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ALBANIAN MEDICAL JOURNAL SUPPLEMENTDoes moderate alcohol use reduce the incidence ofcoronary heart disease?Sokol Myftiu 1 , Eliverta Majko 1 , Shpëtim Doksani 21Cardiology Service, University Hospital Center Mother Teresa , Tirana, Albania;2Clinic of Alcohol Addiction Treatment, University Hospital Center Mother Teresa , Tirana, Albania.Excessive alcohol intake has been associated with anelevated risk of liver disease, heart failure, cancer, andaccidental injury. Excessive alcohol consumption isa leading cause of death in industrializedcountries. However, research suggests that moderatealcohol intake is associated with some health benefitsincluding a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease.Public awareness of the French paradox in theearly 1990s stimulated an increased interest in thesubject of alcohol and heart disease. Given theepidemiological evidence that moderate drinkingreduces heart disease, it becomes important toexamine pathways from which alcohol might conferits cardiovascular benefits. Research suggests thatmoderate alcohol consumption improves cardiovascularhealth in a number of ways, including thefollowing:i. Alcohol improves blood lipid profile:a. It increases HDL cholesterol.b. It decreases LDL cholesterol.c. It improves cholesterol (both HDL andLDL) particle size.ii. Alcohol decreases thrombosis (bloodclotting):a. It reduces platelet aggregation.b. It reduces fibrinogen (a blood clotter).c. It increases fibrinolysis (the process bywhich clots dissolve).iii. Alcohol acts through additional ways:a. It reduces coronary artery spasm inresponse to stress.b. It increases coronary blood flow.c. It reduces blood pressure.d. It reduces blood insulin level.e. It increases estrogen levels.There is a lack of medical consensus about whethermoderate consumption of beer, wine, or distilledspirits has a stronger association with heart disease.Studies suggest that each drink is beneficial, withnone having a clear advantage. Most researchersnow believe that the most important ingredient isthe alcohol itself.The American Heart Association has recentlyreported that Morethan a dozen prospectivestudieshavedemonstrated a consistent, strong, dose-response relationbetween increasing alcohol consumption and decreasing incidenceof coronaryheart disease. Thedata aresimilar in men andwomen in a number of different geographic and ethnic groups.Consumption of one or two drinks per day is associated witha reduction in risk of approximately 30% to50%.Keywords: excessivealcohol intake, coronaryheart disease, moderatealcohol intake.26 ALBANIAN MEDICAL JOURNAL SUPPLEMENT