Hitting the bottle can take years off your life

REGULARLY drinking more than recommended limits is as bad for health as smoking, research has found.

Experts estimate a 40-yearold drinking two pints of beer or glasses of wine a day above guidelines could die two years early.

A global study, published today in The Lancet, shows it was associated with a higher risk of stroke, fatal aneurysm and heart failure.

The shocking findings challenge the widely held belief that moderate drinking is beneficial to heart health.

Dr Angela Wood, from the University of Cambridge and lead author of the study, said: “The key message of this research is that, if you already drink alcohol, drinking less may help you live longer and lower your risk of several cardiovascular conditions.

“Alcohol consumption is associated with a slightly lower risk of non-fatal heart attacks but this must be balanced against the higher risk associated with other serious – and potentially fatal – cardiovascular diseases.” The study compared the health of 600,000 current drinkers from 19 countries. None had a known history of cardiovascular disease.

They said recommended alcohol limits should be lowered to around 12.5 units – equal to five glasses of wine or pints of beer – a week. The recommended limit in the UK is 14 units a week.

Indulging in 10 or more drinks above the limit was linked with between one and two years shorter life expectancy, while 18 drinks or more was linked with between four and five years shorter life expectancy.

Updated advice from the UK’s chief medical officer said it is safest for men and women not to drink more than 14 units a week – equal to six pints of beer or six glasses of wine.

Professor David Spiegelhalter, of the University of Cambridge, said: “This is a very impressive study. It estimates that, compared to those who only drink a little, people who drink at the current UK guidelines suffer no overall harm in terms of death rates, and have 20 per cent fewer heart attacks.

“But above two units a day, the death rates climb. The paper estimates a 40-year-old drinking four units a day above the guidelines has roughly two years lower life expectancy, which is around a 20th of their remaining life.”