Glass of wine is not good for heart health at all

Scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital, together with specialists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard (USA), have challenged earlier research that suggests drinking a small amount of alcohol such as a glass of wine is good for heart health.

The results of the new study are published in JAMA Network Open.

The authors analyzed data from more than 370,000 adults with an average age of 57 and an average alcohol consumption of about nine servings per week. It turned out that many participants in the experiment who drank moderately or a little bit tended to lead healthier lifestyles than those who abstained from alcohol. For example, they engage in more physical activity and consume vegetables more actively; moreover, they tend to smoke less or not smoke at all.

In addition, when the researchers conducted genetic analysis of samples taken from the participants, they found that people with a genetic tendency to abuse alcohol were actually more likely to consume large amounts of alcohol and suffer from hypertension and coronary heart disease.

All this means that there is no data to support the health benefits of wine, and drinking alcohol in the hope that it will benefit your heart or blood vessels is not a good idea.

Follow NEWS.am Medicine on Facebook and Twitter