Before you raise that next glass, adjusting how much you consume "even from low levels" could impact one key health marker.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory saying that consuming any amount of alcohol could increase your risk of at least seven types of cancer. Now, a new large-scale study published on October 22 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggests participating in light-to-moderate drinking might be less safe than widely considered. The findings say that consuming even modest amounts of alcohol could raise blood pressure and increase heart risk.
The researchers, consisting of a team of cardiologists and public health experts from Japan, analyzed over 359,000 health visits from nearly 59,000 men and women at a Japanese preventive medicine center. The team then divided those patients into two groups:
- Cohort 1: Habitual drinkers at first visit
- Cohort 2: Non-drinkers at first visit
“Cohort 1 was created to understand the association between [blood pressure] changes and alcohol cessation or continued habitual drinking, and Cohort 2 was created to understand the association between [blood pressure] changes and new onset drinking or no drinking at the following visit,” explains a press release on the study from the American College of Cardiology.
Participants’ drinking habits were then tracked over time, allowing the team to study what happened when people stopped or started drinking. Among those who stopped drinking, blood pressure dropped in a dose-dependent way—meaning the more alcohol people had been drinking before quitting, the greater the decrease in blood pressure.
For example, women who stopped drinking one to two drinks per day saw their average systolic blood pressure (the top number) fall by about 0.8 mm Hg and their diastolic pressure (the bottom number) fall by about 1.1 mm Hg. Men who quit drinking the same amount saw similar reductions, around 1.0 mm Hg systolic and 1.6 mm Hg diastolic. Even small drops like these can make a difference for heart health across a population by lowering the chances of heart attack and stroke.
In contrast, participants who started drinking showed gradual increases in blood pressure, regardless of whether they drank wine, beer, or spirits, suggesting that the type of alcohol doesn’t matter—it’s the alcohol itself that influences blood pressure. “For alcohol cessation, all beverage types showed similar decreases in systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure,” the study adds.
The researchers note that previous studies have often focused on men or heavy drinkers, leaving gaps in our understanding of how alcohol affects women and light drinkers. This study, with its large number of female participants and repeated health visits, helps to fill that void of information.
Says lead researcher and cardiologist Dr. Takahiro Suzuki: “In the past, scientists thought that small amounts of alcohol might be okay, but our results suggest that no alcohol is actually best. This means that stopping drinking, even at low levels, could bring real heart health benefits for both women and men.”
Overall, the results support current American Heart Association guidelines, which recommend limiting alcohol to no more than one drink per day for women and two for men—and note that less is better for blood pressure control. They say that in general, one drink equals:
- 12-ounce beer (5% alcohol)
- 8-ounce malt liquor (7% alcohol)
- 5-ounce glass of wine (12% alcohol)
- 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor
So, before you raise your next glass, consider whether it’s worth potentially also raising your blood pressure along with it. Talk to your doctor for personalized recommendations on how cutting back, or quitting altogether, could better protect your heart—and overall wellness—down the road.
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