The upper safe limit of drinking was about five drinks per week.However, drinking above this limit was linked with lower life expectancy
The study compared the health and drinking habits of over 600,000 people in 19 countries. The authors of the researches took into account age, smoking, history of diabetes, level of education and occupation.
having 10 or more drinks per week was linked with one to two years shorter life expectancy. Having 18 drinks or more per week was linked with four to five years shorter life expectancy.
The researchers also looked at the association between alcohol consumption and different types of cardiovascular disease. Alcohol consumption was associated with a higher risk of stroke, heart failure, fatal aortic aneurysms, fatal hypertensive disease and heart failure and there were no clear thresholds where drinking less did not have a benefit.
