A recent study has found that cocaine addiction could make the brain “age” faster. The study adds to the various harms already related to cocaine use disorder.

The study, published in Frontiers in Psychiatry, analyzed the post-mortem human brain tissues of people that had a cocaine addiction and those that didn’t. 

It was found individuals with cocaine use disorder gathered changes within the DNA within the brain related to biological aging at an accelerated rate.

In line with an estimate, one in five people who use cocaine goes on to develop an addiction within the U.S.

There are non-coding modifications within the DNA throughout the brain’s cells, which affect the mechanism of switching on and off genes. Called epigenetic changes, these patterns were analyzed within the study by the researchers in a brain region called Brodmann Area 9, ScienceAlert reported.

Brodmann Area 9 (BA9) is situated within the prefrontal cortex, and is an element of the brain behind the brow. BA9 is believed to control self-awareness and inhibitory control- each things affected by substance use disorders.

Within the study, researchers compared the degrees of DNA methylation in brain tissue samples of 21 people each from those that had cocaine use disorder and those that didn’t. DNA methylation is chemical changes that accumulate with age and in age-related diseases.

Within the BA9 region, cocaine users had segments of DNA stuffed with methyl groups, the study found.

“We detected a trend towards stronger biological aging of the brain in individuals with cocaine use disorder in comparison with individuals without cocaine use disorder,” Stephanie Witt, senior writer of the study and molecular biologist on the Central Institute of Mental Health in Germany, said. “This could possibly be brought on by cocaine-related disease processes within the brain, reminiscent of inflammation or cell death,” Witt added.

The 2 genes that exhibited essentially the most changes in DNA methylation on this study were those that in line with previous research regulate behavioral elements of cocaine intake in rodents, as per the outlet.

“As biological age estimation is a really recent concept in addiction research and is influenced by many aspects, further studies are required to research this phenomenon, with larger sample sizes than were possible here,” Witt admitted.

One other substance starting with the letter C has quite the alternative effect on the brain. A recent literature review study found cinnamon’s eugenol, cinnamaldehyde, and cinnamic acid components positively alter cognitive function. Among the studies also reported that the spice’s components prevented and reduced cognitive function impairment. 

Furthermore, there’s scientific evidence that cinnamon also has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties, in line with Medical Xpress.