I see a lot of people complaining about the drug, but know that for some people, it works, and there aren't many side effects. I was on it for years to help with migraines. The "side effect" I noticed was that I would no longer get a buzz or any reward from drinking alcohol. (I liked to drink in social settings to easy social anxiety.) I've seen other studies in the past on it being used for alcohol dependence but the results were inconsistent. One guy in the documentary I watched went from drinking a 24 pack of beer a day, to total abstinence.

Sorry you had to drive on that we are getting another round of snow in SW Colorado right now. Very cool ice formation on the wheel! Thanks for sharing it.

Or conversely, if you live somewhere super sunny & warm (like I use to live in Florida) you tend to be concerned about getting sunburns and skin cancer, so you still avoid sun (I was Vitamin D deficient (confirmed via blood work) when I lived there.)

It is an association, not causation. Meaning that the reduction of consumption of alcohol didn't necessarily cause the MCI. Hypothetical example: It could be that in the initial stages of MCI alcohol no longer provides euphoria and therefore the person stops drinking, and then later on develops symptoms of MCI. It is still a good practice to eliminate alcohol because it may slow the progression of impairment (and your doctor friend probably has study data to back this up.)