World Heart Day: What Impact Can a Small Amount Of Alcohol Have On Blood Pressure?

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that drinking alcohol is a risk factor for those who have comorbid conditions like hypertension or obesity. Other risk factors include getting older, living a sedentary lifestyle, and eating a diet high in salt. WHO now believes that there are no safe levels of alcohol intake because mild drinking is also related to cardiovascular risks, according to health professionals.

“A recent study that included 20,000 individuals of different ethnic backgrounds, including those from the United States, came to the conclusion that regular alcohol consumption, even at low doses, can raise systolic blood pressure in both men and women. Regardless of their initial blood pressure readings, this was the case. The journal of the American Heart Association afterwards published the aforementioned study.

“When the analysis was done at averages, it was discovered that 12 grams of alcohol consumption per day resulted in a 1.25 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure, which is by definition even less than a standard drink,” the speaker said. Higher alcohol intake was linked to a considerable rise in systolic blood pressure; for example, 48 grams of alcohol per day caused an average rise of 4.9 mmHg in systolic blood pressure.

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The American Heart Association (AHA) states that for the majority of people, blood pressure is considered normal when the systolic and diastolic readings are both less than 120 mmHg.

Therefore, a person is diagnosed with hypertension if their diastolic readings are greater than 80 mmHg or their systolic readings are at least 130 mmHg.

When patients use alcohol regularly, even if it just amounts to 3–4 drinks per week, their blood pressure may rise, according to Dr. Farah Ingale’s analysis. One of the risk factors for cardiac or heart disease, along with many other things like smoking, diabetes, high cholesterol, and family history, is raised blood pressure. Therefore, high-risk patients should refrain from drinking alcohol in order to maintain stable blood pressure.