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• Few Americans aware of cancer risks posed by alcohol: study - Hill, 12/2/22 - "All types of alcoholic beverages, including wine, increase cancer risk ... Studies have shown a link between alcohol intake and cancers of the mouth, throat, voicebox, esophagus, liver, colon and rectum, and breast ... The risks are especially elevated for breast cancer."
• Doctors want alcohol warning labels to flag cancer risks - Washington Post, 9/19/22 - "But those labels haven’t been updated since the late 1980s. Now, researchers say they don’t adequately advertise alcohol consumption’s biggest potential health consequence: cancer, including breast cancer ... Though even moderate consumption carries risk, excessive alcohol use is more dangerous. Guidelines suggest alcohol intake should be limited to two drinks or less a day for men and one or less a day for women, but data suggests the majority of adult drinkers imbibe more."
• Moderate drinking linked to brain changes and cognitive decline - Science Daily, 7/14/22 - "Consumption of seven or more units of alcohol per week is associated with higher iron levels in the brain, according to a study of almost 21,000 people publishing July 14 in the open access journal PLOS Medicine. Iron accumulation in the brain has been linked with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases and is a potential mechanism for alcohol-related cognitive decline"
• Just One Extra Drink a Day May Change the Brain - Medscape, 3/16/22 - "Previous research has found that people with alcohol use disorder have structural changes in their brains compared to healthy people's brains, such as reduced gray matter and white matter volume. But those findings were in people with a history of heavy drinking, defined by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism as more than four drinks a day for men and more than three drinks a day for women ... In line with past studies, the researchers found a negative association between alcohol consumption and gray and white matter volume. That is, as a person's alcohol intake increased, their gray matter and white matter volume decreased, getting worse the more weekly drinks they had ... But the researchers also noted that they could tell the difference between brain images of people who never drank alcohol and those who drank just 1 or 2 drinks a day."
• More alcohol, less brain: Association begins with an average of just one drink a day - Science Daily, 3/4/22 - "Researchers analyzed data from more than 36,000 adults that found a link between drinking and reduced brain volume that begins at an average consumption level of less than one alcohol unit a day -- the equivalent of about half a beer -- and rises with each additional drink"
• Last Call? Moderate Alcohol's Health Benefits Look Increasingly Doubtful - Medscape, 12/22/21 - "When you look at studies that correct for things like reverse causation, or the fact that some people who drink zero alcohol are former drinkers who used to drink alcohol, then you realize that the protective benefit of alcohol is either minimal or nonexistent and that alcohol does more harm than good to our society"
• Only alcohol -- not caffeine, diet or lack of sleep -- might trigger heart rhythm condition - Science Daily, 11/24/21 - "Participants in the randomized clinical trial utilized a mobile electrocardiogram recording device along with a phone app to log potential triggers like drinking alcohol and caffeine, sleeping on the left side or not getting enough sleep, eating a large meal, a cold drink, or sticking to a particular diet, engaging in exercise, or anything else they thought was relevant to their AF. Although participants were most likely to select caffeine as a trigger, there was no association with AF. Recent research from UCSF has similarly failed to demonstrate a relationship between caffeine and arrhythmias -- on the contrary, investigators found it may have a protective effect ... The new study demonstrated that consumption of alcohol was the only trigger that consistently resulted in significantly more self-reported AF episodes."
• New study links moderate alcohol use with higher cancer risk - Science Daily, 7/14/21 - "Alcohol causes cancer in numerous ways ... The main mechanism of how alcohol causes cancer is through impairing DNA repair. Additional pathways include chronic alcohol consumption resulting in liver cirrhosis, and alcohol leading to a dysregulation of sex hormones, leading to breast cancer. Alcohol also increases the risk of head and neck cancer for smokers as it increases the absorption of carcinogens from tobacco"
• One small alcoholic drink a day is linked to an increased risk of atrial fibrillation - Science Daily, 1/17/21 - "The study, published today (Wednesday) in the European Heart Journal [1], found that, compared to drinking no alcohol at all, just one alcoholic drink a day was linked to a 16% increased risk of atrial fibrillation over an average (median) follow-up time of nearly 14 years. This means that while four teetotallers in 100 might develop atrial fibrillation over the period of the study, five per 100 might develop the condition if they consumed alcohol starting with slightly more than an alcoholic drink a week and more than 75% of them consumed up to one drink a day [2]. The researchers categorised one alcoholic drink as containing 12 g of ethanol, which is the equivalent of a small (120 ml) glass of wine, a small beer (330 ml) or 40 ml of spirits ... These findings are important as the regular consumption of alcohol, the 'one glass of wine a day' to protect the heart, as is often recommended for instance in the lay press, should probably no longer be suggested without balancing risks and possible benefits for all heart and blood vessel diseases, including atrial fibrillation"
• Drinking linked to a decline in brain health from cradle to grave - Science Daily, 12/3/20 - "in older people, alcohol use disorders were recently shown to be one of the strongest modifiable risk factors for all types of dementia (particularly early onset) compared with other established risk factors such as high blood pressure and smoking"
• Vitamin B1 deficiency a key factor in the development of alcohol-related dementia - Science Daily, 9/9/20 - "In Austria, around 5% of the population are alcohol dependent from the age of 15 onwards. This means that approximately 365,000 people are affected by the dangerous health consequences associated with high alcohol consumption. One of these consequences is a decline in cognitive function, especially memory and abstraction. This is then referred to as alcohol-related dementia ... high alcohol consumption results in elevated iron levels in the blood and also to vitamin B1 (thiamine) deficiency, which, among other things, is important for maintaining the blood-brain barrier. If these two situations coincide, more iron will be deposited inside the brain, ultimately leading to oxidative tissue damage" - See B complex supplements at Amazon.com and iHerb.
• More than one drink a day may raise high blood pressure risk in adults with Type 2 diabetes - Science Daily, 9/9/20 - "light drinking was not associated with elevated blood pressure or either stage of high blood pressure; ... moderate drinking was associated with increased odds of elevated blood pressure by 79%; Stage 1 high blood pressure by 66%; and Stage 2 high blood pressure by 62%; ... heavy drinking was associated with increased odds of elevated blood pressure by 91%; Stage 1 high blood pressure by 149% (a 2.49-fold increase); and Stage 2 high blood pressure by 204% (a 3.04-fold increase); and the more alcohol consumed, the higher the risk and severity of high blood pressure."
