The Benefits of Controlled Alcohol Consumption

I’ve posted many times on the cardiovascular benefits of limited alcohol consumption – one drink a day for women, two for men.  It’s possible some readers just don’t believe me (or the evidence).  Now two researchers from Canada have reported studies in the British Medical Journal that should convince the most skeptical reader.

The first study was a meta-analysis of studies assessing the effects of alcohol consumption on a variety of cardiovascular outcomes.  The researcher found over 4,000 studies with this purpose, but only 84 fulfilled the strict selection criteria and could be include for the analysis.  The relative risks for alcohol drinkers compared with non-drinkers was 0.75 for cardiovascular disease mortality, 0.71 for coronary heart disease events (e.g. heart attack, severe angina, etc.), and 0.75 for coronary heart disease mortality.  In other words, people who drink were 25% less likely to die from coronary heart disease, compared to those who drink no alcohol at all. There was no association between alcohol consumption and the risk of stroke (thrombotic or hemorrhagic).

The second study was a review of 44 published studies that examined relationships between alcohol consumption and biological markers (mostly lab tests) of coronary heart disease risk. Alcohol was found to significantly increase the blood levels of the ‘good’ cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, or HDL-C), apolipoprotein A1 (the major protein component of HDL), and adiponectin (a fat-derived hormone that may reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes).  Alcohol decreased fibrinogen levels, another beneficial change

We should not, in our enthusiasm for moderate alcohol consumption, forget that alcoholism is a disabling addictive disorder, characterized by compulsive and uncontrolled consumption negative effects on the drinker's health, relationships, and social standing.  It is all too easy to slip from moderate drinking to heavy, and from heavy to alcoholism.    

These two studies don’t reveal much new about the beneficial effects of moderate alcohol drinking, but they demonstrate the considerable volume of evidence, which should be enough to convince most skeptics.