- Two recent preliminary studies using rodents have examined the effects of alcohol on the heart.
- One study looked at how alcohol affects the hearts of women using estrogen replacement therapy, and the other study looked at heavy drinking.
- The first study found that alcohol may cause more heart problems in women taking estrogen replacement therapy.
- The second study showed that excessive alcohol consumption causes heart arrhythmia and found a way to combat this phenomenon.
Although many people associate excessive alcohol consumption with liver problems, it can actually affect the body in many ways. One way alcohol affects the body is by contributing to
Researchers are taking a closer look at what happens to the heart when people drink alcohol, and the two current studies focused on estrogen and heavy drinking, respectively.
Although each study had a different focus, they both showed the harmful effects alcohol can have on heart health.
The researchers who conducted these studies recently presented their findings to the American Heart Association.
None of these studies have yet been peer-reviewed, and the researchers’ results have not yet been published in a scientific journal.
According to
The US government
The guidelines define a beverage as containing 0.6 ounces of alcohol. For this purpose, the following beverages constitute a beverage:
- a 12 ounce beer (5% alcohol)
- a 5-ounce glass of wine (12% alcohol)
- a 45 ml glass (40% alcohol) at 80 degrees.
The NIAAA also notes that nearly one in four adults in the United States reported binge drinking in the past month.
Drinking too much at once or too often can
The first study looked at alcohol consumption in rats who underwent induced menopause compared to rats receiving estrogen replacement therapy. Syed Anees Ahmed, Ph.D., a researcher at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, led the research.
Given that
When women go through menopause, estrogen levels drop significantly, which doctors can treat using estrogen replacement.
For this study, scientists removed the ovaries of one group of rats to simulate menopause and gave a second group of postmenopausal rats estrogen replacement therapy. They then gave the rats alcohol and compared the results after an 8-week period.
The researchers measured the rats’ heart function using radiotelemetry, echocardiography and molecular studies.
Rats given estrogen showed benefits in weight gain and fat mass. However, compared to the group of rats not given estrogen, the group given estrogen experienced increased blood pressure and decreased heart function.
Additionally, rats given estrogen showed reduced cardiac ejection fraction, which can lead to heart failure. Estrogen rats also experienced problems with circadian clock proteins, which can also lead to heart problems.
Although more research is needed, these results suggest that women taking estrogen therapy may need to be cautious about their alcohol consumption.
Saugat Khanal, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, led the second rodent study.
This study focused on the effects of excessive alcohol consumption on the heart. The NIAAA defines
When someone drinks excessively and frequently, it can lead to
The researchers divided the mice into three groups:
- control group
- alcohol exposure to simulate excessive drinking and induce HHS cluster
- alcohol plus Alda-1 group.
Alda-1 is a molecule that helps protect the heart.
The scientists gave two groups of mice injections of alcohol every other day for four days. After the alcohol exposure ended, they tested the mice using electrophysiological studies, calcium imaging, and biochemical matrices.
More than 70% of the mice in the heavy drinking group developed atrial fibrillation. This is in stark contrast to the mice in the Alda-1 group: none of the mice in this group developed atrial fibrillation.
The researchers say the mice in the Alda-1 group did not suffer from atrial fibrillation because Alda-1 suppressed a stress protein called JNK2.
“This highlights the importance of educating the public about the serious negative impact of excessive alcohol consumption on the heart,” Khanal said. Today’s Medical News“Abstinence from excessive alcohol consumption remains the best recommendation to prevent holiday heart syndrome,” he advised.
Khanal also said that they plan to conduct more research in the future. “Studies using larger animals will also be a future direction to translate our exciting findings into clinical applications.”
Rigved Tadwalkar, MD, a board-certified consulting cardiologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif., weighed in on the studies for MNT.
“These rodent studies paint a complex picture of the impact of alcohol on the heart,” said Tadwalkar, who was not involved in the studies.
“The estrogen study challenges the assumption that hormone replacement therapy fully protects against alcohol-induced harm,” he continued.
Tadwalkar also noted that the binge drinking study “offers a promising avenue for future therapies to combat alcohol-induced arrhythmias.”
Cheng-Han Chen, MD, a board-certified interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, Calif., who was also not involved in the studies, also spoke with MNT about their discoveries.
“We know that alcohol consumption can have adverse effects on many aspects of cardiovascular health,” he said. “These animal studies have shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the harmful effects of alcohol on atrial fibrillation and its adverse effects in postmenopausal women.”
Chen also noted that these studies underscore how harmful alcohol is to the heart.
“I advise my patients to moderate their alcohol consumption as much as possible,” Chen says. “Recent studies clearly show that the more a person drinks, the greater their risk of developing cardiovascular disease.”
John Higgins, MD, MBA, professor of medicine and sports cardiologist at UTHealth Houston, also spoke about alcohol use with MNTindicating that:
“Premenopausal and postmenopausal women taking hormone replacement therapy should be cautious about their alcohol consumption, as it may be a factor in cardiac dysfunction.”
Higgins also recommended that people follow the American Heart Association’s recommendations: “