• Even a Little Alcohol May Raise Cancer Risk - NYT, 12/9/19 - "the equivalent of six ounces of wine, 17 ounces of beer or two ounces of whiskey a day for 10 years increased the relative risk of cancer by 5 percent. After two drinks a day for 40 years, the relative risk of having any cancer increased by 54 percent compared with a nondrinker. The associations were particularly strong for cancers of the mouth, throat, stomach and colon"
• Fathers-to-be should avoid alcohol six months before conception - Science Daily, 10/3/19 - "Aspiring parents should both avoid drinking alcohol prior to conception to protect against congenital heart defects"
• Only a fraction of the costs of excessive drinking are paid for by alcohol taxes - Science Daily, 9/11/19 - "The total harm caused by excessive alcohol consumption is a staggering $2.05 per drink in the United States, and, of this, the government ends up paying about 80 cents per drink. However, the federal government and states only bring in about 21 cents per drink on average in alcohol taxes" - Note:  At least one study says about the same for pot.  Pot advocates dispute that claiming the study was biased because it was by a Christian university but it’s also common sense. As one example, a lot of street people have schizophrenia. The meds for that can run $600 per month. Tack on the costs to room, board and food for life if you’re going to take them off the streets as you should. - [Abstract]
• Heavy Alcohol Use May Triple Dementia Risk - Medscape, 7/18/19 - "alcohol use disorder (AUD) ... The study showed that female veterans with AUD were more than three times more likely to develop dementia than female veterans who did not have AUD (hazard ratio, 3.06; 95% confidence interval, 1.83 – 5.13)"
• Brain Damage From Alcohol Continues After Abstinence - Medscape, 4/15/19 - "alcohol use disorder (AUD) ... The researchers found diffuse microstructural changes in white matter in the men with AUD compared with the control persons. These changes primarily affected the right hemisphere and the frontal region of the brain. These changes progressed during 2 to 6 weeks of abstinence ... The study was not designed to look further in time, also due to the fact that our results were unexpected"
• Brain growth inhibited by heavy alcohol use - Science Daily, 4/1/19 - "heavy alcohol use reduced the rate of brain growth by 0.25 milliliters per year for every gram of alcohol consumed per kilogram of body weight. In human terms, that's the equivalent of four beers per day"
• Smoking and drinking can damage arteries 'very early in life' - Medical Express, 8/28/18 - "We found that in this large contemporary British cohort, drinking and smoking in adolescence, even at lower levels compared to those reported in adult studies, is associated with arterial stiffening and atherosclerosis progression"
• 'No Safe Limit': Even One Drink a Day Increases Risks - Medscape, 8/23/18 - "among individuals aged 15 to 49 years, alcohol accounted for around 4% of deaths in women and 12% in men. Tuberculosis and road injuries were the leading causes of death related to alcohol ... For those aged 50 years and older, alcohol was linked to 27% of deaths in women and 19% of deaths in men, with cancer the leading cause of alcohol-related death ... Overall, consuming just one drink a day increased the risk of developing alcohol-related health problems by 0.5% vs abstaining; drinking five drinks a day led to 37% increase in risk"
• Alcohol-related liver deaths have increased sharply - Washington Post, 7/18/18 - "The study suggests that a new generation of Americans is being afflicted "by alcohol misuse and its complications,” ... eople are at risk of life-threatening cirrhosis if they drink several drinks a night or have multiple nights of binge drinking — more than four or five drinks per sitting — per week. Women tend to be less tolerant of alcohol and their livers more sensitive to damage"
• Heavy Drinking Linked to Decreased Grey Matter in Young Adults - Medscape, 7/4/18 - "Neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that heavy alcohol consumption is connected to smaller grey matter volume in adults, and pathology studies have linked heavy alcohol use with white matter atrophy and focal neuronal loss ... Alcohol is simply toxic for developing brains"
• New study says more than one alcoholic drink a day could shorten your life. Now, what? - NYT, 5/30/18 - "A glass of red wine a day keeps the doctor away, right? Not so fast. A large-scale European study recently published in the journal Lancet says the heart-healthy benefits from moderate drinking are slight, while the risk of stroke and other fatal heart conditions are significant. “These data support limits for alcohol consumption that are lower than those recommended in most current guidelines,” the authors said ... Fatalities caused by alcohol-impaired drivers accounted for close to 10,000 deaths in 2014 (about 30 percent of all driving fatalities), according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Alcohol also plays a significant role in homicides and suicides. One NIAAA study found that four in 10 convicted killers said they were under the influence of alcohol when they committed homicide. And about 25 percent of suicides are alcohol-related ... When it comes to non-traumatic-alcohol-related deaths, liver disease is at the top ... every 10 grams (slightly less than one drink) of alcohol consumed per day by a women increased her risk of breast cancer by 7 percent; a more recent study found a 12 percent increased risk"
• Consuming more than five drinks a week could shorten your life - Science Daily, 4/13/18 - "The upper safe limit of drinking was about five drinks per week (100g of pure alcohol, 12.5 units or just over five pints of 4% ABV beer or five 175ml glasses of 13% ABV wine). However, drinking above this limit was linked with lower life expectancy. For example, having 10 or more drinks per week was linked with one to two years shorter life expectancy. Having 18 drinks or more per week was linked with four to five years shorter life expectancy."
• Another Reason to Avoid Heavy Drinking? Dementia - Medscape, 3/23/18 - "Overall, alcohol-use disorders were associated with a three-times greater risk for all types of dementia ... The researchers concluded that heavy drinking is the strongest modifiable risk factor for dementia"
• Largest study of its kind finds alcohol use biggest risk factor for dementia - Science Daily, 2/20/18 - "The findings indicate that heavy drinking and alcohol use disorders are the most important risk factors for dementia, and especially important for those types of dementia which start before age 65, and which lead to premature deaths ... on average, alcohol use disorders shorten life expectancy by more than 20 years, and dementia is one of the leading causes of death for these people ... Screening for and reduction of problem drinking, and treatment for alcohol use disorders need to start much earlier in primary care"
• Alcohol consumption in late teens can lead to liver problems in adulthood - Science Daily. 1/22/18 - "Data indicated that alcohol consumption early in life was associated with an increased risk of developing severe liver disease. After 39 years of follow-up, 383 men had developed severe liver disease, which was defined as a diagnosis of liver cirrhosis, decompensated liver disease (hepatocellular carcinoma, ascites, esophageal varices, hepatorenal syndrome, or hepatic encephalopathy), liver failure, or death from liver disease. The risk was dose-dependent, with no sign of a threshold effect and was more pronounced in men consuming two drinks per day, about 20 grams, or more"
• How alcohol damages DNA and increases cancer risk - Science Daily, 1/3/18 - "They then used chromosome analysis and DNA sequencing to examine the genetic damage caused by acetaldehyde, a harmful chemical produced when the body processes alcohol ... They found that acetaldehyde can break and damage DNA within blood stem cells leading to rearranged chromosomes and permanently altering the DNA sequences within these cells ... We know that alcohol contributes to over 12,000 cancer cases in the UK each year"
• Even Light Drinking May Raise Your Cancer Risk - WebMD, 11/7/17 - "Alcohol is directly responsible for 5 to 6 percent of new cancers and cancer deaths worldwide, according to the statement. The paper cites evidence tying light, moderate or heavy drinking to higher risk of common malignancies such as breast, colon, esophagus, and head and neck cancers"
• Drinking makes you older at the cellular level - Science Daily, 6/26/17 - "alcoholic patients had shortened telomere lengths, placing them at greater risk for age-related illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and dementia"
• Higher alcohol consumption leads to greater loss of muscle tissue in postmenopausal women - Science Daily, 6/7/17 - "Both aging and menopause are known to affect sarcopenia, which is a loss of muscle mass and strength, which in turn affects balance, gait, and overall ability to perform tasks of daily living ... the prevalence of sarcopenia was found to be nearly four times greater for the high-risk, alcohol-drinking group than the low-risk group"
• Even moderate drinking linked to a decline in brain health, finds study - Science Daily, 6/6/17 - "higher alcohol consumption over the 30 year study period was associated with increased risk of hippocampal atrophy -- a form of brain damage that affects memory and spatial navigation ... While those consuming over 30 units a week were at the highest risk compared with abstainers, even those drinking moderately (14-21 units per week) were three times more likely to have hippocampal atrophy compared with abstainers ... Higher consumption was also associated with poorer white matter integrity (critical for efficient cognitive functioning) and faster decline in language fluency (how many words beginning with a specific letter can be generated in one minute)"
• Low Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Affects Facial Development - Medscape, 6/5/17 - "Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) ... The researchers found a consistent association between craniofacial shape and PAE at almost any level, regardless of whether exposure occurred only in the first trimester or throughout pregnancy"
• Just one alcoholic drink a day increases breast cancer risk, exercise lowers risk - Science Daily, 5/23/17 - "The report found strong evidence that drinking the equivalent of a small glass of wine or beer a day (about 10 grams alcohol content) increases pre-menopausal breast cancer risk by 5 percent and post-menopausal breast cancer risk by 9 percent. A standard drink is 14 grams of alcohol"
• A drink a day tied to higher breast cancer risk, report says - CNN, 5/23/17 - "Sipping an average of 10 grams of alcohol a day -- equivalent to a small glass of wine, an 8-ounce beer or 1 ounce of hard liquor -- is associated with a 5% increased breast cancer risk in premenopausal women and 9% increase in postmenopausal women"
• 'Inflamm-aging: ' Alcohol makes it even worse - Science Daily, 6/28/16 - "The immune system in the elderly is dysfunctional and infections are more prevalent, more severe, and harder to defeat. Drinking alcohol has a variety of damaging effects on the immune system and organs -- like the gut, liver and lung -- which can be worsened by pre-existing conditions as well as consumption of prescription and over-the-counter medications that aged individuals often take ... We know that even healthy elderly individuals have an elevated basal inflammatory state, known as 'inflamm-aging.' Advanced age alone is a risk factor for a poor prognosis after injury or infection. Adding alcohol to the fragile immune milieu of the aged reduces their ability to fight infections ... alcohol exposure makes macrophages less effective at clearing pathogens and releasing molecules important for recruiting other immune cells to the site of infection, and that this is worsened in the elderly ... Even short-term exposure of macrophages to alcohol reduces their ability to migrate to a site of infection as well as their ability to destroy the pathogen"
• Surprising finding from heart study: Moderate drinking may have ‘cardiotoxic’ effects in elderly hearts - The Washington Post, 5/27/15  - "In a study of 4,466 people between the ages of 71 and 81, researchers found that even a limited alcohol intake of two or more servings a day for men and one or more for women was associated with subtle alterations in cardiac structure and function. Of those affected, the men experienced enlarged left ventricle walls while the women saw a small reduction in heart function"
• Drinking just one or two alcoholic drinks a day linked to liver disease - Science Daily, 4/25/15 - "This new research concluded that heavy daily drinkers most significantly and independently influence a country's cirrhosis burden" - Note:  The article doesn't even mention one or two drinks as indicated in the title.  That said, it's probably true.  I may have had a few beers myself when I was younger but I never did buy off on the premise that even a little was good.  I don't see how it couldn't damage your cells and accelerate aging.  It may or may not improve blood flow and hence decrease coronary heart disease but that’s different from things like damage to your skin and wrinkles.
