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Title

Moderate alcohol consumption may decrease risk of intervertebral disc degeneration

Publication type

Journal Article

Year of Publication

2008

Authors

Zhang, N., Yin, Y., Chen, W.-S., Xu, S.-J.

Journal

Medical Hypotheses

Volume

Issue

Pagination

501 - 504

Date published

2008

ISBN

03069877 (ISSN)

Keywords

aggrecan, alcohol consumption, Alcohol Drinking, article, collagen type 2, Humans, intervertebral disk degeneration, Intervertebral Disk Displacement, Models, Theoretical, nucleus pulposus, pathophysiology, priority journal, protein expression, risk factor, Risk Factors

Abstract

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a serious health problem worldwide. Unfortunately, efforts to control IDD are largely unsuccessful. It is therefore important to get better understanding of risks. Various evidences indicate that moderate alcohol consumption has protective effect on IDD. Here, we review the clinical evidence on alcohol consumption and IDD, and propose a possible mechanism. There is increasing evidence indicating that moderate alcohol consumption keeps the feeding arteries smooth. Furthermore, strong evidence indicates that some inflammatory factors are very important in the pathophysiology of IDD, while moderate alcohol consumption can decrease the expression of these inflammatory factors. Moreover, experimental studies show that alcohol exposure could increase the type II collagen and aggrecan, the major constituents of nucleus pulposus matrix. Given the above background, we hypothesize that moderate alcohol consumption may reduce the risk of IDD.

DOI

https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2008.05.024

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