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That may be enough to stop your enthusiasm: a new study challenges the idea that a drink or two a day could really be beneficial for you.
In a study conducted in China, researchers found that moderate alcohol consumption slightly increased the risk of stroke and stroke. high blood pressure. However, they were not able to determine if small amounts of alcohol could also increase the risk of heart attack.
It has long been thought that people who drink a glass or two a day have a risk of stroke and heart problems than non-drinkers. But scientists did not know if it was because alcohol was beneficial or if people who did not drink had other health problems.
"The assertion that alcohol has a magical and protective solution (…) has no particularly serious scientific basis," said Richard Peto, of the University of Toronto. 39, Oxford, one of the main authors of the study.
Peto said their findings should apply to other populations outside China and to all regions of the world. alcoholic beverages like beer or wine, even though the study participants mostly drank the spirit. The research was published online Thursday in the newspaper The Lancet.
The research adds to a previous study from 2018, also published in The Lancet, which examined the data of 28 million people worldwide and determined that the disadvantages of drinking far outweighed the potential health benefits. This study found that health risks started modestly with one drink a day, but that they increased rapidly as people drank more. Given the risks, he concluded that there was "no level of harmless alcohol. "
For the new study, Chinese and British scientists took into account genetics. They focused on two common genetic variants among East Asians that can make drinking drinks unpleasant. For those with the variants, alcohol consumption may result in rapid redness, increased heart rate, nausea or headache.
Since these genetic variations occur randomly, the researchers were able to design the equivalent of a randomized study. Much of the previous research on alcohol and its effects on health was based on studies that could not prove any cause and effect.
"The use of genetics is an innovative way to evaluate the effects of alcohol on health and to determine if moderate consumption is actually protective or slightly harmful." Our genetic analyzes have helped us to understand cause-and-effect relationships ", lead author. Dr. Iona Millwood, of the Population Health Research Unit of the Medical Research Council of Oxford University, said in a statement.
Scientists followed more than 500,000 people across China and followed them for a decade. They recorded their medical history, including whether they had smoked or exercised, and how much they had been drinking. One-third of men reported drinking most weeks, compared to fewer women.
About 160,000 of the participants had both variants of the gene. Among men in this group, alcohol consumption ranged from zero to four drinks a day. The researchers examined the number of strokes or heart attacks and compared them to participants not presenting the variants and to women with variants.
Overall, the study found that alcohol increases the risk of stroke by about one-third for four additional drinks a day. The researchers found no protective effect for moderate consumption. For people who drink up to two drinks a day – which would be considered moderate consumption – scientists said their risk of stroke would be increased by around 10% to 15%. compared to non-drinkers. The researchers did not indicate that there were not enough heart attacks among participants to be able to draw a conclusion about heart risks.
In a review of the review, the authors called for tighter controls on alcohol, saying its risks were underestimated.
"The alcohol industry is booming and should be regulated in the same way as the tobacco industry," wrote Shiu Lun Au Yeung and Dr. Tai Hing Lam of L & 39. University of Hong Kong.
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