• Fish Oil May Guard Against Alcohol-Related Brain Damage - Medscape, 7/25/14 - "The researchers assessed brain samples from adult male rats exposed during a period of several days to repetitive ethanol intoxication. Half of the brain samples were further exposed to omega-3 DHA and the other half were not ... Results showed higher levels of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) resulting from the excessive alcohol exposure, which led to increased neuroinflammation, or astroglial aquaporin-4 (AQP4), and increased brain edema ... Compared with rats that had not been exposed to alcohol, those that had been exposed had significantly higher levels of cPLA2 and phospho-CPLA2 in the hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, and olfactory bulb (all, P < .05). They also had significantly increased levels of sPLA2 in all 3 areas" - See docosahexaenoic acid at Amazon.com.
• Moderate alcohol use associated with increased risk for atrial fibrillation - Science Daily, 7/14/14 - "Consistent with previous research, the study found an association between high alcohol consumption, defined as more than three drinks per day, and increased risk for atrial fibrillation and a strong association with binge drinking ... the risk for atrial fibrillation increased 8 percent with each additional drink per day"
• Drinking alcohol provides no heart health benefit, new study shows - Science Daily, 7/10/14 - "For some time, observational studies have suggested that only heavy drinking was detrimental to cardiovascular health, and that light consumption may actually be beneficial. This has led some people to drink moderately based on the belief that it would lower their risk of heart disease. However, what we're seeing with this new study, which uses an investigative approach similar to a randomized clinical trial, is that reduced consumption of alcohol, even for light-to-moderate drinkers, may lead to improved cardiovascular health"
• Too Much Booze Can Shave 6 Years off Men's Memory - ABC News, 1/15/14 - "studied the drinking habits of 5,054 men between the ages of 44 and 69, and measured their cognitive ability in four tests that assessed their short-term memory, problem solving skills and reasoning ability, among other things ... men who drank at least 36 grams of alcohol or more (about two and a half 13-ounce beers) had a faster decline in cognitive ability akin to someone 1.5 to 5.7 years older ... It’s an accelerated aging process ... In the first six to eight weeks, brain shrinkage can partially reverse ... Some of the effects that alcohol has on brain are reversible" - [Abstract]
• Prenatal exposure to alcohol disrupts brain circuitry: No safe level of drinking during pregnancy, neuroscientist says - Science Daily, 12/4/13 - "prenatal exposure to alcohol significantly altered the expression of genes and the development of a network of connections in the neocortex -- the part of the brain responsible for high-level thought and cognition, vision, hearing, touch, balance, motor skills, language, and emotion -- in a mouse model of FASD. Prenatal exposure caused wrong areas of the brain to be connected with each other ... Although this study uses a moderate- to high-dose model, others have shown that even small doses alter development of key receptors in the brain ... Huffman's team found dramatic changes in intraneocortical connections between the frontal, somatosensory and visual cortex in mice born to mothers who consumed ethanol during pregnancy. The changes were especially severe in the frontal cortex, which regulates motor skill learning, decision-making, planning, judgment, attention, risk-taking, executive function and sociality"
• Alcohol consumption and breast cancer risk among women from five ethnic groups with light to moderate intakes: The multiethnic cohort study - Int J Cancer. 2013 Sep 12 - "Higher alcohol consumption, even at moderate levels, has been associated with an increased risk of breast cancer in epidemiological studies ... we prospectively examined the association in 85,089 women enrolled in the Multiethnic Cohort in Hawaii and California ... mean follow-up of 12.4 years ... Higher alcohol consumption was associated with increased risk of breast cancer: compared to nondrinkers, HRs were 1.23 (95% CI: 1.06-1.42), 1.21 (95% CI: 1.00-1.45), 1.12 (95% CI: 0.95-1.31), and 1.53 (95% CI: 1.32-1.77) for 5-9.9, 10-14.9, 15-29.9, and ≥30 g/day of alcohol, respectively"
• Fish oil could help protect alcohol abusers from dementia - Science Daily, 9/8/13 - "pooled the results of 143 studies, found that moderate social drinking may reduce the risk of dementia and cognitive impairment. (Moderate drinking is defined as a maximum of two drinks per day for men and 1 drink per day for women.) ... exposed cultures of adult rat brain cells to amounts of alcohol equivalent to more than four times the legal limit for driving. These cell cultures were compared with cultures of brain cells exposed to the same high levels of alcohol, plus a compound found in fish oil called omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Researchers found there was about 90 percent less neuroinflammation and neuronal death in the brain cells exposed to DHA and alcohol than in the cells exposed to alcohol alone" - See Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.
