One day you read alcohol is good for your heart. The next day you read its bad for your breasts. The issues are so confusing its enough to drive you to drink! So is it OK to have that nightly cocktail? Ive sorted through research on alcohol and womens health issues to bring you the most up to date conclusions.
Heart Health
There appears to be a consensus that having a nightly glass of wine or an occasional beer can be cardioprotective by lowering your levels of LDL cholesterol (the so-called bad cholesterol) while boosting levels of HDLs (the so-called good cholesterol.) The antioxidants found in alcohol may also help to dilate blood vessels and stop red blood cells from clumping together thus diminishing the risk of having a heart attack or a stroke. Other alcohol antioxidants prevent cholesterol absorption and tumor growth while elevating the amount of heart healthy omega fatty-3 acids in the blood stream. However, drinking too much is toxic to your heart. It causes tissue damage and leads to conditions such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, and stroke.
Cancer
The news regarding cancer and alcohol is not good. A new report from Cancer Research UK which looked at the drinking habits of more than a million women found that even light drinking on a regular basis considerably ups the risk of developing many forms of cancer. By the researchers estimate nearly 15% of breast, liver, rectum, mouth and throat are caused by drinking as little of one drink per day. And, they stressed, the raised cancer risk did not depend on what kind of alcohol was drunk - only the amount. For example, women who drank wine exclusively had a similar risk of developing cancer to those who drank other alcoholic beverages or a mixture of drinks. Scores of additional research investigations seem to support these findings.
