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“It’s not the general population – the study applies to people who have had something to do with cardiovascular health before,” said Emmanuela Gakidou, alcohol researcher and senior director of organizational development and training. at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. at the University of Washington.
“And what they find is that if you keep drinking after you have had a cardiac event, it’s not that bad for you, as long as you keep drinking low,” said Gakidou, who didn’t did not participate in the study.
Compared to people who don’t drink at all, the study found that drinking up to 105 grams of alcohol per week – the equivalent of just over a bottle of wine or a six-pack medium strength beers – seemed to protect people who had previously suffered from a heart problem as a result of another event or premature death.
“Our results suggest that people with CVD (cardiovascular disease) may not need to stop drinking to avoid further heart attacks, strokes, or angina, but that they may consider reduce their weekly alcohol intake, ”study author Chengyi Ding, a postdoctoral student at University College London, said in a statement.
But that conclusion would not apply to everyone, as alcohol consumption increases the risk of certain diseases such as cirrhosis, tuberculosis and cancer and alcohol-related accidents and injuries, said Gakidou.
“If your main risk to your health is cancer, then the safest level of alcohol consumption is probably zero,” Gakidou said. “And if you’re under the age of about 40, the safest alcohol level is still zero, as young adults die from alcohol-related injuries around the world.”
Largest study on alcohol and cardiovascular disease to date
In what researchers call the largest study to date to examine the risk of alcohol use in people with cardiovascular disease, data was collected from more than 14,000 people who had previously had a seizure. heart disease, stroke, or angina that have been followed for up to 20 years. The results of 12 additional studies were added to the analysis to form a combined sample of over 48,000 people.
The new study found that the lowest risk was when people with heart problems drank 6 to 8 grams of alcohol per day (42 to 56 grams per week). People who drank 8 grams of alcohol per day had a 27% lower risk of a second cardiovascular event compared to people with heart disease who did not drink.
But when people drank a little less – just 6 grams of alcohol a day – the benefit almost doubled. They had a 50% lower risk of having another heart attack, stroke, or episode of angina than those who did not drink.
It’s not a lot of alcohol all at once. In the United States, that would be about half a glass of regular beer or wine, or 0.75 ounces of distilled spirits.
No amount of alcohol
For decades, one “drink a day” has been considered acceptable by public health standards, as many similar studies over the years have found a positive association between moderate alcohol consumption and a reduced risk of heart disease. , the leading cause of death in the world. In fact, most health organizations still allow one to two drinks per day for men and one or less per day for women as part of their dietary guidelines.
But all along there were practical issues. After all, a lot of people pour a lot and end up adding a lot more than a “standard” or “unit” of alcohol to their mixed drink. The arrival of gravity beers and wines with much higher than normal alcohol levels has also made the problem worse. How much alcohol were people really drinking from these one-to-two glasses?
Another problem: how sincere are people when they tell researchers how much they drink?
“A 60-year-old man in Greece and a 75-year-old woman in Germany – who knows what they have in mind when they answer this question,” said Gakidou of the IHME. “The likelihood of someone answering truthfully and factually is probably zero.”
Research has started to show a link between alcohol consumption and the development of dementia, liver disease, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, digestive disorders, and cancer, another major killer.
“Although some studies have found better health outcomes in moderate drinkers, it is impossible to conclude whether these improved results are due to moderate alcohol consumption or other differences in behavior or genetics between people. who drink moderately and people who use the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Maybe we can say ‘If you are a 30 year old male living in sub-Saharan Africa or Europe or Southeast Asia, this is your safest level of alcohol consumption. “And then, if you’re a 60-year-old woman living in these areas, what is your safest level of alcohol consumption,” Gakidou said.
If you don’t drink, don’t start
Until science finds out exactly how alcohol interacts with all of the various diseases and ailments that affect us, there is one thing public health organizations agree on: If you don’t drink, don’t start. even if you have heart disease.
The CDC says the current guidelines “do not recommend that people who do not drink alcohol start drinking for any reason.” The agency says those who should avoid alcohol completely include:
- Women who are or may be pregnant.
- Anyone under the legal drinking age.
- Anyone planning to drive or do activities that require coordination and alertness.
- People with certain medical conditions, such as liver disease.
- Take over-the-counter or prescription medications that may interact with alcohol, such as pain relievers, sleeping pills, ADHD medications, antibiotics, and some blood pressure medications.
- People who are recovering from an alcohol use disorder or who are unable to control how much they drink.
And if adults “of legal drinking age choose to drink alcoholic beverages, drinking less is healthier than drinking more,” says the CDC.
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