
EXPERT REACTION: How does alcohol affect your cholesterol levels?
Observational study: A study in which the subject is observed to see if there is a relationship between two or more things (eg: the consumption of diet drinks and obesity). Observational studies cannot prove that one thing causes another, only that they are linked.
People: This is a study based on research using people.
US and Japanese researchers suggest that starting or quitting drinking has effects on our cholesterol levels, and they are not the way you would think. The team say of close to 58,000 people who were going in for their annual health checkup, those who stopped drinking alcohol had higher levels of LDL cholesterol - the 'bad' cholesterol - and lower levels of HDL cholesterol - the 'good' cholesterol, compared to people who continued to drink alcohol. Additionally, the team found opposite significant associations when people started drinking, with these cholesterol level changes being more pronounced at higher levels of consumption. It's important to note that this kind of study cannot directly prove that the alcohol is the key factor to these changes, but instead that alcohol habits should likely be investigated when managing one's cholesterol.
Journal/conference: JAMA Network Open
Research: Paper
Organisation/s: St Luke’s International Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
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Expert Reaction
These comments have been collated by the Science Media Centre to provide a variety of expert perspectives on this issue. Feel free to use these quotes in your stories. Views expressed are the personal opinions of the experts named. They do not represent the views of the SMC or any other organisation unless specifically stated.
Professor Garry Jennings AO is Chief Medical Advisor at the Heart Foundation