‘Tis the season for end-of-year celebrations, and with them often come a few more alcoholic beverages than usual. So we thought it’d be a good time to review how consuming alcohol impacts your health.
New York Times columnist and public health expert Aaron Carroll had the same idea, and wrote a broad review of the evidence in his regular column.
Carroll starts with detailing large cohort studies that followed thousands of adults over decades to find out if alcohol is linked with any health changes. One large study followed 275,000 men over more than 30 years. It found that those who consumed one or two drinks a day significantly reduced their risk of dying, while those who consumed three or more drinks a day reduced their risk of dying by heart disease, but increased their risk of dying from other causes. A similar study of nearly 15,000 men and women found comparable results: people who drank alcohol lightly or moderately had overall lower risk of dying.
While moderate drinking protects against heart disease, there is some evidence that consuming alcohol increases the risk of developing cancer. One systematic review found drinking five or more drinks a day is associated with colorectal cancer. Another review found increased alcohol consumption is associated with a slightly greater risk of developing breast cancer.
There are also some randomized, controlled studies about alcohol consumption, Carroll writes. (These are the gold standard in research.) One meta-analysis of controlled trials found that alcoholic beverages increased levels of good cholesterol. Another looked at how drinking alcohol effected patients with type II diabetes. More than 200 diabetic patients were given either red wine, white wine or water with dinner for a period of two years. Patient who drank wine, and especially red wine, had fewer risk factors for heart disease, diabetes and stroke.
On the whole, Carroll concludes that moderate alcohol consumption is actually good for us. But he cautions that there are significant health risks associated with abusing alcohol, including liver disease, cancer and accidents from drinking and driving.
On a side note, it’s great to see such comprehensive articles covering the evidence in mainstream media. Analyses like these help people decipher the available research in meaningful ways.
Note: EBL will be taking a break for the holiday season, but will return with new evidence-based info in the New Year.
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