Have you heard about drinking for good health? Well, a study suggests that it may not be beneficial as you age. Researchers found that no amount of alcohol could help heart health, and even light drinking could increase cancer deaths among elderly adults.
To understand the link between alcohol consumption patterns and mortality, the researchers followed up with over 135,000 adults from the UK Biobank for 12 years. All the participants were 60 or older.
The study results published in the journal Jama Network suggest that “even low-risk drinking was associated with higher mortality among older adults with health-related or socioeconomic risk factors.”
“We did not find evidence of a beneficial association between low drinking and [overall] mortality,” lead study author Dr. Rosario Ortolá, from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, told the New York Times. Instead, alcohol raises the risk of cancer “from the first drop,” Ortolá cautioned.
For people who drank alcohol moderately, between 20 and 40 grams of daily consumption in men and between 10 and 20 grams in women, the risk of death from all causes and cancer was high. Men who drank above 40 grams daily and women over 20 grams daily had an even higher risk of death from all causes, death from cancer and cardiovascular disease.
However, the researchers noted small protective associations with mortality, particularly from cancer, among those who preferred wine (with over 80% of their alcohol consumption coming from wine) and those who drank with meals. This protective effect was seen mainly in individuals who already had other risk factors, such as health issues or socioeconomic disadvantages. The benefits may be due to slower alcohol absorption or other healthy lifestyle choices.
According to the current U.S. Dietary Guidelines, it is advisable either to avoid drinking or to drink in moderation. This means that individuals who choose to drink should limit their intake to 2 drinks or fewer per day for men and 1 drink or fewer per day for women. “Drinking less is better for health than drinking more,” the guideline states.
“Alcohol consumption, even at low levels can bring health risks, but most alcohol-related harms come from heavy episodic or heavy continuous alcohol consumption,” the WHO fact sheet reads.
