Learning and Memory in Adolescent Moderate, Binge, and Extreme-Binge Drinkers

Background Binge drinking has been linked to neurocognitive disadvantages in youth, but it is unclear whether drinking at particularly heavy levels uniquely affects neurocognitive performance. This study prospectively examined (1) whether initiating moderate, binge, or extreme‐binge drinking in adolescence differentially influences subsequent learning and memory performances, and (2) whether dosage of alcohol consumption is linearly associated with changes in learning and memory over 6 years of adolescence. Methods Participants, who later transitioned into drinking, were administered verbal learning and memory (VLM) assessments at project intake prior to the onset of substance use (age 12 to 16 years), and at follow‐up approximately 6 years later (N = 112). Participants were grouped based on alcohol involvement at follow‐up as follows: moderate (≤4 drinks per occasion), binge (5+ drinks per occasion), or extreme‐binge (10+ drinks per occasion) drinkers. Results Despite equivalent performances prior to onset of drinking, extreme‐binge drinkers performed worse than moderate drinkers on verbal learning, and cued and free short delayed recall (ps