Young at risk of stroke on just one drink a day

YOUNG adults who have just one drink a day could raise their risk of a stroke by a fifth, experts have warned.

People in their 20s and 30s who drink moderate to heavy amounts of alcohol may be more likely to suffer a stroke than those who drink low or no amounts, research suggests.

A team from Seoul National University analysed records from a Korean national database for young adults who had four annual health exams and were asked about their alcohol consumption.

Those who drank 105g or more of alcohol per week – the same as 13 UK units – were considered moderate or heavy drinkers.

This is the equivalent of nearly six pints of medium-strength beer, eight small glasses of wine or around nine large shots of spirits – roughly one drink a day. Out of the 1.5million participants, a total of 3,153 had a stroke during the study period of six years.

Analysis revealed those who were moderate to heavy drinkers for two or more years were about 20 per cent more likely to have a stroke than people who drank less or nothing at all.

As the number of years of moderate to heavy drinking increased, so did the risk of stroke. People with two years of moderate to heavy drinking had a 19 per cent increased risk, people with three years had a 22 per cent increased risk and people with four years had a 23 per cent increased risk.

The association was mainly due to an increased risk of haemorrhagic stroke – or stroke caused by bleeding in the brain.

These results were after researchers accounted for other factors that could affect the risk of stroke, such as high blood pressure, smoking and body mass index.

Study author Eue-Keun Choi said: ‘The rate of stroke among young adults has been increasing over the last few decades. Since more than 90 per cent of the burden of stroke overall can be attributed to potentially modifiable risk factors, including alcohol consumption, and since stroke in young adults severely impacts both the individual and society by limiting their activities during their most productive years, reducing alcohol consumption should be emphasized in young adults with heavy drinking habits.’

British charity Stroke says that one in five people who have strokes are now under the age of 55. Writing in the journal Neurology, the researchers said high blood pressure and atrial fibrillation were risk factors for stroke and both conditions can be triggered by excess drinking.

They added that their study was limited by only including Korean people, meaning the risk may not transfer to other ethnicities.

In the UK, it is recommended that adults should not regularly drink more than 14 units of alcohol per week.