The Protective Effect of Moderate Alcohol Consumption on Ischemic Stroke

Well, prior to stroke I was drinking very little, prior to COVID-19 I was socially drinking a couple of nights a week. But I'm not medically trained so don't listen to me.  Then there is this: 

With this, however I have to substitute women friends.

Men must drink with male friends twice a week to stay healthy, study finds  December 2017

Here is your negative view of alcohol, your doctor will use one of these two to suggest no alcohol.

Safest level of alcohol consumption is none, worldwide study shows

Alcohol consumption increases risk for PAD, stroke

The latest here:

The Protective Effect of Moderate Alcohol Consumption on Ischemic Stroke

Ralph L. Sacco, MD, MS; Mitchell Elkind, MD; Bernadette Boden-Albala, MPH; et al I-Feng Lin, MS; Douglas E. Kargman, MD, MS; W. Allen Hauser, MD; Steven Shea, MD, MS; Myunghee C. Paik, PhD

Author Affiliations

JAMA. 1999;281(1):53-60. doi:10.1001/jama.281.1.53

Abstract

Context Moderate alcohol consumption has been shown to be protective for coronary heart disease, but the relationship between moderate alcohol consumption and ischemic stroke is more controversial.
Objective To determine the association between alcohol consumption and risk of ischemic stroke.
Design Population-based case-control study conducted between July 1993 and June 1997.
Setting Multiethnic population in northern Manhattan, New York, NY, aged 40 years or older.
Patients and Other Participants Cases (n=677) had first ischemic stroke and were matched to community controls (n=1139) derived through random digit dialing by age, sex, and race/ethnicity. Mean ± SD age of cases was 70.0 ± 12.7 years; 55.8% were women; 19.5% were white, 28.4% black, and 50.7% Hispanic.
Main Outcome Measure First ischemic stroke (fatal or nonfatal).
Results Moderate alcohol consumption, up to 2 drinks per day, was significantly protective for ischemic stroke after adjustment for cardiac disease, hypertension, diabetes, current smoking, body mass index, and education (odds ratio [OR], 0.51; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.39-0.67). This protective effect of alcohol consumption was detected in both younger and older groups, in men and women, and in whites, blacks, and Hispanics. In a quadratic model of stroke risk, increased risk of ischemic stroke was statistically significant among those consuming 7 or more drinks per day (OR, 2.96; 95% CI, 1.05-8.29).
Conclusions Moderate alcohol consumption was independently associated with a decreased risk of ischemic stroke in our elderly, multiethnic, urban subjects, while heavy alcohol consumption had deleterious effects. Our data support the National Stroke Association Stroke Prevention Guidelines regarding the beneficial effects of moderate alcohol consumption.

Several case-control and prospective cohort studies have shown that moderate alcohol consumption has a protective effect on the risk of cardiac mortality and myocardial infarction.^1-3 The effect of moderate alcohol consumption on stroke is controversial. While several case-control^4,5 and prospective cohort^6-9 studies have shown that alcohol consumption has a direct dose-dependent effect on the risk of hemorrhagic stroke, the data on infarction, which accounts for approximately 80% of all strokes, are contradictory. Some studies suggest that moderate consumption confers a protective effect on the risk of ischemic stroke in certain populations,^8,10-16 while studies in other populations find no beneficial effect.^6,17-28 It has been speculated that there is a differential effect of alcohol dependent on race/ethnicity since studies in white populations^10-12,14,15 have found a protective effect, while those in Asian populations^{9,18,23,27,28} have not. Among blacks, some studies have found a protective effect,¹³ while others have not.²¹ No study has addressed the relationship between alcohol and stroke among Hispanics. To help clarify the relationship of alcohol consumption to ischemic stroke among different racial/ethnic groups, we undertook a population-based case-control study in a multiethnic, elderly population.