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Starting to drink late in life isn't heart smart Taking up drinking alcohol later in life specifically to ward off heart disease is not a good idea, according to a team of British researchers. Indeed, their study found that men who took up regular drinking in middle age did not reduce their risk of fatal heart attacks. And new drinkers seemed to have a slightly greater risk of dying of other causes compared with sporadic light drinkers or life-long teetotalers. "There is no good reason to encourage older men who do not drink or who only drink occasionally to take up regular drinking for the sake of their health--despite this being recommended by many physicians," said Dr. Gerry Shaper, of the department of primary care and population studies at the University College Medical School in London, UK. "Whatever small benefit there may be for heart attacks is more than offset by the increase in other causes of death." Population studies have found lower rates of heart attacks among drinkers and higher rates among those who abstain. Some doctors have used this research as the basis for prescribing moderate amounts of alcohol. However, the investigators attempted to test whether beginning drinking actually prevented heart attacks and death. The researchers studied 7,735 men who had been screened for heart disease between 1978 and 1980 and evaluated for lifestyle factors such as drinking, smoking, exercise and weight. The men were all questioned 5 years later to see if their alcohol intake had changed. The men were then followed for an average of 16 years, with their health monitored. According to the report in the January issue of the journal Heart, the researchers did find that men who took up regular drinking (usually a switch from two drinks or less per month to one to two drinks per day) were slightly less likely to have a heart attack than the men who were life-long occasional drinkers or teetotalers. However, the men who began regularly drinking in middle age were no less likely to actually die of heart disease than the men who consistently abstained, and were somewhat more likely to die of other illnesses, such as cancer. Shaper suggested the finding that non-drinkers experience higher rates of cardiovascular disease and death could be caused by the simple fact that those who are already in poor health may be more likely to abstain from drinking alcohol. "The role of alcohol in preventing heart attacks and diminishing death rates may well turn out to be one of the major medical myths of our time," Shaper noted. "That the 'protective' effects of alcohol have been hyped by the medical profession as well as the alcohol industry is a sad state of affairs." Dr. Cinque's comments: This article is so concise, and poignant, and straight-forward that there is little I can add to it. I will note that, unlike the articles that laud the purported cardio-protective effects of alcohol, this one is is not making front-page headlines. For years I have been saying that alcohol is so pervasive in our society, that people who abstain completely are mostly those who have already abused alcohol in the past, or who have other health problems that preclude them from drinking. That is surely a skewed sample by which to measure the health outcome of abstinence. Knowing that some people just skim through these articles and only read my comments, I feel compelled to repeat Dr. Shaper's conclusion: "The role of alcohol in preventing heart attacks and diminishing death rates may well turn out to be one of the major medical myths of our time. That the 'protective' effects of alcohol have been hyped by the medical profession as well as the alcohol industry is a sad state of affairs." I couldn't agree more, and I couldn't say it better. E-mail to a friend Previous Article |