• Alcohol consumption is a leading preventable cause of cancer death in U.S., experts say - Science Daily, 2/18/13 - "alcohol is a major contributor to cancer deaths and years of potential life lost ... reducing alcohol consumption is an important cancer prevention strategy as alcohol is a known carcinogen even when consumed in small quantities"
• Even a drink a day boosts cancer death risk, alcohol study finds - nbcnews.com, 2/14/13 - "consuming just 1.5 drinks a day -- or less -- was associated with up to 35 percent of those cancer deaths, suggesting that any alcohol use carries some risk ... Breast cancer accounted for most alcohol-related cancer deaths in women, about 15 percent of all breast cancer deaths ... studies that show benefits from moderate alcohol use are potentially flawed because they compare non-drinkers and drinkers, who may be healthy -- or not -- for other reasons than alcohol use. Non-drinkers may abstain because of existing health problems, for instance, while moderate drinkers might have other factors, such as education, wealth and lifestyle choices that boost their health independent of alcohol. Besides, there’s never been a “gold standard” study that addresses the issue"
• Alcohol and a Good Night's Sleep Don't Mix - WebMD, 1/22/13 - "alcohol does not improve sleep quality. According to the findings, alcohol does allow healthy people to fall asleep quicker and sleep more deeply for a while, but it reduces rapid eye movement (REM) sleep ... the more you drink before bed, the more pronounced these effects. REM sleep happens about 90 minutes after we fall asleep. It's the stage of sleep when people dream, and it's thought to be restorative. Disruptions in REM sleep may cause daytime drowsiness, poor concentration, and rob you of needed ZZZs ... overall it is more disruptive to sleep, particularly in the second half of the night"
• Moderate drinking decreases number of new brain cells - Science Daily, 10/24/12 - "The researchers discovered that at this level of intoxication in rats -- comparable to about 3-4 drinks for women and five drinks for men -- the number of nerve cells in the hippocampus of the brain were reduced by nearly 40 percent compared to those in the abstinent group of rodents. The hippocampus is a part of the brain where the new neurons are made and is also known to be necessary for some types of new learning ... This research indicates that social or daily drinking may be more harmful to brain health than what is now believed by the general public"
• Moderate alcohol consumption may increase risk of atrial fibrillation in people with heart disease - Science Daily, 10/1/12 - "Moderate alcohol consumption was measured as one to 14 drinks a week for women and one to 21 drinks a week for men. Binge drinking was classified as five or more drinks a day ... The incidence rate of atrial fibrillation rose to 6.3% of the low intake group, 7.8% in the moderate and 8.3% in the high intake groups"
• Why drinking alcohol is linked to breast cancer - Science Daily, 4/23/12 - "ethanol-treated human mammary cells had an increase in free radical production, oxidative stress and the activation of cellular mechanisms that cause cells to increase their proliferation rate ... So if you are a woman who naturally expresses higher levels of CYP2E1 and you consume alcohol, you would be at a greater risk for developing breast cancer than a woman who expresses lower amounts of CYP2E1"
• Tiny amounts of alcohol dramatically extend a worm's life, but why? - Science Daily, 1/20/12 - "How little ethanol is that? ... The concentrations correspond to a tablespoon of ethanol in a bathtub full of water or the alcohol in one beer diluted into a hundred gallons of water ... The scientists found that when they raised the ethanol level by a factor of 80, it did not increase the life span of the worms"
• No alcohol intake safe during pregnancy, especially first trimester - USATODAY.com, 1/17/12 - "For every one-drink increase in the daily average number of drinks consumed during this stage of pregnancy, there was a 25 percent higher risk for having a smooth ridge between the nose and upper lip; a 22 percent higher chance of having an abnormally thin upper lip; a 12 percent elevated risk of having a smaller-than-normal head; a 16 percent greater risk of reduced birth weight; and an 18 percent higher chance of reduced birth length"
• Low levels of alcohol consumption associated with small increased risk of breast cancer, study finds - Science Daily, 11/1/11 - "Analyses of data indicated that a low level of alcohol consumption (5.0 to 9.9 grams per day, equivalent to 3-6 glasses of wine per week) was modestly but statistically significantly associated with a 15 percent increased risk of breast cancer. In addition, women who consumed at least 30 grams of alcohol daily on average (at least 2 drinks per day) had a 51 percent increased risk of breast cancer compared with women who never consumed alcohol"
• Alcohol Linked to Colorectal Cancer Risk - Medscape, 9/18/11 - "Overall, the dose-risk analysis found a statistically significant 7% increased risk for colorectal cancer for 10 g per day of alcohol intake, which includes light alcohol consumers. According to the researchers, 1 drink is equivalent to 12 g of ethanol" - Note:  My problem with alcohol is that it increases free radicals which has to increase signs of aging like wrinkling.  It does decrease heart disease but it also increases breast cancer, etc.
• Alcohol interferes with the restorative functions of sleep - Science Daily, 8/15/11 - "alcohol interferes with the restorative functions of sleep ... alcohol suppresses the high-frequency power during sleep in a dosage-dependent manner ... Although the first half of sleep after alcohol intake looks good on the EEG, the result of the assessment regarding the autonomic nerve system shows that drinking leads to insomnia rather than good sleep ... More specifically, as alcohol consumption increased, the heart rate increased and the spectral power of HRV measured at each frequency range decreased. Also, the low-frequency/high-frequency ratio that is considered an index of the balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems was increased"
• Unhealthy lifestyle is associated with sexual dysfunction - Science Daily, 7/6/11 - "A new study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine reveals that several unhealthy lifestyle factors, such as weight problems, physical inactivity, high alcohol consumption, tobacco smoking, and hard drugs are associated with sexual dysfunctions in men. Additionally, an unhealthy lifestyle is more common in persons who are sexually inactive ... Among those who had a sexual partner, risk of experiencing sexual dysfunction was greater in men who lead unhealthy lives by 71% in those with substantially increased waist circumference and more than 800% in men using hard drugs. Women who used hashish had almost 3 times increased risk of anorgasmia (difficulties or inability to reach climax during sexual activity with a partner) compared to non-users"
• Drinking alcohol in moderation protects against heart disease, meta-analysis finds - Science Daily, 2/22/11
• Chronic drinking increases levels of stress hormones, leading to neurotoxicity - Science Daily, 9/7/10 - "Both drinking and withdrawal from chronic drinking can raise circulating glucocorticoid levels, known as cortisol in humans and corticosterone in rodents. Prolonged and high concentrations of glucocorticoids can have damaging effects on neuronal function and cognition"
• Moderate drinking, especially wine, associated with better cognitive function - Science Daily, 8/18/10
• Alcohol consumption lowers risk of developing several arthritic conditions, study finds - Science Daily, 6/16/10 - "Alcohol consumption is associated with a significantly reduced risk of developing several arthritic conditions including Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Osteoarthritis (OA), reactive arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and spondylarthropathy ... alcohol consumption was associated with a significantly lower risk of developing RA (Odds Ratio (OR) 0.27 (0.22-0.34), Osteoarthritis (OR 0.31, (0.16-0.62), spondylarthropathy (OR 0.34, 0.17-0.67), psoriatic arthritis (OR 0.38, 0.23-0.62), and reactive arthritis (OR 0.27, 0.14-0.52)"
• Supplement may prevent alcohol-related brain, skull defects - Science Daily, 5/27/10 - "The dietary supplement CDP-choline, sold as a brain-boosting agent and under study for stroke and traumatic brain injury, may block skull and brain damage that can result from alcohol consumption early in pregnancy ... 25 percent of mouse embryos exposed to alcohol during that critical period had defects in the fibrous joints that connect the skull ... When they added ceramide-neutralizing CDP-choline to the mouse cells, cell death and ceramide levels were reduced" - See citicholine at Amazon.com.
