Drinking Too Much?
Drinking Too Much? | How Do You Know?
How do you know whether you are drinking too much? The US Department of Health and Human Services recommends the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test or AUDIT test as a good indication of excess drinking1.The AUDIT test will indicate whether you are driking too muchin a few minutes. Your answers will be scored automatically:
Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT)
Q1 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q2 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q3 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q4 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q5 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q6 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q7 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q8 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q9 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
Q10 of 10; select the answer that is correct for you.
The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) can detect alcohol problems experienced in the last year. A score of 8+ on the AUDIT generally indicates harmful or hazardous drinking. Questions 1 thru 8 score 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 points. Questions 9 and 10 are scored 0, 2, or 4 only.
Your score:
Your score:
Drinking Too Much | Reduce Drinking
Reduce Drinking with Working Memory Training Research shows that drinking too much alcohol disrupts core executive functions2 including working memory -- the ability to hold in mind and act on information. Compromised working memory in turn makes it difficult to control our impulses and leads to excess drinking. A course of progressive working memory training helps to reduce drinking and interrupt this cycle.
A study by Dutch researchers3 released in June 2011 found that working memory training helped participants reduce drinking by 30%. The research performed at Maastricht University confirms working memory training as an effective strategy to reduce drinking. The team concluded that the training helped the participants reduce drinking by increasing their control over automatic impulses to drink.
Under the direction of Katrijn Houben, the team recruited participants who were drinking too much (identified using the AUDIT test) and divided them into two groups. The first group undertook 25 sessions of progressive working memory training, and the control group performed the same tasks but with no change in the level of difficulty. For at least a month after training, the group who had received working memory training reported a reduction in alcohol consumption of more than 30%.
Furthermore, the researchers found that the reduction in alcohol consumption was greatest for those with the most subconscious positive associations with alcohol. This supported the theory that working memory training was able to reduce drinking by allowing the participants to gain greater control over their subconscious impulses.
Online brain training with Brain Fitness Pro is the perfect tool to strengthen working memory and reduce drinking without drugs or medication.
Drinking Too Much | Working Memory Exercises
Carefully designed interventions, such as intensive working memory training can stimulate the growth of new brain cells. These brain cells get put to work increasing our capacity at the trained brain function. In 2008, researchers from the Universities of Michigan and Bern set out to understand whether it was possible to increase cognitive performance with a challenging working memory exercise. The team published joint, independent research showing that an intensive period of brain training with the "dual n-back" working memory exercise did indeed increase concentration and attention span significantly in just one month.
Working memory training is a highly effective method by which to increase concentration and attention span and reduce drinking. MindSparke focuses on such training exclusively.
