TONIC: Older drinkers can benefit from a daily tipple LONDON, England (Daily Express), December 24,2007:
By Victoria Fletcher, Health Editor
PENSIONERS will be toasting the latest health research which has found that a daily tipple is the perfect tonic. Experts say those who enjoy a pint of lager or a large glass of wine are healthier than teetotallers.
Until now, it had been thought that those over 65 should cut back on drinking because their bodies are less able to cope with the effects. But academics now say far from hindering good health, a couple of drinks a day is actually beneficial.
A team from the Peninsula Medical School, run with the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth, studied the drinking patterns of more than 13,000 men and women aged over 65. They discovered that pensioners can benefit from a couple of units of alcohol each day. But the study showed that elderly people who drank far more than this did not gain extra benefits and, like their younger counterparts, were more likely to suffer harm.
“We are not advocating that elderly people should go out and get ridiculously drunk,“ said Dr Iain Lang, lead author of the two studies.
“What we are saying is that current guidelines on drinking for the elderly are too conservative, and that a couple of drinks a day will do no harm.
“It will in fact have a more beneficial effect on cognitive and general health than abstinence.”
A growing number of studies now show that drinking in moderation is healthier than not drinking at all.
In 2004, a study from America showed that middle-aged men and women were healthier drinking alcohol than avoiding it. However, experts are keen to point out that drinking can only be healthy in moderation.
Current health limits are set at 14 units a week for women and 21 units a week for men. But recent studies have shown that many Britons are drinking far beyond this safe level.
Experts have warned that drinkers may not know the new strengths of wine and beer and last week the Office for National Statistics altered the way it calculates alcohol intake.
The new guidance recognises that the strength of wine has risen from an average of nine per cent alcohol by volume (ABV) to 13 per cent. An average bottle that once contained only six units, now contains almost ten.
The revised calculation means that the average person is drinking a third more each week than they thought.
Dr Lang said: “The upshot of this research is that a little of what you fancy does you good. Previous research has shown that middle-aged people can benefit from moderate drinking – these findings show the same applies to the over-65s.
“There is no reason why older people should not enjoy a tipple this Christmas, as long as they are sensible.”
Copyright ©2006 Northern and Shell Media Publications
