Alcohol and blood pressure: what cutting back can do
Risky SubstancesKey points
- Alcohol is a modifiable cause of high blood pressure.
- Cutting back lowers blood pressure in people who drink more than 2 drinks a day.
- At 6+ drinks a day, cutting by about half lowered pressure by 5.5/4.0 mm Hg.
- The effect is comparable to some blood pressure medications.
What the research shows
A meta-analysis of 36 randomized trials found that cutting back on alcohol lowered blood pressure in a dose-dependent way among people who drank more than two drinks a day. In those who drank six or more drinks a day, reducing intake by about 50% lowered systolic pressure by 5.5 mm Hg and diastolic pressure by 4.0 mm Hg (Roerecke et al., 2017).
An analysis of nearly 600,000 drinkers also found that higher alcohol intake was linked to higher risk of stroke, heart failure and fatal hypertensive disease (Wood et al., 2018). Cutting salt lowers blood pressure too (He et al., 2013).
In practice
- Track your drinks for a week.
- Set alcohol-free days.
- Switch to nonalcoholic beer or sparkling water.
- Combine cutting back with less sodium, more activity and the DASH eating plan.
Frequently asked questions
Does a little alcohol raise blood pressure?
Studies suggest blood pressure rises even with low intake, and more clearly above about 2 drinks a day.
How fast does blood pressure fall after cutting back?
Improvements were seen within weeks in trials.
Sources
- Roerecke et al. (2017). The effect of a reduction in alcohol consumption on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet Public Health 2(2):e108-e120. doi:10.1016/S2468-2667(17)30003-8
- Wood et al. (2018). Risk thresholds for alcohol consumption: combined analysis of individual-participant data for 599 912 current drinkers in 83 prospective studies. The Lancet 391(10129):1513-1523. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30134-X
- He et al. (2013). Effect of longer term modest salt reduction on blood pressure: Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trials. BMJ 346(apr03 3):f1325-f1325. doi:10.1136/bmj.f1325
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