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You really CAN drink away your pain: Scientists say moderate drinking ‘could be really beneficial’
- One to seven alcoholic drinks per week can reduce inflammation in the body
- Researchers noted that alcohol is responsible for ‘substantial illness’ worldwide
It has long been claimed that you can simply drink your pain away. And a new study suggests the old adage actually holds true.
People who consume “low to moderate” amounts of alcohol each week experience lower levels of inflammation — a leading cause of aches and pains.
Seven glasses of wine or pints of beer a week seems to hit the spot, the researchers found.
Experts think booze may work by relieving people of stress, which is known to be a major driver of inflammation.
The team behind the discovery acknowledged that alcohol is responsible for “substantial illness” around the world.
Researchers in the UK and Australia noted that while alcohol is responsible for “substantial disease” around the world, their findings suggest it “may in fact be beneficial” for inflammation
Still, they said findings suggest that booze, in smaller amounts, “may actually be beneficial” for fighting inflammation.
The NHS recommends Britons drink no more than 14 units a week, about six pints of beer or 10 small glasses of wine, and spread drinking over three or more days.
Drink beyond this increases blood pressure and cholesterol for years, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. It is also associated with liver disease, cancer and brain damage.
Experts from the universities of Cambridge and Sydney analyzed data from 3,101 Britons.
All had reported their alcohol consumption between the ages of 34 and 42, the age at which crippling back pain tends to start.
Participants also had a blood test, when they were 46 years old, to check levels of the C-reactive protein – a marker of inflammation in the body.
High levels are a sign of inflammation in blood vessels, tissues and organs and a hallmark of musculoskeletal disorders, such as arthritis and back pain.
Inflammation is also a sign of asthma and inflammatory bowel disease and can increase the risk of strokes, heart attacks, cancer, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Alcohol consumption by itself, in excessive amounts, has been shown to increase the risk of inflammation in the body and brain, while long-term drinking in excess has also been linked to high blood pressure, cancer and brain damage.
Results published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence show that the lowest levels of C-reactive protein were in low to moderate drinkers, who drank an average of seven drinks per week, compared to non-drinkers and those who drank 30 drinks per week.
But they noted that further research was needed to confirm their findings.
Lead study author Rachel Visontay, a researcher at the University of Sydney, said: ‘Harmful drinking is responsible for significant disease worldwide.
“However, some research suggests that, compared to abstinence, lower levels of drinking may actually be beneficial when it comes to inflammation.”