• Alcohol consumption may protect against risk of Alzheimer's disease, particularly in female nonsmokers, study finds 0 Science Daily, 5/24/10
• Excessive alcohol consumption may lead to increased cancer risk - Science Daily, 4/21/10 - "Researchers have detected a link between alcohol consumption, cancer and aging that starts at the cellular level with telomere shortening ... Telomeres are found at the region of DNA sequences at the end of a chromosome, and are important for the genetic stability of cells. As people age, telomere length shortens progressively ... Since telomere shortening is thought to increase cancer risk, the researchers speculated that those with shorter telomeres due to heavy alcohol consumption would have an increased risk of cancer ... telomere length was dramatically shortened in those who consumed heavy amounts of alcohol; telomere length was nearly half as long as telomere length in the non-abusers (0.41 vs. 0.79 relative units)"
• Alcohol May Reduce Men's Heart Risk - WebMD, 11/18/09 - "Drinking any type of alcohol lowered the risk of serious heart disease in men, with the amount of risk reduction associated with the amount of alcohol: ... Light drinking reduced risk by 35% ... Moderate drinking reduced risk by 51% ... High and very high levels of drinking reduced risk by 54% and 50% ... Light drinking was up to 5 grams a day -- or about one glass of wine, one and one-half beers, or less than a half glass of hard liquor ... Moderate drinking was 5 to 30 grams a day, or about two glasses of wine, two or three beers, or a half to one glass of hard liquor ... High and very high levels of drinking were 30 to 90 grams a day, or about five or more glasses of wine, seven or more beers, and one to one and a half glasses or more of hard liquor"
• Link Between Alcohol And Cancer Explained: Alcohol Activates Cellular Changes That Make Tumor Cells Spread - Science Daily, 10/26/09
• Even Low Alcohol Consumption Has A Negative Impact On Overall Health, Researchers Argue - Science Daily, 10/22/09
• 'Beneficial' Effects Of Alcohol? - Science Daily, 10/14/09 - "During a follow-up time of six and a half years, the researchers found that participants consuming moderate levels of alcohol had the lowest incidence of mobility limitation and disability. After adjusting for demographic characteristics, moderate alcohol intake was still associated with reduced risk compared to never or occasional consumption, but adjusting for life-style related variables substantially reduced the strength of the associations. Adjustment for diseases and health status indicators did not affect the strength of the associations, which led the authors to conclude that life-style is the most important factor in confounding this relationship ... Globally taken, these results suggest that the reported protective effect of moderate alcohol intake on physical performance may be only apparent, because life-style related characteristics seem to be the real determinant of the reported association, suggesting caution in attributing a direct benefit of moderate alcohol intake on functional ability"
• Heavy Drinkers Face Significantly Increased Cancer Risk - Science Daily, 8/3/09
• Regular Moderate Alcohol Intake Has Cognitive Benefits In Older Adults - Science Daily, 7/13/09
• Study: Alcohol Tied to Nearly 1 in 25 Deaths - WebMD, 6/25/09
• Alcohol And Smoking Are Key Causes For Bowel Cancer - Science Daily, 6/2/09 - "people who consume the largest quantities of alcohol (equivalent to > 7 drinks per week) have 60% greater risk of developing the cancer, compared with non-drinkers ... Smoking, obesity and diabetes were also associated with a 20% greater risk of developing bowel cancer - the same risk linked with consuming high intakes of red and processed meat"
• Half A Glass Of Wine A Day May Boost Life Expectancy By Five Years - Science Daily, 4/29/09 - "light long term alcohol consumption of all types—up to 20 g a day— extended life by around two extra years compared with no alcohol at all. Extended life expectancy was slightly less for those who drank more than 20 g ... men who drank only wine, and less than half a glass of it a day, lived around 2.5 years longer than those who drank beer and spirits, and almost five years longer than those who drank no alcohol at all"
• Two Or More Drinks A Day May Increase Pancreatic Cancer Risk - Science Daily, 3/3/09 - "If individuals consumed 30 or more grams of alcohol per day (approximately two drinks), compared with no alcohol per day, their risk of pancreatic cancer was slightly increased, researchers said. A drink is defined as 12 ounces of beer, four ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof distilled liquor"
• Moderate Alcohol Intake Associated With Bone Protection - Science Daily, 3/3/09 - "In an epidemiological study of men and post-menopausal women primarily over 60 years of age, regular moderate alcohol intake was associated with greater bone mineral density (BMD). Researchers at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University found associations were strongest for beer and wine and, importantly, BMD was significantly lower in men drinking more than two servings of liquor per day"
• Iron Overload: An Important Co-factor In The Development Of Liver Disease In Alcoholics - Science Daily, 2/24/09 - "A high prevalence of iron overload was found in alcoholics, which appeared to be related to the development of liver disease [odds ration for having liver disease in alcoholics with transferrin saturation greater than 45% was 2.2 (95% CI 1.37-3.54)]"
• Million Women Study Shows Even Moderate Alcohol Consumption Associated With Increased Cancer Risk - Science Daily, 2/24/09 - "Low to moderate alcohol consumption among women is associated with a statistically significant increase in cancer risk and may account for nearly 13 percent of the cancers of the breast, liver, rectum, and upper aero-digestive tract combined"
• Zinc Supplements During Pregnancy May Counteract Damage From Early Alcohol Exposure - Science Daily, 2/2/09 - "Animal research has shown that binge drinking – even just once – during early pregnancy can cause numerous problems for the fetus, including early postnatal death. Fetal zinc deficiency may explain some of the birth defects and neurodevelopmental abnormalities associated with alcohol exposure. New rodent findings are the first to show that dietary zinc supplements throughout pregnancy can reduce some alcohol-related birth defects"
• Moderate Drinking Can Reduce Risks Of Alzheimer's Dementia And Cognitive Decline - Science Daily, 12/29/08 - "Alcohol is a two-edged sword ... Too much is bad. But a little might actually be helpful"
• A Little Wine Boosts Omega-3 In The Body: Novel Mechanism For A Healthier Heart Found - Science Daily, 12/5/08 - "moderate alcohol drinking acts like a 'trigger', boosting the amount of omega-3 fatty acids in our body ... the association was stronger between wine drinking and omega-3 fatty acids levels. This suggests that components of wine other than alcohol is associated with omega-3 fatty acids concentration. We may guess this effect can be ascribed to polyphenols"
• Alcohol Abuse Can Damage The Brain By Decreasing Insulin And Insulin-like Growth Factor Receptors - Science Daily, 6/17/08
• Exhaustive Review of the Literature Reveals Even Moderate Alcohol Intake Increases Risk of Cancer - bu.edu, 5/08 - "Alcohol intake of approximately 2 drinks per day increases the risk of cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx by 75 percent, the risk of esophageal cancer by 50 percent, and the risk of laryngeal cancer by 40 percent" - Complete 194 study.
• Alzheimer's Starts Earlier For Heavy Drinkers, Smokers - Science Daily, 4/16/08 - "the combination of heavy drinking and heavy smoking reduced the age of onset of Alzheimer's disease by six to seven years, making these two factors among the most important preventable risk factors for Alzheimer's disease"
• Alcohol May Raise Breast Cancer Risk - WebMD, 4/14/08 - "Compared with teetotalers, women who drank one to two drinks a day were 32% more likely to develop ER+/PR+ breast cancer. Having three or more drinks daily raised the risk of ER+/PR+ tumors by 51%"
• Moderate Alcohol Consumption In Middle Age Can Lower Cardiac Risk, Study Shows - Science Daily, 3/7/08 - "After 4 years of follow-up, new moderate drinkers had a 38% lower chance of developing cardiovascular disease than did their non-drinking counterparts ... When comparing non-drinkers to wine-only drinkers, drinkers of other types of alcohol, and heavy drinkers, the wine-only drinkers had the most significant reduction in cardiovascular events"
• Staying Active And Drinking Moderately Is The Key To A Long Life, Study Suggests - Science Daily, 1/9/08 - "ischaemic heart disease ... People who drank at least one drink a week and were physically active had a 44-50 per cent lower risk of IHD compared to physically inactive non-drinkers"
