Search resultsWine, beer, and spirits and the risk of death and myocardial infarction, a meta-analysis and discussion of the data
Background: Alcohol has beneficial and harmful effects at the same time. Wine may be more beneficial for the heart than other types of alcoholic beverages. Objectives: To assess current status of knowledge regarding the relationship between death and alcohol consumption. 2. To assess relationship between myocardial infarction (MI) and consumption of different types of alcoholic beverages, both for low dose (1-4 drinks a day), and for high dose (> 4 drinks a day). Methods: A meta-analysis of major cohort and case-control studies. For the assessment of death and alcohol consumption 8 cohort studies were used, for the assessment of MI and different types of alcoholic beverages 12 cohort and 2 case-control studies were used. Results and conclusions: 1. Small doses of alcohol (1-4 drinks a day) are associated with a reduced risk of mortality and coronary heart disease (CHD). 2. Differences between the beneficial effects of small doses (1-4 drinks a day) of wine, beer, and spirits are negligible. 3. Apart from a direct beneficial effect of low dose alcohol on mortality and CHD, some psychological factors may contribute to its beneficial effect. 4. High dose alcohol (>4 drinks a day) is not associated with a reduced risk of death and CHD. 5. Apart from a direct effect of alcohol, again confounding factors, particularly those of psychological nature, may very well contribute to the loss of benefit with high dosages.