So you thought that a drink the wine a day was healthy?
A new large-scale genetic study, published in the magazine The Lancet, now contradicts the theory that drinking moderately can protect from certain diseases.
Even moderate alcohol intake increases blood pressure and the chances that we may suffer a stroke, according to research conducted by experts from the United Kingdom and China.
The team followed up to 500,000 adults in the Asian country over 10 years.
Their conclusions, say the experts, they are relevant for any society in the world and the best evidence so far from the direct effects of alcohol.
This study adds to other global research published last year that confirmed that no level of alcohol consumption can be considered healthy.
“Not even a drink a day”: what says about drinking the largest study on illness and death of the world until now, it was proven that a high intake of alcohol is daninapara health and increases the risk of a stroke, but some studies had suggested that drinking small amounts could be good health while others determined that no ‘safe’ consumption level there is.
The risk, the researchers, from the University of Oxford, of the prestigious Peking University and the Academy of medical sciences of China, found that: an alcoholic drink or two a day increases the risk of suffering a stroke in about 10-15% drink four alcoholic drinks a day increases the risk by about 35% in the study, a “drink” was defined as: A small glass of wine a bottle of beer, a standard measure of hard liquor, the World Health Organization (who) estimates that around 2,300 millions of people in the world drink alcohol, with an average per person of 33 grams of pure alcohol per day, which is estimated to be equivalent to about two glasses of wine (from 150 ml), a bottle of 750 ml or two 40 ml liquor drinks beer.
The study did not find any evidence that either reduced or moderate drinking had a “protective” effect.
“The claims that wine and beer have magical protective effects don’t hold”, said Richard Peto, co-author of the study and Professor of medical statistics and epidemiology at Oxford University.
About the possibility of a heart attack and his relationship with alcohol consumption, however, researchers suggested that the effects were not clear and that more data were needed.
By which China?
The investigation focused on people of East Asia, since a percentage of these have genetic variants that limit your tolerance to alcohol.
Since their genetic makeup has great effects in relation to the consumption of alcohol, but do not affect other variables such as diet, tobacco use, economic status or education, can be used by scientists to determine the consequences the intake of alcohol.
The scientists of the report ensures that, when comparing the results of drinkers and non-drinkers according to your genetic profile could establish in a more accurate way the direct effects of alcohol on the risk of suffering a stroke.
The genetic analysis was key in this study.” Use the genetics is a novel… to clarify if drinking in moderation protects us really or it is slightly harmful,”said Dr. Iona Millwood, co-author of the study and an epidemiologist at the University of Oxford.
“Genetic analysis helped us to understand the cause and effect relationships”.
That is how alcohol damages your DNA and makes you want to take more researchers believe that all we should reduce our consumption of alcohol: the key message of his study, they stand out, is that there is now a clear proof that drinking in moderation does not protect an ictu s. This means that even drinking a small amount of alcohol a day may increase the odds of suffering a stroke.
What other experts say?
However, the study also raised some doubts among the scientific community.
Dr. Stephen Burgess, of Cambridge University, considered that it has certain limitations: it only studied the Chinese population and mainly focused on the consumption of spirits and beer, did not come.
However, Burgess believes that research reflects the culmination of many years of research on the impact of alcohol consumption.
“It suggests convincingly that there is no cardiovascular benefit of drinking moderately and that the risk of a stroke increases even with a reduced consumption of alcohol.”
“The risk of stroke increases proportionally to the amount of alcohol consumed, so if someone decides to drink, you should then limit their consumption of alcohol”.
Other experts not involved in the study expressed some doubts about the investigation. For Kevin McConway, Professor Emeritus of applied statistics from the Open University in the United Kingdom, research does not respond to all the questions.
“Increasing what we know about the role of alcohol on certain diseases, but cannot be the last word,” said.
“The new study does not clarify exactly how alcohol increases the risk of stroke, but does not increase the risk of a heart attack”.
“Alcohol was more important to me than my marriage”: what is functional alcoholism and how to know if suffer you in any case, research led some to call into question previous theories widely accepted, as says David Spiegelhalter, Professor of public perception of the risk at the University of Cambridge.
“Had always been reasonably convinced that moderate consumption of alcohol is protected from cardiovascular disease, but now I have my doubts”.
