Drinking Alcohol Puts You at Risk for This Dangerous Heart Condition, According to Scientists — Eat This Not That

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By Ghuman

Introduction

Alcohol consumption is a popular pastime for many people, but it can also be dangerous. According to scientists, drinking alcohol can put you at risk for a dangerous heart condition known as atrial fibrillation (AFib). AFib is a type of irregular heartbeat that can lead to stroke, heart failure, and other serious health problems. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce your risk of developing AFib, such as limiting your alcohol intake and eating a healthy diet. In this article, we’ll discuss the risks associated with drinking alcohol and how to reduce your risk of developing AFib. We’ll also provide some tips on what to eat and what to avoid to help keep your heart healthy.

Drinking Alcohol Puts You at Risk for This Dangerous Heart Condition, According to Scientists

A new study published in the journal Circulation has found that drinking alcohol can increase your risk of developing a dangerous heart condition called atrial fibrillation (AFib). AFib is a type of irregular heartbeat that can lead to stroke, heart failure, and other serious health complications.

The study, which was conducted by researchers from the University of Oxford, looked at data from more than 500,000 people in the UK Biobank. They found that people who drank more than 14 units of alcohol per week (the equivalent of about six pints of beer or seven glasses of wine) were more likely to develop AFib than those who drank less.

The researchers also found that the risk of AFib increased with the amount of alcohol consumed. People who drank more than 28 units of alcohol per week (the equivalent of about 12 pints of beer or 14 glasses of wine) were more than twice as likely to develop AFib than those who drank less.

The researchers concluded that drinking alcohol is associated with an increased risk of AFib, and that the risk increases with the amount of alcohol consumed. They also noted that the risk of AFib was highest among people who drank heavily and regularly.

The findings of this study are concerning, as AFib is a serious condition that can lead to stroke, heart failure, and other health complications. If you are a regular drinker, it is important to be aware of the risks associated with drinking alcohol and to take steps to reduce your risk of developing AFib.

One way to reduce your risk is to drink in moderation. The UK Chief Medical Officers recommend that adults should not drink more than 14 units of alcohol per week. It is also important to eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, and not smoke.

It’s no secret that drinking alcohol is associated with a wide range of unpleasant health outcomes, with excessive drinking impacting everything from your liver to your mental health. For most, a little alcohol in moderation won’t do too much damage. However, it turns out that alcohol could be extra dangerous if you’re at risk of atrial fibrillation (AFib), an irregular heartbeat that can lead to a range of dangerous and potentially fatal outcomes. In fact, a new study suggests that drinking alcohol could trigger AFib episodes.

In the study, which was published in the journal JAMA Cardiology, researchers from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) looked at 466 patients who self-reported their supposed AFib triggers. Of all the potential triggers—including caffeine, dehydration, exercise, and lack of sleep—only exposure to alcohol was found to actually increase the risk of an episode.

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“There is now fairly overwhelming evidence from multiple studies that alcohol consumption can increase the risk of both the eventual development of an atrial fibrillation diagnosis, as well as the probability a discrete atrial fibrillation event [i.e. an episode] will occur,” the study’s lead author Gregory Marcus, MD, MAS, professor of Medicine in the Division of Cardiology at UCSF, told Eat This, Not That! in an interview. “The relationship appears to be linear, meaning the more alcohol consumed, the higher the risk of atrial fibrillation.”

Marcus cautioned that the risk probably varies from individual to individual, so while one person could be fine regularly having a couple drinks, someone else may not be. In general, if you want to know if you’re in danger of this common arrhythmia, risk factors include diabetes, European ancestry, high blood pressure, old age, and smoking, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

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“It [the study] is a clever design—the results are credible—and confirms what has been known for decades: that heavy drinking can lead to cardiac arrythmias including atrial fibrillation,” neuropsychopharmacologist professor David Nutt, DM, FRCP, FRCPsych, FSB, FMedSci, and author of Drink?: The New Science of Alcohol and Health, told Eat This, Not That!. “I personally have seen patients where this happens, so people who have a risk of atrial fibrillation should monitor their alcohol intake and moderate it if they find it increases their episodes.”

To learn more about the relationship between your alcohol consumption and your cardiovascular health, check out What Happens to Your Heart When You Drink Alcohol.

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