Even light alcohol intake could be harming your heart health, study suggests

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Drinking even a small amount of alcohol each week could be a risk to your health, according to a new study. Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open, the research found that consuming roughly seven drinks per week Drinking less than 14 units a week, this is considered low-risk drinking, according to NHS Inform.However, the study suggest that even 'low risk drinking' can be detrimental to cardiovascular health.

The research used UK Biobank data to analyse the health risks and link between alcohol intake and cardiovascular diseases -including hypertension as well as coronary artery disease.

Data analysis was conducted from July 2019 to January 2022.For the purposes of the study, drinking groups were defined as:The findings suggested that alcohol consumption of all amounts was associated with increased cardiovascular risk, but marked risk differences exist across levels of intake, including those accepted by current national guidelines.

The study suggests that even light drinkers were more at risk of developing cardiovascular health problems.Although, the level of the risk was found to be relatively low when it comes to those who are 'light' drinkers.The risk then increases quite quickly when alcohol consumption surpasses this level - more than 8.4 drinks per week.The researchers also found that light to moderate alcohol consumers exhibited healthier lifestyles than abstainers.However, the research suggests that cardioprotective effects of light to moderate alcohol intake may be largely mediated by confounding lifestyle factors meaning that a healthy lifestyle in general may be more important that alcohol intake alone when drinking levels are considered less than 'heavy'.