reviewed studies dating back to 1977 that included more than 365,000 participants. 74 papers calculated the ratios of risk between drinkers and nondrinkers, while 69 papers evaluated whether cognition in drinkers was better, the same, or worse than in nondrinkers.

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