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About Alcohol
Alcohol is a drug that acts as a sedative by depressing the central nervous system. People react to alcohol in different ways; in large quantities, alcohol affects judgment, speech, and muscle coordination. In severe cases of intoxication, alcohol can be deadly causing all brain functions to shut down.
How Does Alcohol Cause Heart Disease?
Health consequences of prolonged and excessive alcohol use include pancreatitis, cancer, liver damage, and heart disease. In large quantities, alcohol constricts coronary arteries. Studies suggest that regular, heavy drinking results in an elevated triglyceride level, high blood pressure, heart failure, damage to the heart muscle, and an increased risk for sudden cardiac death and cardiac arrhythmias. Alcohol use is the third leading cause of preventable deaths, behind tobacco use and poor diet/activity patterns.
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One Drink Equals:
- 12 oz. Beer
- 5 oz. Wine
- 1.5 oz. 80-proof Spirits
- 1.0 oz. 100-proof Spirits
| Moderate Drinking
While an excessive amount of alcohol can damage your health, research suggests that a moderate intake of alcohol may actually protect the heart. In particular, red wine has been shown to have more heart health benefits than white wine. Studies show that those who consume 1-2 drinks per day are less likely to develop heart disease than people who don’t drink alcohol at all. A moderate daily alcohol intake for men is 1-2 drinks and 1 drink for women. If you currently do not drink, health professionals do not recommend starting.
Recognizing a Drinking Problem
"Problem drinkers" or "alcohol abusers" are not necessarily dependent on alcohol as alcoholics are, however, these individuals do experience health and social consequences as a result of their drinking habits. Alcohol dependence, or alcoholism, is characterized by an increased tolerance or withdrawal symptoms. Alcoholism is "a primary, chronic disease with genetic, psychological, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations. The disease is often progressive and fatal. It is characterized by continuous or periodic: impaired control over drinking, preoccupation with the drug alcohol, use of alcohol despite adverse consequences, and distortions in thinking, most notably denial" (National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence).
Drinking problems can result from the amount and pattern of alcohol consumption. Alcohol abuse and alcoholism are diagnosed through a variety of screening procedures including a medical examination, clinical interviews, and questionnaires/tests.
Other Resources
Wine Consumption and Heart Disease
For More Information
Please call the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation at (612) 863-3979 or email us at educ@mplsheart.org for more information on this or other heart-health topics. Remember too, that information provided on this site is meant to supplement, not take the place of recommendations from your primary health care provider.
REFERENCES:
Dorland’s Pocket Medical Dictionary. (1995). 25th edition. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: W.B. Saunders Company.
Dufour, Mary C. What is Moderate Drinking? National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Volume 23, number 1, 1999.
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.<
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