We 7 prospectively examined neuropsychological functioning in 26 youths with no histories of alcohol or drug problems, and compared them to 47 youths with histories of heavy adolescent alcohol, marijuana, and stimulant use. Follow-up neuropsychological tests were given to the subjects seven different times across 8 years, on average between the ages of 16 to 24. While there were no significant differences between users and non-users on neurocognitive test scores at the first time point, heavy drinkers performed worse on cognitive tasks at age 24 than light drinkers. In particular, those who had a history of alcohol withdrawal symptoms (e.g., orthostatic hypotension, nausea, insomnia, or irritability) were the most likely to have decreases in performance scores, especially on tests of spatial functioning. Overall, heavy drinking during adolescence was linked to a reduction in keeping up with age expectations 7, 25, 31.
