Dose-dependent increases in BP seen after alcohol initiation, with direction of effect consistent across sexes
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, Oct. 27, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Alcohol cessation is associated with dose-dependent reductions in blood pressure (BP), according to a study published online Oct. 22 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
Takahiro Suzuki, M.D., M.P.H., from the Institute of Science Tokyo, and colleagues examined the associations between alcohol cessation/initiation and subsequent BP changes using data from adults undergoing annual health check-ups at a Japanese preventive medicine center from October 2012 to March 2024. Data were included for 359,717 visits among 58,943 participants.
The researchers found that in the cessation cohort (53,156 visits among 25,621 participants), cessation was associated with dose-dependent reductions in BP. Cessation of 0.5 to 1.0 drink/day among women did not correspond with a significant change in systolic BP (SBP), but corresponded with a significant change of −0.41 mm Hg in diastolic BP (DBP); cessation of 1.0 to 2.0 drinks/day corresponded with significant changes of −0.78 and −1.14 mm Hg in SBP and DBP, respectively. Among men, cessation of 0.5 to 1.0 drink/day did not correspond with significant changes in SBP or DBP, while cessation of 1.0 to 2.0 drinks/day corresponded to significant reductions of −1.03 and −1.62 mm Hg in SBP and DBP, respectively. Dose-dependent increases were seen in BP after alcohol initiation in the initiation cohort (128,552 visits among 31,532 participants); across sexes, the overall direction of effect was consistent.
“In the past, scientists thought that small amounts of alcohol might be okay, but our results suggest that no alcohol is actually best,” Suzuki said in a statement.
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