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| Dr. Dana E King |
A research team headed by the lead author Dr. Dana E King, an Associate
Professor in the Department of Family Medicine of Medical University of
South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston studied the medical records of 7,697
men and women between the age of 45 and 64 who began as teetotallers, as
part of a larger study. Over 10 years, 6 percent of these volunteers began
drinking.
Over the next four years when the data
of these new drinkers was compared to the persistent non-drinkers, there
was a 38 percent drop in new cardiovascular disease, says the report published
in the March issue of American Journal of Medicine. At the end of the
study the researchers found that 10.7 per cent of the teetotallers had
suffered some form of heart disease or stroke, compared to just 6.9 per
cent of the moderate drinkers; women consuming an average of one alcoholic
drink per day and the men having two.
The new drinkers were found to have significantly lower
levels of LDL cholesterol which clogs up arteries, and significantly higher
level of good, HDL cholesterol, which helps to prevent clogging up of
arteries. They also had lower blood pressure, which is in contrast to
a recently published study in the British Public Library of Science journal,
PLoS Medicine
Curiously, there was no difference in the number of
deaths during the study, possibly because the study was too short to detect
any decline through heart disease, or any increase because of cancer.
Many studies have shown that light to moderate drinkers
are healthier than non drinkers or heavier drinkers, but in all such studies
the researchers have cautioned against starting drinking with the objective
of reducing the chance of heart diseases.
There may be a reason to change that thinking, feels
the Professor, who is part of the research faculty at the university.
'This study certainly shifts the balance a little bit,' says King. 'While
caution is clearly warranted, the current study demonstrated that new
moderate drinking lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease,' he adds.
The findings suggest that, for carefully selected individuals,
a 'heart healthy diet' may include limited alcohol consumption, even among
individuals who have not included alcohol previously. However, 'Any such
benefit must be weighed with caution against the known ill consequences
of alcohol consumption.'
The findings held true even when the researchers factored
in heart disease risks such as smoking, high blood pressure, obesity,
race, education levels, exercise and cholesterol. Several volunteers had
more than one risk factor and still benefited by drinking alcohol, adds
King.
There was a much bigger benefit for wine-only drinkers,
reports the study. Wine-only drinkers had 68 percent fewer cardiovascular
events, whereas the drinkers of beer, liquor and mixed drinks had only
a 21 percent benefit, said King.
However, he does not advise drinking freely or binge
drinking as compared to the daily intake of wine in limited quantity.
Study advises against Binge Drinking
Indeed, another study published last week by researchers
at the National Institute of Health found that how much and how often
people drink affects their risk of death from several causes.
In a study of 44,000 people, they discovered that men
who had five or more drinks on days they drank were 30 percent more likely
to die of a heart attack or stroke than men who had just one drink a day,
regardless of what their average drinking intake was.
Writing in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental
Research, the team at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
and the National Cancer Institute found that regular, moderate drinking
was healthier than the occasional binge.
Even men who drank every single day of the year were
20 percent less likely to die of heart disease than men who drank just
1 to 36 days per year, if they drank moderately.
Drinking in moderation was also the advice stemming from
MUSC study. For instance, the small number of teetotallers who had become
heavy drinkers six years into the study was found 42 per cent more likely
than the continued abstainers to have suffered cardiovascular disease.
Dr King warned that non-drinkers with a history of alcohol
problems, liver disease, depression, gastric ulcers or other conditions
worsened by alcohol should not take up drinking
Guidelines from the Food Standards Agency state that
between one and two units of alcohol per day can help protect against
heart disease. However, The American Heart Association says that it is
not advisable for teetotallers to start drinking in middle age.
Incidentally, The Medical University of South Carolina
is the oldest medical school in the South US. As the largest non-federal
employer in Charleston, the university and its affiliates have collective
annual budgets in excess of $1.3 billion. Therefore, the study was in
no way connected with any wine related grants.
While welcoming the latest findings, Indian Wine
Academy takes exception to Reuters'
headline Finally, a reason to start drinking alcohol. Although
we recommend a daily intake of up to 2-3 glasses of wine for men and 1-2
glasses for women, we do not encourage anyone to start drinking wine or
any other alcohol primarily for health reasons. Healthy diet and exercise
can also protect one's heart. We recommend wine as a part of the healthy
diet, provided one already imbibes alcohol. There is no reason to start
drinking alcohol for health reasons alone, unless you wish to start for
social reasons or as a part of lifestyle.
Cognisance must also be taken of the warning by Dr
King that non-drinkers with a history of alcohol problems, liver disease,
depression, gastric ulcers or other conditions worsen by alcohol and such
people should not take up drinking. There are also a small percentage
of people who, when they start to drink, will drink too much. - Editor
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