Here is a piece of good news for the alcohol consumers as far as their health is concerned. A new study has found that the consumption of alcohol in moderate amount can help them in protecting against coronary heart disease. But the researchers stressed that this health benefit is only applicable to the 15 percent of the population that carries a particular genotype.
The study was conducted by the researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy. They studied 618 people living in Sweden having coronary heart disease. They were also compared with a control group of 3,000 healthy subjects.
For the study, the researchers involved 618 patients-453 men and 165 women – who were under the age of 75.
All the subjects were assigned to several categories depending upon their amount of alcohol consumption, i.e. ethanol intake. They were also examined so as to identify a particular genotype (CETP TaqIB) that the scientists said played a good role in the health benefits of alcohol consumption.
Each participant was asked about their amount of intake of various alcoholic beverages. They were then tested for the presence of the CETP genotype.
It was found that at least 209 men and at least 86 women had the first-time acute myocardial infarction or unstable angina.
Professor Dag Thelle and Professor Emeritus at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, said that the protective health effect of moderate drinking is seen only 15 percent of the general population.
Study co-author Professor Lauren Lissner said, “Moderate drinking alone does not have a strong protective effect. Nor does this particular genotype. But the combination of the two appears to significantly reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.”
Meanwhile, the researchers also expressed need for more in-depth research in this field so that benefits of alcohol must come in light.
The study’s findings were detailed online in journal Alcohol.
