Timothy Naimi and the team of professors from the University of Victoria in Canada and the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research analyzed a study suggesting moderate drinking is beneficial to health, identified design flaws in the study, and published their findings in the international journal 'Alcohol and Drug Research Journal' on the 25th.
Multiple studies have shown that moderate drinkers have a lower risk of heart disease and other chronic illnesses compared to non-drinkers, and their lifespan may be extended. Based on this, the common belief that moderate alcohol consumption is beneficial to health has become widespread among people.
The research team analyzed 107 studies examining the relationship between drinking habits and lifespan. A total of approximately 4.83 million people and over 420,000 deaths were included. Simply aggregating the overall data showed that light drinkers had a 14% lower risk of death compared to abstainers who do not drink alcohol. This result supports conventional wisdom.
However, a more detailed analysis revealed that some studies identified fundamental 'design flaws.' The research mainly focused on the elderly, and there was a lack of understanding of why teetotalers do not drink, making it difficult to explain lifelong drinking habits.
For example, moderate drinkers who have already developed various health problems and have quit or reduced drinking were compared to the groups of 'teetotalers' and 'occasional drinkers.' The research team said, "This suggests that people who continue drinking appear to be much healthier."
Some 'high-quality' studies targeting relatively young people under 55 and excluding individuals with a past drinking history from the lifelong abstainer group found no association between moderate drinking and increased lifespan. Conversely, 'low-quality' studies involving older participants that did not distinguish between former drinkers and lifelong abstainers showed that moderate drinking was associated with longer lifespan. The research team stated, "Biased studies can mislead the positive correlation between alcohol consumption and health."
The research team stated, "It seems that the perception of alcohol as a cure-all still remains embedded in the public imagination," and added, "No major health organization has ever set a safe level of alcohol consumption." They further emphasized, "There is no such thing as a safe level of drinking."
<Reference Material>
- doi.org/10.15288/jsad.23-00283
