If you regularly scroll through your Facebook timeline, you’ve probably come across them: those messages that claim that alcohol has health benefits. A modest glass of red wine would be good for your heart and a glass of gin and tonic would help against hay fever. But alas, new research suggests it’s bogus.
Conflicting studies
case don’t shoot the messenger, but research now shows that moderate alcohol consumption has no health benefits. And that while in recent years we have regularly been shoved under our noses about studies that claim the opposite. For example, in 2016 we cited a study by the University of Alberta that claimed that a glass of wine was equivalent to an hour of exercise. Or Washington State University; the researchers at this university stated that a glass of red wine can help you lose weight, because it can suppress your feeling of hunger. However, according to recent research published on the platform JAMA network, it is not true.
No health benefits
So far, studies have suggested that drinking in moderation can have health benefits. However, the new research claims that’s not true. To reach this conclusion, the researchers analyzed 100 studies involving more than 5 million adults in total. From somewhat older to more recent studies. The researchers corrected limitations from the older studies and concluded that even moderate alcohol consumption can cause problems.
Apparently, the researchers of previous studies drew the wrong conclusion. Researchers did not properly define their criteria for test takers. For example, they did not take into account the other healthy habits of the moderate drinkers. These studies also often required a group of non-drinkers in order to compare the results with those of moderate drinkers. However, the non-drinkers often turned out to be persons who had stopped drinking due to health problems. Comparing this group with moderate drinkers was therefore not too representative.
What it means
Okay, okay, so it has no health benefits. But how much harm can moderate drinking do? The researchers also considered that. The study showed that 25 grams of alcohol per day can lead to trouble. The researchers stated that the risk of premature death then increases significantly. This applies in particular to women.
And how much is 25 grams of alcohol exactly? That equates to being two beers or two glasses. Men are not spared by the way. For them, the risk of premature death increases significantly when they drink more than 45 grams of alcohol per day, which is equivalent to three drinks.
Source: Body and Soul / Image: Helena Lopes (Pexels)