A Drink at Dinner Time Isn't a Bad Idea . . .

Summarized by Robert W. Griffith, MD
March 11, 2005

Introduction

Alcohol can be responsible for increasing the risk for cancer of the liver, esophagus (gullet), throat, and larynx (voice box). It can also cause cirrhosis of the liver, disorders of the immune system, brain damage, injury to the unborn fetus, and death or injury from auto or work accidents. However, as we've said before, the dose determines if something's a poison or a 'medicine'. And alcohol, in limited doses, can have measurable benefits, the most obvious of which is a decrease in the risk of coronary heart disease. Now there's news of a study that examines the benefits of moderate alcohol consumption over a long period on mental functioning in women. It's been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and we summarize it here.

What was done

Boston scientists analyzed mental functioning ('cognitive function') in over 12,000 participants from the Nurses Health Study. Starting in 1995, study participants who were 70 or older had their mental status evaluated, using tests of memory, verbal fluency, and general mental skills. These tests, which were conducted by telephone, were repeated every two years.

Food questionnaires used in the study collected information on alcohol use, allowing the subjects to be classified into groups: non-drinkers, moderate drinkers (1.0 to 14.9 grams of alcohol a day, equivalent to up to 1 drink a day), and higher-level drinkers (15 to 30 grams daily).

Women who changed their categories of alcohol intake from one test period to the next and those who were taking antidepressants were excluded. This left just over 11,000 women in the final analyses.

What the results showed

Roughly half the women were non-drinkers and half were moderate drinkers, with just 5% consuming higher quantities (15 to 30 grams daily). The moderate drinkers had better scores on the mental tests than the non-drinkers. For 'general cognition', tested with a scale like the Mini-Mental State Examination commonly used for detecting Alzheimer's, the risk of moderate drinkers being mentally impaired was 77% that for non-drinkers. When all the mental tests were combined, the risk of mental impairment for moderate drinkers was 81% of that for non-drinkers.

In another analysis, the risk of mental abilities declining over a 2-year period was calculated; the risk for moderate drinkers was 85% of that for non-drinkers. And, looking at the findings in another way, it was found that the scores for moderate-drinking women were equivalent to being about a year-and- a-half younger than non-drinkers and drinkers taking over 15 grams of alcohol daily.

These results were consistent across the subgroups of women analyzed, such as different educational level, a history of high blood pressure or diabetes, level of physical activity, BMI, use of vitamins and supplements, and so on. The type of alcohol consumed made no difference to the findings. The results of mental tests for those who used higher alcohol levels (over 30 grams daily) were no different from those of non-drinkers.

What these findings mean

Although previous studies have been done that produce results similar to these, the Nurses Health Study is the largest and most convincing to date. Moderate alcohol use - up to one drink a day for women and older people (equal to two drinks a day for men) had a decrease in the risk of mental impairment of about 20%. A standard drink is one 12-ounce bottle or can of either beer or wine cooler, one 5-ounce glass of wine, or 1½ ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits.

For most people who drink, alcohol is a pleasant accompaniment to social activities. It's important to keep it that way - any benefits to the brain or heart are lost if one exceeds an average of one drink a day for women, or two drinks a day for men. And with greater amounts, the serious deleterious effects of alcohol begin to kick in. As we've said earlier, it's the dose that makes the poison.

Source

• Effects of moderate alcohol consumption on cognitive function in women. MJ. Stampfer, J. Hee Kang, J. Chen,  et al., N Engl J Med, 2005, vol. 352, pp. 245--253

Related Links
Regular Alcohol Intake Cuts the Heart Attack Risk
Alcoholic Beverages: Health Benefit or Liability?
When Is Alcohol a Problem?
How To Drink Less

Please take a moment to give us your comments. For questions about Health matters you may check our "Questions & Answers" Portal and Service.