• No Need For Reduced Alcohol Consumption In Later Life, Study Suggests - Science Daily, 12/18/07
• A Drink To Healthy Aging - Science Daily, 12/13/07 - "survival rates were lower in women who did not consume alcohol"
• Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol and Conduct Problems: a Clearer Link - Doctor's Guide, 11/5/07
• Energy Drink 'Cocktails' Lead To Increased Injury Risk, Study Shows - Science Daily, 11/4/07
• Drinking Alcohol May Protect Lungs - WebMD, 10/25/07 - "people who drank fewer than two alcoholic drinks per day were 18% less likely to show signs of lung disease than abstainers. Those who drank three to five drinks per day had a 10% lower risk of lung disease, but heavy drinkers who drank more than six drinks per day had a 9% increased risk of lung disease"
• Alcohol Amount, Not Type -- Wine, Beer, Liquor -- Triggers Breast Cancer - Science Daily, 9/27/07 - "women who drank between one and two alcoholic drinks per day increased their risk of breast cancer by 10 percent compared with light drinkers who drank less than one drink a day. The risk of breast cancer increased by 30 percent in women who drank more than three drinks a day"
• Hazards: Heavy Drinking May Raise Risk of Endometrial Cancer - New York Times, 9/18/07 - "Women who have more than two alcoholic drinks a day double their risk of endometrial cancer compared with those who drink less"
• Alcohol and Cardiovascular Health - Medscape, 9/10/07 - "The cumulative scientific evidence demonstrates concordant J-shaped associations between alcohol intake and a variety of adverse health outcomes. These data suggest that alcohol consumption, like exercise, is most cardioprotective when done daily and in moderation.[29] It is tempting, based on the current wealth of evidence, to recommend small daily doses of alcohol (e.g., 1 drink per day) to nondrinkers with or at high risk for CV disease. Guidelines for sensible drinking developed in the United Kingdom state, "Middle-aged or elderly men and postmenopausal women who drink infrequently or not at all may wish to consider the possibility that light drinking may benefit their health".[42] We occasionally make this recommendation to patients well known to us who have no personal or family history of substance abuse, have no history of depression or bipolar disorder, and are nonsmokers. However, light to moderate drinking cannot be universally recommended to the general public or even patients with CV disease"
• Frequent Alcohol Consumption Increases Cancer Risk In Older Women - Science Daily, 9/7/07
• Increased Alcohol Intake Associated With Decreased Risk Of Developing Rheumatoid Arthritis - Science Daily, 6/15/07 - "An increased alcohol (ethanol) consumption of three or more units per week was associated with a decreased risk of developing RA (odds ratio 0.5, 95%; confidence interval 0.4 -- 0.7)"
• Moderate Alcohol Use May Slow Progression to Dementia - Medscape, 5/21/07 - "Moderate drinkers with MCI who consumed 1 or fewer drink per day of wine had a significantly lower rate of progression to dementia than did abstainers (HR, 0.15"
• Alcohol May Help Prevent Kidney Cancer - WebMD, 5/15/07 - "people who reported moderate alcohol consumption were 28% less likely to be diagnosed with kidney cancer ... Moderate drinkers consumed at least 15 grams of alcohol per day. That's a little more than one daily drink"
• Drinking Heavy Amounts Of Alcohol Shrinks Your Brain - Science Daily, 5/2/07
• Why Alcohol Consumption Increases Breast Cancer Risk, New Animal Study - Science Daily, 4/29/07
• Alcohol 'makes fruit healthier' - BBC News, 4/20/07 - "having them with alcohol, such as in a daiquiri, boosts these antioxidant properties"
• Alcohol May Lower Heart Attack Risk - WebMD, 1/2/06
• Alcohol 'may prevent arthritis' - BBC News, 12/19/06 - "mice whose water contained 10% alcohol had a lower risk of rheumatoid arthritis ... alcohol can increase testosterone and increased testosterone may protect against development of rheumatoid arthritis"
• Drink up for a longer life - MSNBC, 12/12/06
• Moderate Drinking May Help Male Heart - WebMD, 10/23/06 - "men who reported drinking half a drink to two drinks daily were least likely to have had heart attacks"
• Light To Moderate Drinking Reduces Risk Of Cardiac Events, Death - Science Daily, 7/25/06 - "Older adults who consume one to seven alcoholic beverages a week may live longer ... Compared with never or occasional drinkers, those who drank lightly to moderately had a 26 percent lower risk of death overall and an almost 30 percent lower risk of cardiac events, even after controlling for inflammatory markers. In contrast, heavy drinkers were more likely to die or experience a cardiac event than never or occasional drinkers"
• Hearty Drinkers Have Healthy Hearts - WebMD, 5/25/06 - "Over nearly six years, men who drank every day cut their risk of heart disease by 41%. Women who drank at least once a week cut their risk of heart disease by 36% or more ... Women who drank the most -- 14 or more drinks per week -- generally had the lowest risk of heart disease: as much as a 73% decrease in risk"
• Moderate Alcohol Consumption Protects Against Colorectal Adenoma - Doctor's Guide, 5/24/06 - "Non-drinkers had a 40% higher risk of adenoma than those in the moderate (1-2 drinks and 2-6 drinks per week) groups. Those drinking 7 or more alcoholic beverages per week had 150% higher risk of adenoma than the moderate groups"
• Moderate Alcohol Use: Brain Booster? - WebMD, 4/6/06
• Equivalent Of 2-4 Drinks Daily Fuels Blood Vessel Growth, Encourages Cancer Tumors In Mice - Science Daily, 4/4/06 - "the tumors of the mice that ingested alcohol ... were nearly twice as heavy compared to the mice that did not have alcohol ..."
• Alcohol Raises Risk of Specific Breast Cancers - WebMD, 11/1/05
• Why Alcohol May Help Hearts - WebMD, 10/13/05 - "Alcohol may lower the risk of heart disease by acting as a blood thinner"
• Study Refutes Heart Health Benefits of Wine - CBS 2 Chicago, 6/16/05
• Regular Alcohol Intake Ups Breast Cancer Risk - WebMD, 5/16/05 - "Women who drank a glass or two a day faced a 21% increased risk of breast cancer ... Those who drank more than two drinks a day were 37% more likely to develop breast cancer ... the risk was much greater in menopausal women"
• Both Beer, Red Wine Raise Blood Pressure - WebMD, 4/18/05 - "Compared with the men who did not drink any alcohol, the red wine drinkers had a nearly a 2.5 point jump in their systolic blood pressure. Beer drinkers' blood pressure rose nearly two points"
• After Dinner Drink Proves Beneficial To Postmenopausal Women - Science Daily, 4/1/05
• One Or Two Drinks A Day May Be Better For Women Than None - Science Daily, 3/29/05 - "women who never drink alcohol are in poorer health than those who have up to two drinks a day ... drinking three or more drinks a day tips the health scales the other way"
• Drinking Alcohol Increases Risk For Cancer - Science Daily, 2/1/05 - "Moderate alcohol drinking, less than 25 grams per day, has a favorable role on cardiovascular disease risk ... "[However] it is associated with increased risk of cancers of the upper digestive tract and larynx, and also of the intestines, liver, and breast"
• One Drink Daily May Drop Risk of Mental Decline - WebMD, 1/19/05
• Alcohol May Fuel Cancer Tumor Growth - WebMD, 12/10/04
• Heavy, Lifetime Alcohol Users May Be Toasting Metabolic Syndrome - Science Daily, 11/18/04 - "drinkers in the highest category of intensity have a 60 percent greater risk of developing metabolic syndrome than those in the lowest category ... The highest quartile category of intensity represented females who consumed an average of four drinks per drinking day and males who consumed an average of six drinks per drinking day"
• Alcohol May Raise Risk of Irregular Heartbeat - WebMD, 10/11/04
• Alcohol May Fight Heart Attack Damage - WebMD, 9/3/04
• Drinking and Dementia: Is There a Link? - WebMD, 9/3/04 - "Drinking alcohol in middle age may increase the risk of late-life dementia in people who are genetically predisposed to develop Alzheimer's disease"
• Moderate Drinking Won't Hurt Most People - WebMD, 6/14/04
• Moderate Alcohol May Improve Diabetes - WebMD, 6/1/04 - "alcohol improves the body's resistance to insulin -- the hallmark of type 2 diabetes ... the evidence from large-population studies is fairly consistent and shows a reduction in risk of 30% to 40% associated with moderate drinking"
• Consumption of Beer and Spirits Strongly Associated With Increased Risk of Gout in Men - Doctor's Guide, 4/15/04
• Beer, Spirits Increase Gout Risk - WebMD, 4/15/04
• Heavy Social Drinking Damages Brain - WebMD, 4/15/04
• Cancel Happy Hour: Alcohol Shrinks Brain - WebMD, 12/5/03
• Alcohol May Increase Breast Cancer Risk - WebMD, 11/18/03
• Heavy Alcohol Use Linked to Colon Cancer - Doctor's Guide, 10/22/03 - "Individuals who drink nine or more drinks made with distilled spirits a week for 10 years or more are about three times more likely to develop significant left-sided colorectal pathology than teetotalers"
