Previous research is false, Dr. Rod Jackson says

Dec 2, 2005 16:02 GMT  ·  By

Although many people think that drinking a glass or two of alcohol a day is good for the heart, a recent study comes to say that the theory is completely false.

The studies published in the 1970s and 1980s have suggested that small to moderate amounts of alcohol can protect against heart disease, and that this benefit outweighs any adverse health effects of light drinking, HealthDay News said .

But apparently all those studies were wrong as Dr. Rod Jackson, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Auckland in New Zealand explains. "All the current research on alcohol and heart disease is from nonrandomized studies, which means it is prone to bias," he said.

Heavier drinking is associated with increased heart disease, "but the adverse effect may be in part to do with heavier drinkers having other 'heavy' behaviors that give them more heart disease," Jackson said. "We probably overestimate the benefits of light-to-moderate drinking on the heart and overestimate the harms of heavier drinking on the heart."

But for those who enjoy alcohol there is some good news as well. Jackson said that despite the fact that it doesn't protect your heart, it doesn't cause any harm either.

"There are probably no levels of drinking that give you any health benefits, but up to one to two drinks per day is not harmful, just neutral," he said.

The conclusion of the study is that people shouldn't drink thinking that alcohol will improve their heart condition, because it is false.

"Don't drink to protect yourself from heart disease risk," Jackson said. "Drink modestly, up to one to two drinks per day maximum, if you enjoy alcohol, but don't kid yourself that it is protecting your heart."