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New research carried out in Japan has suggested that alcohol prolongs bad memories.

Scientists at the Unviersity of Tokyo believe they have quelled the long held belief that drinking alcohol is a good way to drown sorrows, following experiments on rats which found that ethanol, contained in alcohol, locks memory in place.

The researchers gave mild shocks to the lab rats, then injected half of them with ethanol. They found those with the intoxicating agent in their bloodstream showed evidence of fear for much longer than those who did not have any alcohol in their bodies.

Published in academic journal Neuropsychopharmacology, the study concluded that applying this research to humans, memories are likely to remain stronger if they have drunk alcohol.

Lead researcher Norio Matsuki advised: "To forget something you dislike, it's best to overwrite the negative memory with a positive memory at an early stage and leave out drinking alcohol."

In other alcohol-related news, deputy editor the British Medical Journal Trish Groves has said that more half-bottles of wine need to be made available in shops to deter the British public from drinking whole bottles.

Article published on 03/03/2008 by DryOutNow.com

DryOutNow.com provides highly practical help for people with alcohol problems, their friends and relatives. DryOutNow.com also provides free resources for healthcare professionals such as medical information and alcohol treatment guidelines.

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