• Moderate Drinking May Curb Diabetes Risk - WebMD, 10/8/03
• Light Drinking May Cut Diabetes Risk - Intelihealth, 6/10/03 - "women who had about half a drink to two drinks a day were 58 percent less likely than nondrinkers to develop type 2 diabetes ... those who had more than two drinks of hard liquor a day faced more than double the risk of nondrinkers ... Small amounts of alcohol are believed to help the body make better use of insulin"
• Antioxidants May Protect Against Alcohol Damage - Intelihealth, 6/3/03 - "fed rats a liquid diet containing alcohol for six weeks ... They found a 66 percent decrease in the number of new cells in crucial parts of the brain and an increase in cell death of more than 227 percent ... But in rats that also received injections of the antioxidant ebselen, the damage to developing cells did not occur ... The antioxidant ebselen was used because it is known to have protective effects in the liver and digestive tract and has few side effects in humans"
• One Glass of Wine Per Day Improves Arterial Elasticity - Doctor's Guide, 5/15/03 - "Modest alcohol intake was defined as no more than one glass of wine or beer, or less than 30 mL of hard alcohol daily ... All drinkers, particularly wine drinkers, demonstrated increased elasticity in both small and large arteries, as well as lower heart rates, compared with nondrinkers ... The only negative effect associated with moderate drinking was a slight increase in systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Beer drinkers showed the highest blood-pressure elevations ... moderate wine drinking is associated with higher arterial elasticity, lower pulse rate, and higher stroke volume"
• A Drink a Day Keeps Arteries Healthy - WebMD, 5/15/03 - "moderate drinkers had increased elasticity in both small and large arteries as well as lower heart rates compared with nondrinkers ... Beer drinkers had the highest blood pressure levels, followed by liquor and wine drinkers"
• Alcohol Linked With High Blood Pressure - WebMD, 5/8/03
• Effects Of Alcohol, Lipids And Insulin In Non-Diabetics - Doctor's Guide, 4/3/03 - "In men, increasing alcohol consumption was associated with decreased insulin levels as well as a decline in insulin resistance. However, these effects were not apparent among women ... In men, triglyceride levels and alcohol intake showed a J-shaped relationship. Moderate drinkers, who consumed between 10 and 29 g of alcohol daily, showed the lowest triglyceride levels"
• Insulin Resistance, Alcohol Use Associated With Arterial Stiffness In Type 2 Diabetes - Doctor's Guide, 4/1/03
• One to Six Drinks A Week Associated With Lower Dementia Risk In Older Adults - Doctor's Guide, 3/19/03
• Moderate Alcohol May Prevent Dementia in Older Adults - WebMD, 3/18/03
• Regular Alcohol Consumption Could Lower Cardiovascular Morbidity In Hypertensives - Doctor's Guide, 2/10/03 - "Regular consumption reduces concentrations of serum lipoprotein(a), a powerful predictor of organ damage ... Compared with teetotallers and occasional drinkers, however, median lipoprotein(a) concentrations were 21% lower in light drinkers (those consuming up to 20 grams of ethanol daily), 26% lower in moderate drinkers (21-50 grams daily) and 57% lower in heavy drinkers (over 50 grams daily)"
• Moderate Drinking Decreases Stroke Risk - WebMD, 2/6/03
• What do you think of this new study that shows that drinking any kind of alcohol lowers the risk of heart attack? - Dr. Weil, 1/17/03
• More Booze, Fewer Heart Attacks? - WebMD, 1/8/02 - "men who drank alcohol three to four times or more per week were about 30-40% less likely to have a heart attack during the 12-year period, compared with men who drank less than once a week ... the type of alcohol beverage didn't matter -- beer, wine, or liquor -- they all provided some protection against heart disease, although the strongest association for the reduced risk was with beer and liquor"
• Study finds alcohol may lessen inflammation - USA Today, 11/17/02 - "alcohol exerted the greatest benefit in those with the highest levels of a chemical called C-reactive protein, CRP, which builds up when arteries become inflamed. Some researchers now believe that CRP itself may be a previously unrecognized cause of heart disease ... Although LDL has long been considered the best measure of heart attack risk, about half of people who have heart attacks don't have high cholesterol ... "I think this is a fundamental shift in our thinking about (artery) disease""
• Alcohol Can Help Women's Hearts Too - WebMD, 9/16/02 - "10 men aged 45-64 and nine women aged 49-62 drank either regular beer or non-alcoholic beer for three weeks ... After 10 days of drinking alcohol, HDL cholesterol levels rose by an average of nearly 7% for both men and women ... Previous research suggests that a 1% increase in HDL cholesterol is linked to a 2% reduction in the risk of heart disease"
• Moderate Alcohol Consumption May Increase Atherosclerosis Risk In Diabetics - Doctor's Guide, 8/7/02
• Light Drinking Offers Atherosclerosis Protection In Type 2 Diabetes - Doctor's Guide, 7/10/02
• Beer, Wine, Liquor -- The New Health Drinks? - WebMD, 6/14/02
• Moderate Drinking Increases Insulin Sensitivity In Non-Diabetic, Older Women - Doctor's Guide, 5/16/02 - "Moderate alcohol consumption reduces insulin and triglyceride concentrations and increases insulin sensitivity in nondiabetic, postmenopausal women ... the changes they observed may reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in this population of women ... Researchers warn, however, that the alcohol intake significantly increased serum levels of dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate and estrone sulphate, steroid hormones known to be risk factors for breast cancer"
• Alcohol Lowers Diabetes Risk in Women - WebMD, 5/14/02
• Special Harvard Commentary: How Much Alcohol Is Right For You? - Intelihealth, 4/10/02
• A Little Alcohol Keeps Blood Pressure Down - WebMD, 3/11/02
• Should You Drink for Your Health? - Dr. Weil, 3/8/02
• Moderate Alcohol Use Decreases Cardiovascular Risk In Older Women - Doctor's Guide, 3/4/02 - "Moderate alcohol consumption - one or two drinks per day - decreases cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women by up to 13 percent ... Moderate consumption of alcohol decreased low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol, apolipoprotein B and triacylglycerol concentrations and increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol and apolipoprotein A-1 concentrations in postmenopausal women"
• Study Indicates Moderate Drinking Could Ward Off Dementia - Intelihealth, 1/24/02
• Alcohol Helps Guard Against Dementia - WebMD, 1/24/02 - "One to three drinks a day decreased the chance of developing Alzheimer's disease by more than 30%"
• Moderate Alcohol Use By Seniors May Curb Cognitive Impairment - Doctor's Guide, 1/15/02
• Moderate Alcohol Consumption May Protect Against Silent Stroke/White Matter Disease - Doctor's Guide, 9/7/01 - ""Overall, we found that non-drinkers have the most strokes and white matter disease," ... "Light-to-moderate drinkers have fewer strokes and the least amount of white matter disease, but somewhat greater atrophy. Moderately heavy drinkers have the fewest strokes but more white matter disease and the most atrophy." ... much of alcohol's protective effect against strokes is thought to stem from its ability to raise levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), the so-called good cholesterol carrier. In addition, alcohol is known to be a mild blood thinner, so it could offer protection from silent strokes caused by tiny blood clots in the brain ... Brain atrophy and drinking were linked in a dose-dependent manner, suggesting that even low levels of alcohol use may contribute to brain shrinkage"
• Alcohol's effect on the brain a 'mixed' bag - USA Today, 9/6/01 - "Moderate drinking may reduce the risk of certain types of stroke and scarring in the core of elderly people's brains, a study found. But alcohol may also promote shrinkage of the brain — a condition seen in Alzheimer's patients"
• Alcohol Abuse Linked To Illness In Old Age - Intelihealth, 8/15/01
• Moderate beer quaffers have less heart disease risk, study shows - Healthscout, 7/16/01 - "A moderate amount apparently improves the blood's balance of blood fats and reduces its tendency to clot ... To squeeze the best effects from wine, spirits or beer, men should drink between one and three one-ounce servings of alcohol a day -- or three drinks -- while women should consume half that amount. The reason for the disparity isn't body weight, but rather differences in the stomach's capacity to break down alcohol"
• Moderate drinking yields heart protection - USA Today, 4/17/01 - "Compared with abstainers, light drinkers (under seven drinks a week) were about 20% less likely to die and moderate drinkers (seven or more drinks a week) were about 30% less likely to die"
