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Not drinking alcohol in middle age has been linked to an increased risk of dementia

People who don’t drink in midlife have been found to have a 45% higher risk of dementia.

NOT DRINKING ALCOHOL in middle age can heighten the risk of dementia in later life, according to new research.

A long-term study has found that people who abstained from alcohol and those who drank more than the recommended limits for men and women were at increased risk of the disease.

The study, published in the British Medical Journal, tracked the drinking habits of 9,000 civil servants, who were between the ages 35 and 55, for eight years.

They were then monitored for a further 23 years and nearly 400 cases of dementia were identified through hospital, mental health service and mortality records.

People who didn’t drink in midlife were found to have a 45% higher risk of dementia compared with people who consumed between one and 14 units of alcohol per week.

The British and French researchers concluded that the underlying mechanisms leading to dementia for excessive drinkers and those abstaining were probably different.

Among heavy drinkers, defined as those who drank more than 14 units per week, it was found that the risk of dementia increased the more a person drank. Every seven-unit-per-week increase resulted in a 17% rise in dementia risk.

Dr Sara Imarisio, head of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, noted that the study did not take into account the participants’ drinking habits earlier in life.

“People who completely abstain from alcohol may have a history of heavy drinking and this can make it difficult to interpret the links between drinking and health,” she said.

Future research will need to examine drinking habits across a whole lifetime, and this will help to shed more light on the relationship between alcohol and dementia.

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    Mute John Jim Jataa
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    Feb 21st 2013, 10:58 AM

    Little known fact about the metal man.
    It was commisioned by lloyds of london, an insurance company in the early 1800′s
    An elegant dandy in tight white trousers with a limp wrist pointing downwards towards the rocks below was invaluable signal to gay seamen looking for a place where they could freely express their sexuality.The secluded Guillamene bathing area (famous for its man only sign which stands until this day) became particularly popular. The otherwise clandestine gay community had found a place where they could meet with like-minded people without being judged. The village of tramore, with its many watering holes and its proximity to the port of waterford became a haven for gay men and ‘loose’ women who could relax from the constraints of Victorian society.
    This unique history has been blotted out by the powers that be, its not a history they want associated with the town. i say, embrace it, celebrate it, recreate it……. it may just be the pull tourists are looking for……

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    Mute mogwa
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    Feb 21st 2013, 1:33 PM

    I want this on a plaque in Tra.

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    Mute Ann-Marie Wallis
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    Feb 21st 2013, 9:30 AM

    Fantastic, really unique structures. I once read a history on the Metalman (apologies, I can’t remember the source) but I believe that similar metalmen were built on other points in Ireland and Britain to warn sailors of shallow waters.

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    Mute Mick Kavanagh
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    Feb 21st 2013, 10:15 AM

    As far as I remember they were erected by really old insurance companies with the metal point pointing at areas of danger for incoming ships.

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    Mute Mick Kavanagh
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    Feb 21st 2013, 10:16 AM

    *man

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    Mute Bilbo Baggins
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    Feb 21st 2013, 10:53 AM

    He (in Tramore at least) points out to sea, as if telling on coming ships to turn around and return. Many ships used to mistake Tramore bay as the entrance to Waterford Harbour and run aground so the erected the metalman and his three pillars and two pillars on the brownestown head side to help ships identify that it was not the harbour.

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    Mute Mack
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    Feb 21st 2013, 11:03 AM

    Is there one out in sligo bay between the city and sailing club. Never knew Irish lights were responsible for them.

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    Mute tomeenoldstock
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    Feb 21st 2013, 11:16 AM

    Never knew Sligo was a city?

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    Mute Stephen Fitzpatrick
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    Feb 21st 2013, 9:12 AM

    Never heard of it before

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    Mute Bilbo Baggins
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    Feb 21st 2013, 10:05 AM

    Worth taking a trip down to have a look. The Tramore bay area and that Waterford coast from passage east across to Dungarvan and beyond is a beautiful little part of the country.

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    Mute Reginald Tower
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    Feb 21st 2013, 4:29 PM

    Metalman beer which is brewed in Waterford & named after the statue is also well worth a taste. It won the Irish craft beer of the year 2013. Top Notch. P.S. I don’t work for them :)

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    Mute Reginald Tower
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    Feb 21st 2013, 4:28 PM

    The Copper coastline from Tramore to Dungarvan is gorgeous. The whole area is an undiscovered gem. Stradbally must be one of the most beautiful villages in Ireland.

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    Mute Shane Horan
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    Feb 21st 2013, 12:12 PM

    FYI “Irish Lights” isn’t a private company. The Commissioners of Irish Lights is a statutory (i.e. government) body.

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    Mute John Power
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    Feb 21st 2013, 11:17 AM
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    Mute Shane Wixted
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    Feb 21st 2013, 10:54 AM

    Looks like a serious bush drinking spot

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    Mute L. Casei Immunitas
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    Feb 21st 2013, 1:25 PM

    Three cigarettes with a subbuteo figure stuck on top. Knock em down and put in a McDonalds with a 24 hour drive-thru.

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    Mute Brian Ó Cinnéide
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    Feb 21st 2013, 1:30 PM

    I came here for the lolz. The lolz were had.

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    Mute Mike Synnott
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    Feb 25th 2013, 7:57 AM

    I gave you a thumbs-up for your display name. I actually snorted out loud on the bus.

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