A new study has found that people with cardiovascular diseases might be at a lower risk of heart attack and death if they drink in moderation. Read on to know how safe or harmful it is.
Is it okay for people with cardiovascular disease (CVD) to drink? A new study suggests that a few drinks won’t harm you. People who enjoy sipping a glass of wine, or beer, or cocktail now and then can have it, keeping moderation in mind to protect their health. Moderate drinking appears to safeguard some people with CVD from heart attack and even death. According to a study published in the journal, BMC Medicine found that light to moderate alcohol consumption can lower the risk of heart attack, stroke and mortality in people with heart diseases. The researchers found that people with heart diseases who drank an average of 6 grammes of alcohol per day saw the greatest benefit – a 50% reduction in risk compared to non-drinkers.
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Moderate Drinking Linked To Lower Risk Of Heart Attack, Death In CVD Patients
As per the study, those who consumed an average of 8 grammes per day had a 27 per cent lower chance of dying from a heart attack, stroke, or angina. Those who consumed 7 grammes per day had a 21% lower chance of dying from any cause. However, high consumption of alcohol (up to an average of 15 grams) was linked to smaller reductions in risk. They also discovered that increasing alcohol use up to 62 grammes per day, was not related to an increased risk of recurrent heart attack or death when compared to no alcohol consumption in over 48,000 individuals with heart disease.
Study co-author Chengyi Ding, a research student at the University College London said, “Our findings suggest that people with CVD may not need to stop drinking in order to prevent additional heart attacks, strokes or angina, but that they may wish to consider lowering their weekly alcohol intake. Alcohol consumption is associated with an increased risk of developing other illnesses.” However, the researchers also cautioned that this study does not encourage drinking in those who do not drink. Regular drinking can lead to adverse effects and lead to several other diseases, including cancer.
But Too Much Alcohol Can Damage Your Heart
As the study suggests, a person should consume alcohol in moderation. While drinking in moderation can raise your good cholesterol, prevent blood from clotting, and prevent damage caused by bad cholesterol, but high consumption can lead to serious health issues. Moreover, studies do not clearly state whether consuming only alcohol improves your heart health or the health effects that come from other good lifestyle choices. So, drink light or moderate to get any health benefits from alcohol. Regular or excessive alcohol consumption can harm your heart and cause cardiomyopathy, or heart muscle disease. Regularly drinking alcohol might also elevate your blood pressure.
Those who are suffering from heart diseases and thinking of consuming alcohol should know that alcohol can be harmful too. It is better that you talk to your doctor if you have any underlying disease to avoid complications. It is advisable for pregnant women, people with heart failure, cardiomyopathy, hypertension, irregular heart rhythm, stroke and high triglycerides to avoid drinking.
This post first appeared on The Health Site
