Heavy drinking could lead to high blood pressure- researchers

05/04/05 Chinese men who drink more than 30 alcoholic drinks a week have twice the risk of high blood pressure than those who do not drink, say Tulane University researchers in the April edition of the Journal of Hypertension.

Researchers drew data from 5,317 Chinese men between the ages of 35 and 74 who participated in the InterASIA study. The survey included detailed blood pressure measurements. Participants also answered questions about the number of alcoholic beverages they drank per week.

Nearly one in five Chinese men (17 percent) consumed more than 30 alcoholic drinks a week. Just over half the men in the study reported consuming less than 12 drinks in the past year.

Previous research has indicated that there is a relationship between alcohol consumption and high blood pressure and that reducing alcohol consumption will lower blood pressure. This is the first study to quantify the amount of alcoholic beverages related to marked increases in high blood pressure in three subtypes of hypertension: isolated systolic hypertension, systolic-diastolic hypertension and isolated diastolic hypertension.

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/510888/