• Studies Suggest If You Have a Bum Ticker, a Little Drink May Not Hurt - WebMD, 4/17/01
• A Drink a Day May Keep the Heart Doc Away (If You Have the Right Gene) - WebMD, 2/21/01
• Men Who Drink Moderately Have a Lower Risk of Diabetes - WebMD, 12/3/00
• Wine May Reduce the Risk of Colon Cancer, Even in Smokers - WebMD, 10/16/00
• Here's to Your Health: Wine vs. Beer, Spirits Which Booze Is Most Beneficial? - WebMD, 9/18/00
• A Drink A Day May Keep Memory OK - WebMD, 8/1/00
• More good news about moderate drinking for men - CNN, 8/1/00
• Study: Moderate drinking protects diabetics from heart disease - CNN, 8/1/00
• Study Examines Red Wine Antioxidant - Intelihealth, 6/30/00
• Alcohol Damages the Teen-age Brain - WebMD, 6/6/00
• Cheers! Moderate Drinking May Help Prevent Blood Clots - WebMD, 4/26/00
• Guidelines for alcohol consumption remain controversial - CNN, 3/1/00
• Researchers: Beer, In Moderation, Is Good For You - Intelihealth, 10/6/99
• Low Dose Red Wine Linked To Fewer GI Disturbances - Doctor's Guide, 9/1/99
• Light drinking may help men avoid sudden cardiac death - CNN, 8/30/99
• Will wine help your heart? - CNN, 7/6/99
• Low-fat diet, not wine, fights heart disease in France - CNN, 5/28/99
• Moderate Drinking May Protect Heart By Improving Insulin Resistance - Doctor's Guide, 6/26/98

Abstracts:

• Association between alcohol consumption and risk of pancreatic cancer: The Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study - Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022 Sep 3 - "When the population was limited to men whose alcohol drinking habit remained unchanged from the baseline survey to the 5-year follow-up survey, a significant association was observed in drinkers with alcohol consumption of 1-299 g/week compared with non/occasional drinkers (multivariable-adjusted HR: 1.73"
• Alcohol consumption and risk of metabolic syndrome: A meta-analysis of prospective studies - Clin Nutr. 2013 Oct 14 - "searched the Pubmed and Embase databases up to May 2013 ... compared with nondrinker, very light drinker was associated with decreased risk of metabolic syndrome [pooled relative risk (RR) 0.86, 95% CI: 0.75-0.99, fixed-effect model] while heavy drinker was associated with increased risk of metabolic syndrome (pooled RR 1.84, 95% CI: 1.34-2.52, fixed-effect model)"
• Alcohol Consumption Before and After Breast Cancer Diagnosis: Associations With Survival From Breast Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, and Other Causes - J Clin Oncol. 2013 Apr 8 - "assessed pre- and postdiagnostic alcohol intake in a cohort of 22,890 women with incident invasive breast cancer who were residents of Wisconsin, Massachusetts, or New Hampshire and diagnosed from 1985 to 2006 at ages 20 to 79 years ... median follow-up of 11.3 years ... Overall alcohol consumption before diagnosis was not associated with disease-specific survival, but we found a suggestion favoring moderate consumption. There was no evidence for an association with postdiagnosis alcohol intake and breast cancer survival. This study, however, does provide support for a benefit of limited alcohol intake for cardiovascular and overall survival in women with breast cancer"
• Long-term alcohol consumption in relation to all-cause and cardiovascular mortality among survivors of myocardial infarction: the Health Professionals Follow-up Study - Eur Heart J. 2012 Mar 27 - "Compared with non-drinkers, the multivariable-adjusted HRs for all-cause mortality were 0.78 (95% CI: 0.62-0.97) for 0.1-9.9 g/day, 0.66 (95% CI: 0.51-0.86) for 10.0-29.9 g/day, and 0.87 (95% CI: 0.61-1.25) for ≥30 g/day (P(quadratic)= 0.006). For cardiovascular mortality, the corresponding HRs were 0.74 (95% CI: 0.54-1.02), 0.58 (95% CI: 0.39-0.84), and 0.98 (95% CI: 0.60-1.60)" - Note:  It may help you live longer via more efficient circulation but I'm not going to believe that it doesn't increase cell damage and make you look older at the same time.
• Shortened telomeres in individuals with abuse in alcohol consumption - Int J Cancer. 2011 Feb 23 - "Alcohol abuse leads to earlier onset of aging-related diseases, including cancer at multiple sites. Shorter telomere length (TL) in peripheral blood leucocytes (PBLs), a marker of biological aging, has been associated with alcohol-related cancer risks ... To investigated the effect of alcohol abuse on PBL TL and its interaction with alcohol metabolic genotypes, we examined 200 drunk-driving traffic offenders diagnosed as alcohol abusers as per the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [DSM-IV-TR] and enrolled in a probation program, and 257 social drinkers (controls) ... TL was nearly halved in alcohol abusers compared to controls (GMs 0.42 vs. 0.87 relative T/S ratio; P<0.0001) and decreased in relation with increasing drink-units/day (P-trend=0.003). Individuals drinking >4 drink-units/day had substantially shorter TL than those drinking ≤4 drink-units/day (GMs 0.48 vs. 0.61 T/S, P=0.002). Carriers of the common ADH1B*1/*1 (rs1229984) genotype were more likely to be abusers (P=0.008), reported higher drink-units/day (P=0.0003), and exhibited shorter TL (P<0.0001). The rs698 ADH1C and rs671 ALDH2 polymorphisms were not associated with TL. The decrease in PBL-TL modulated by the alcohol metabolic genotype ADH1B*1/*1 may represent a novel mechanism potentially related to alcohol carcinogenesis in alcohol abusers"
• Association between alcohol consumption and carotid intima-media thickness in a healthy population: data of the STRATEGY study (Stress, Atherosclerosis and ECG Study) - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jul 28 - "The mean IMT was significantly higher in men with an alcohol intake above the upper limit of 20 g/day than in men with an alcohol intake <20 g/day (P<0.001). According to a stepwise linear regression model adjusted for age, conventional risk factors, nutrition and physical activity, the IMT increases by 0.0253 mm per 21.4 g/day intake of alcohol in men (P<0.05).Conclusions: The STRATEGY study revealed a positive association between alcohol consumption and carotid IMT in healthy men aged 30-70 years. This relationship remained significant after adjustment for nutrition, physical activity, anthropometry and conventional cardiovascular risk factors"
• The impact of alcohol consumption on the risk of cancer among men: A 20-year follow-up study from Finland - Eur J Cancer. 2010 May 3 - "About 6.7% of the cancer cases in this cohort were due to alcohol consumption"
• Alcohol consumption as a risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline: meta-analysis of prospective studies - Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2009 Jul;17(7):542-55 - "Alzheimer disease (AD) ... vascular dementia (VaD) ... The pooled relative risks (RRs) of AD, VaD, and Any dementia for light to moderate drinkers compared with nondrinkers were 0.72 (95% CI = 0.61-0.86), 0.75 (95% CI = 0.57-0.98), and 0.74 (95% CI = 0.61-0.91), respectively. When the more generally classified "drinkers," were compared with "nondrinkers," they had a reduced risk of AD (RR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.47-0.94) and Any dementia (RR = 0.53, 95% CI = 0.53-0.82) but not cognitive decline. There were not enough data to examine VaD risk among "drinkers." Those classified as heavy drinkers did not have an increased risk of Any dementia compared with nondrinkers, but this may reflect sampling bias. Our results suggest that alcohol drinkers in late life have reduced risk of dementia. It is unclear whether this reflects selection effects in cohort studies commencing in late life, a protective effect of alcohol consumption throughout adulthood, or a specific benefit of alcohol in late life"
• Long-term Alcohol Consumption and Risk of Endometrial Cancer Incidence: A Prospective Cohort Study - Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2009 Jan;18(1):355-8 - "During a mean follow-up of 17.6 years, 687 endometrial cancer cases were identified in the Swedish cancer registries. We found no association between alcohol consumption and endometrial cancer risk after adjustment for age, body mass index, and smoking"
• Brain Atrophy in Alcoholics: Relationship with Alcohol Intake; Liver Disease; Nutritional Status, and Inflammation - Alcohol Alcohol. 2007 Sep 11 - "Brain atrophy is frequently observed in alcoholics, but relationships with liver function, cytokines, nutritional status, and hormone levels are poor"
• Moderate alcohol consumption in older adults is associated with better cognition and well-being than abstinence - Age Ageing. 2007 Mar 12 - "in middle-aged and older men and women, moderate levels of alcohol consumption are associated with better cognitive health than abstinence"
• Shaken, not stirred: bioanalytical study of the antioxidant activities of martinis - BMJ, 12/18/99