New research has found drinking up to two alcoholic beverages each day might reduce stroke risk.

But heavier drinking — three or more alcoholic beverages daily — appears to increase the risk of hemorrhagic stroke, according to the new analysis of studies, published online in the International Journal of Cardiology and reported by Newsmax Health with reference to MedPage Today.

Lead Yu-Hao Zhou, of Shanghai Seventh People's Hospital, and colleagues speculated that "light alcohol intake is associated with a reduced risk of ischemic events because low alcohol concentrations might increase HDL cholesterol levels, decrease platelet aggregation, increase fibrinolysis, and decrease plasma fibrinogen levels."

On the other hand, they added, "heavy alcohol intake is associated with an increased risk of hemorrhagic events because heavy alcohol intake potentially results in high blood pressure, reduced platelet aggregation, and enhanced fibrinolysis through increased secretion of plasminogen activators from endothelial cells."

The new findings are based on an analysis of 27 studies involving more than 1.4 million people conducted in the U.S. (11), Europe (nine), Japan (four), and China (three).