No amount of alcohol is good for you, new report shows

A new study has challenged the widespread notion that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol can decrease the risk of heart disease. 

In its latest report, the World Heart Federation indicates that no amount of alcohol is safe for the body and every drop is a step towards cardiovascular disease (CVD).

It has called for urgent action to tackle the rise in alcohol-related deaths and disability worldwide. The report states that the prevalence of CVD has nearly doubled in the last two decades, with more than 500 million cases being reported in 2019 alone.

This also accounts for more than 18.5 million individuals who have died of CVD, making it the leading cause of global mortality and disability, preventable behavioral risk factors play a major role in cadence of CVD, including unhealthy diet, tobacco use, alcohol consumption, and low physical activity.

In 2019, nearly 2.4 million deaths were attributed to alcohol. The report further states that consumption of alcohol, either through years of consumption, acute intoxication or dependence affects human physiology.

“Consumption of alcohol is linked with approximately 230 international Classification of Diseases (ICD) including 40 diseases that would not prevail without alcohol. It is a crucial factor in deaths due to infectious diseases, intentional and unintentional injuries, digestive disease and several non-communicable diseases,” states the report.

Consumption of alcohol

The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that alcohol consumption increases risk of hypertensive heart disease, cardiomyopathy, atrial fibrillation and flutter, and strokes.

Some studies have in the past three decades reported that alcohol prolongs life by reducing CVDs, a case at hand is the red wine that has been promoted through various diets as heart-healthy beverage.

WHF downplays the idea, noting that “the presence of resveratrol in wine has been known for its cardio protective characteristics in light to moderate drinkers. However, there are multiple reasons that the belief that alcohol is good for cardiovascular health is no longer acceptable: Contrary to this belief, evidence from all around the world exists to link alcohol with a range of non-communicable and infectious diseases.”

According to the reports by National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (Nacada), there’s rampant consumption of alcohol even among students.

Nacada ranks Western region as the epicenter of alcohol, where students’ consumption is at 43.3 per cent, followed by Nairobi at 40.9 per cent, with Nyanza at 26.8 per cent. Among the greatest concerns has been the locally brewed chang’aa that is outlawed in the country.

Mr Martin Omondi, 31, from Alego Usonga in Siaya, believes there are still good things about chang’aa.

Impacts of alcohol use

“The hazards that the doctors talk about are meant to scare us. Our grandfathers consumed chang’aa for many years; some of them have lived to hit 90 while the others who preach anti-alcohol messages die early,” he said.

Mr Ishmael Abbas, a pharmacist, underscores the report by the WHF, saying many people neglect advice from the physicians regarding alcohol, which in turn comes to affect them at old age.

“The alcohol, however little, is detrimental to our health. That is the sad fact we can never run away from. Putting medical researches aside, alcohol leads to accidents, fights, thuggery and other things. Alcohol will never add any value to your health,” he said.

The 14-page report, however, points out to the possible remedies that will salvage the society from the abyss of alcohol, noting that all the actors in the industry should uniformly indicate that no level of alcohol is safe, given the evidence.

It states that health ministries in all the countries should implement strict regulatory measures to dissuade direct and indirect impacts of alcohol use and advocate for the adoption of WHO’s safer guidelines in every country.