Caution concerning the possible health benefits of alcohol

February, 2015

A large data set from Health Survey for England 1998-2008 was analyzed to determine the association between alcohol consumption and mortality for different age and gender groups.

Compared with never drinkers, protective associations were largely limited to:

  • men aged 50-64 years who reported consuming 15-20 units on average per week or 0.1-1.5 units on the heaviest day
  • women aged 65 and over who reported consuming 10 units or less on average per week and at all levels of heaviest day use.

Little to no protection was found in other age-sex groups, regardless of consumption level.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-02/bmj-cct020615.php

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