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2007-8-31 14:56:30 |
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Women who get drunk occasionally are at higher risk of non-fatal heart attack, according to a new study published in the May issue of Addiction. Early studies found that women who drank alcohol in moderation were at lower risk of having a non-fatal heart attack than those who abstained from alcohol drinking, the study report says. Dr. Joan M. Dorn of the University at Buffalo, New York suggests women who get drunk easily may indicate that they are easier to get intoxicated and are more vulnerable to the effect of alcohol. Although prior studies have found that drinking moderately appears to lower heart disease risk, it is not as clear how a drinking pattern would affect the heart disease risk in women. For the study, Dr. Dorn and colleagues compared 320 women who had non-fatal heart attacks with 1,565 healthy controls who did not have heart attack. Among those who experienced heart attacks, 8.5 percent reported drinking enough to get intoxicated occasionally. This is compared to 1.3 percent among the controls, the researchers found. A significant lower rate of heart attack was found among those who drank one or fewer drinks when they drank, compared to abstainers. The risk of heart attack was reduced by almost 50 percent in women who had three drinks a day, compared to that of abstainers. On the other hand, getting drunk at least once a month almost tripled the risk of heart attacks abstainers faced. But compared to those who drank, but never got drunk, those who got drunk at least once a month were at more than six times greater risk of heart attack. The researchers conclude "if you don't drink, don't start, but if you're concerned about heart health, light to moderate consumption does appear to lower risk, but there's an upper limit." A scientist affiliated with foodconsumer.org says that a result that might be applicable to a population should never be viewed as applicable to each individual. He suggests although moderate drinking may not put every woman at risk, or even lower the risk of heart attack a bit in some women, but this apparent benefit can't be experienced by every woman. The researchers acknowledge that some women may get drunk having one single drink while others may drink a few without feeling intoxicated. The foodconsumer.org scientist also points out that the association was not a causal relationship between alcohol drinking and risk of heart attack, meaning that moderate drinking does not necessarily reduce risk of heart attack. Women who have reasons to believe they are at high risk of cancer should avoid drinking alcohol, the foodconsumer.org scientist suggests. Alcoholic beverages have been recognized by the US government as cancer-causing agent. US physicians recommend that if you don't drink, don't start. If you drink, drink in moderation. |
