Here’s a toast to your health: Ever since the early 1990s, when Americans learned that a drink a day offers some protection from heart attack, studies have continued to verify the health benefits of very light alcohol intake for most people.
Since then, moderate alcohol has been shown to boost HDL, the “good” cholesterol, elevate mood and even improve the appetites of senior citizens.
“How it works, I don’t know,” said Dr. Thomas Whayne Jr., a University of Kentucky cardiologist. “But there’s a clear-cut association with longer life. It’s very promising.”
The key word is moderate: one serving of alcohol per day for women, up to two daily for men. At higher levels of consumption, problems outweigh alcohol’s benefits.
Some studies have found more benefit with wine consumption than with other forms of alcohol; other studies have found that any form of alcohol, consumed moderately, has benefits.
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Moderate alcohol intake got its first serious boost with a 1991 report on “60 Minutes” about what’s called the “French paradox”: the French eat a fat-laden diet but are much less likely than Americans to die of heart disease.
Some researchers linked the effect to the much higher consumption of wine in France–about 10 times as much per capita when compared with people in the United States. (The trade-off, though, is that the French have higher levels of liver disease.)
Since then, dozens of studies have been performed about moderate alcohol consumption with interesting findings:
– Most striking is alcohol’s relationship to heart health. A 1995 Harvard Medical School study found that a half-drink to two drinks daily of any type of alcohol lowered risk of heart attack by 45 percent. It also raised levels of protective HDL by about 10 percent.
– People who drink about one glass of wine per month had less chance of developing age-related macular degeneration, an eye disease that’s a leading cause of vision loss in the elderly, according to a Howard University Hospital study. It worked only with wine: beer and liquor didn’t have the same effect.
– One study of the elderly found that one drink daily stimulates appetite, regulates bowel function and elevates mood.
– Wine also has been found to aid digestion and even kills harmful intestinal bacteria.
The word has been getting out, particularly about the benefits of wine.
“I think a lot of people are drinking more red wine,” said Phil Dunn, 49, a wine lover and owner of Phil Dunn’s CookShop in Lexington, Ky.
Even the first month after the “60 Minutes” report about the French paradox, U.S. supermarket sales of red wine jumped 44 percent.
Because of allergies, Dunn prefers white wine, which he drinks daily. He has talked to his doctor about it, and his doctor said it’s fine for him to drink wine in moderation. It’s important to talk to your doctor about your alcohol intake, to make sure it’s truly a healthy choice.
“It’s beneficial for a certain population of people,” agreed Maggie Cook-Newell, 45, a Winchester, Ky., nutritionist in private practice. She’s writing her University of Kentucky nutritional sciences doctoral dissertation about moderate alcohol use and nutrient intake.
But it’s not for everyone. Few doctors, for instance, will prescribe drinking alcohol to patients who don’t already partake.
“Most physicians see so many problems from alcohol that they never recommend people drink alcohol,” said Dr. Deborah Kwolek, a University of Kentucky specialist in internal medicine and women’s health.
“I’ve never suggested to someone, `Why don’t you drink a glass of red wine?’ “
For one thing, Kwolek thinks even small amounts of alcohol may cause problems for some women. “I’m not sure it’s as safe for women as it is for men,” she said.
Though alcohol seems to benefit the heart, it also has been linked to breast cancer. In one study, women who consumed three to nine alcohol drinks a week were 50 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than those who drank fewer than three drinks per week.
Kwolek also considers alcohol to be “empty calories”–a big dose of calories with little nutrition.
A 12-ounce glass of non-light beer ranges from 125 to 160 calories, a half-cup serving of wine 80 to 100 calories, and an ounce of 80-proof liquor about 65 calories.
Because many Americans have trouble with portion control, they’re often ingesting more than they realize.
Kwolek said doctors think patients routinely underestimate their alcohol use; if a person reports drinking one serving of alcohol a day, Kwolek generally assumes it is actually two drinks–maybe more.
“I think that’s true about all the things we eat and drink,” Cook-Newell said. “One serving to some people is really more like two or three (actual) servings.”
However, Cook-Newell said at least one study has found that moderate drinkers tend to weigh less than those who abstain completely from alcohol; it’s not known why.
Doctors also don’t actively recommend alcohol intake because of possible problems with alcoholism or alcohol-related accidents–not a minor concern.
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” `Moderate’–that’s a very ambiguous term,” said Sandra Veltkamp, a registered nurse and unit manager for St. Joseph Hospital’s Behavioral Health Services in Lexington, which treats problems including alcohol abuse and other addictions.
“If you have a family history of alcohol abuse, you’re better off never getting started with it,” Cook-Newell said.
Experts say no one should have more than four drinks at one sitting; that’s not moderate alcohol use.
Driving skills can become impaired after even two drinks in some people, depending on their weight, alcohol tolerance and other factors. If alcohol use interferes with relationships, activities or career, that’s not moderate.