Study: ‘Moderate’ drinkers age ‘healthiest’

A study from the American Society of Human Genetics has found that those consuming one or two drinks per day show the “healthiest” ageing patterns.

Researchers from the University of Iowa used DNA records to calculate the biological age of smokers and drinkers, compared to their actual age.

Surprise results indicated that participants who consumed one or two alcoholic drinks per day correlated with the healthiest ageing patterns – more so than those who didn’t drink at all.

Participants with very low and very high alcohol consumption showed signs of accelerated ageing, and all smokers, regardless of consumption level, showed “significantly” accelerated ageing patterns.

“We want to study how the intensity of current tobacco and alcohol use and cumulative levels of use throughout a lifetime affect methylation [a molecular modification to DNA], including what happens when a person quits smoking or drinking,” Meeshanthini Dogan, a researcher at the University of Iowa, said in a statement.

“By clarifying at what point the epigenetic changes become tougher to stop or reverse, we can inform decisions about how best to use the limited public health resources we have.”

Co-author Robert A. Philibert added:“Being able to objectively identify future smokers and heavy alcohol users when they are young, before major health issues arise, can help providers and public health practitioners prevent future problems, improve quality of life, and reduce later medical costs.”

The researchers’ say the next step is to unravel the details of how methylation patterns change in response to lifestyle changes during the life course, so that their assessments can be more informative.

In January, a study published in the European Heart Journal found that moderate drinking may reduce heart failure.