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 Even one drink was associated with higher odds of cardiovascular
problems over the next 24 hours compared to teetotalers, the
analysis also found.
After that, however, moderate drinkers who indulge in two to four
adult beverages may actually experience a lower risk of heart
attacks and strokes over the next week than their friends who drink
nothing at all.
“The impact of alcohol on your risk of heart attacks and strokes
depends on how much and how often you drink,” said lead study author
Elizabeth Mostofsky of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
in Boston.
“Habitual moderate alcohol consumption is associated with lower risk
of heart disease in both sexes, but the amount of alcohol associated
with cardiovascular benefits is lower among women than among men,”
Mostofsky added by email. “This is consistent with public health
recommendations that advise consumption of no more than two drinks
per day for men and no more than one drink per day for non-pregnant
women.”
While previous research has linked moderate drinking to a lower risk
of heart attacks over time, the current analysis focused on what
happens in the first days after imbibing based on how much alcohol
people consumed.
To explore how the amount of alcohol influenced the odds of heart
attacks and strokes, Mostofsky and colleagues analyzed data from 23
studies published between 1987 and 2015 that, combined, had a total
of 29,457 participants.
Across all the studies, there were 17,966 heart attacks and 2,599
ischemic strokes, the most common type that results from an
obstruction in a blood vessel supplying the brain. There were also
1,262 hemorrhagic strokes, the rarer type that occur when a blood
vessel bursts.
When people had about two to four drinks, after 24 hours they had
about a 30 percent lower risk of heart attacks and hemorrhagic
strokes than their abstaining peers, researchers report in the
journal Circulation.
These moderate drinkers also had a 19 percent lower risk of ischemic
strokes within a week than people who consumed no alcohol at all,
the study also found.
In contrast, binges of six to nine drinks were associated with a 30
percent higher risk of cardiovascular events the next day.
Immediately after alcohol consumption, the body has both good and
bad physiologic responses, the researchers note. Among other things,
one drink can increase the heart rate and cause electromechanical
problems in heart function within one to three hours.
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But by 12 to 24 hours, having about two drinks can be associated
with improved blood flow and other beneficial changes in the
cardiovascular system, the authors also point out.
Habitual moderate drinking is also associated with improvements in
cardiovascular risk factors like cholesterol levels, heart rate and
the ability to process blood sugars.
Heavy drinking, however, is linked to an elevated risk of
hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, strokes and death
after a heart attack, the researchers explain.
Limitations of the analysis include the lack of data on regular
heavy drinking episodes and the potential for underlying medical
conditions of participants in some of the studies to influence the
relationship between alcohol and cardiovascular disease. They also
lacked data on effects of different types of alcohol like wine
versus beer.
The take-home message is multi-faceted, said Giuseppe Lippi, a
researcher at the University of Verona in Italy who wasn't involved
in the study.
"Heavy alcohol consumption must always be avoided, not only for the
risk of cardiovascular disease, but also because it causes acute
injury to the liver and to the central nervous system," Lippi said
by email.
"Moreover, especially with binge drinking, the risk of car accidents
increases by many folds," Lippi added. "On the other hand, drinking
2-3 drinks, especially red wine, is good for the health."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1oQcNp3 Circulation, online March 2, 2016.
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