whoa182 Posted March 27, 2005 Report Posted March 27, 2005 Youth drinking may hasten heart trouble For young people, drinking even a small amount of alcohol could increase the chances of developing heart disease, according to one of the largest studies to look at alcohol's effects before middle age. The finding contrasts with the widely held view that drinking in moderation - around two drinks per day for men and one for women - can help protect against heart disease. Researchers are confident that this holds true for people who are over about 55 and at risk of heart disease. But they are unclear whether the health benefits of alcohol begin to accrue early in life - or exactly what alcohol is doing in the body to produce its beneficial effects. Using data from an ongoing study on heart disease, epidemiologist Mark Pletcher at the University of California, San Francisco, and his team probed the hearts of more than 3,000 people aged 33-45 years using a CAT scanner. They searched for one of the earliest signs of heart disease - a hardening of the arteries that supply oxygen to the heart itself. They then matched this up with information collected between 1985 and 2001 on how much each person drank Young at heart The finding implies that drinking alcohol early in life does not rack up gradual benefits that will protect drinkers later on. "It suggests there is little to be gained at a young age," says Kenneth Mukamal, who studies alcohol and health at Harvard Medical School in Boston. Instead, it backs the idea that a slug of liquor protects against heart disease in older people in a different way: by having almost immediate effects. It may, for example, cut the risk of a blood clot forming and choking off an artery. The new study also confirms experts' view that binge drinking, defined as more than five drinks at one time, is harmful. Indeed, the researchers found it difficult to tell whether younger people who drank more were harming their arteries because of the total quantity they drank or because they tended to drink in binges Public-health experts already believe that young drinkers gain little by drinking at a young age. Any positive effects on the heart are thought to be outweighed by the increased risk of cancer SOURCE: BBC HEALTH Genes link to alcohol consumption http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/4355981.stm Im 20 years old and I just dont see the point in alcohol or Smoking tbh.. I have fun without it ! I have never got drunk and im 20 years old .. Ive never smoked once in my life either! :) Quote
TeleMad Posted March 27, 2005 Report Posted March 27, 2005 I have never got drunk and im 20 years old .. Ive never smoked once in my life either! Don't drink, don't smoke, what do ya do?Don't drink, don't smoke, what do ya do? Quote
Biochemist Posted March 27, 2005 Report Posted March 27, 2005 Researchers are confident that this holds true for people who are over about 55 and at risk of heart disease. But they are unclear whether the health benefits of alcohol begin to accrue early in life - or exactly what alcohol is doing in the body to produce its beneficial effects.... his team probed the hearts of more than 3,000 people aged 33-45 years....THey searched for one of the earliest signs of heart disease - a hardening of the arteries that supply oxygen to the heart itself....The finding implies that drinking alcohol early in life does not rack up gradual benefits that will protect drinkers later on. "It suggests there is little to be gained at a young age," This is a very general retrospective study. It looks like the text you quoted is from a popular press review of the source study, and is filtered to the point of being nearly meaningless. Alcohol had been shown to reduce the incidence of symptomatic coronary artery disease. OF COURSE it does not have much affect on folks that RARELY get coronary artery disease.Im 20 years old and I just dont see the point in alcohol or Smoking tbh.. I have fun without it 
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