BERLIN, Aug. 28 (UPI) -- A researcher in Germany has found a neurobiological correlate of the often-reduced ability of alcoholics to perceive dangerous situations.

The study, published in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, used functional magnetic imaging to examine emotional processing of both alcohol dependent and healthy individuals.

"Now we can begin to understand why patients have problems avoiding dangerous situations and particularly why they may not react to the concerns of their friends and relatives," said Andreas Heinz, of the Charite -- University Medical Center Berlin. "The brain area that should help them appreciate these concerns is functioning at a reduced level."

The study participants were comprised of 22 male subjects -- half alcohol-dependent. All were given a facial-emotion decoding task and fMRI was used to examine parts of the brain actively engaged.

Results showed the greatest deficit in brain activation was among the alcohol-dependent individuals during decoding of negative emotional expressions. The researchers also found patients with strong brain responses to pleasant pictures have a reduced relapse risk.

Heinz suggests relatives and friends may want to support alcoholic patients with positive messages while being particularly careful, and even repetitive, in pointing out the dangers of alcohol and alcohol-associated environments -- otherwise, the patients may miss the message.