Health issues

Cheers! Moderate drinking not harmful for over-65s with heart failure

Dec 30, 2018

A glass of wine every now and then could help those who are diagnosed with heart failure later in life. Source: Getty

A glass of wine every now and then could prove beneficial for those who are diagnosed with heart failure later in life.

A new study has revealed moderate drinking is completely okay and could actually help people who develop the condition after the age of 65.

It may sound too good to be true but researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis found there is a survival benefit for moderate drinkers compared to those who abstained from alcohol.

In fact one serving of alcohol per day for women and two for men will cause no harm to over 65s with heart failure. Through thorough research scientists discovered a link between moderate drinking and longer survival times. However, there is no evidence to suggest those that don’t drink normally will benefit from including alcohol in their daily diet.

“My patients who are newly diagnosed with heart failure often ask me if they should stop having that glass of wine every night, and until now I didn’t have a good answer,” senior author and cardiologist David L Brown explained.

“We have long known that the toxic effects of excessive drinking can contribute to heart failure. In contrast, we have data showing that healthy people who drink moderately seem to have some protection from heart failure over the long term, compared with people who don’t drink at all.”

As part of the study researchers divided 5,888 adult participants into four categories: people who never drank, people who drank in the past and stopped, people who had seven or fewer drinks per week, and people who had eight or more drinks per week.

Scientists found a link between consuming seven or fewer drinks per week and an extended survival of around one year, compared to the non-drinkers.

Despite the results, Brown claimed people who develop heart failure at an older age and never drank shouldn’t start drinking.

“But our study suggests people who have had a daily drink or two before their diagnosis of heart failure can continue to do so without concern that it’s causing harm. Even so, that decision should always be made in consultation with their doctors,” he said.