The protective effect of light to moderate alcohol against coronary heart disease and ischaemic stroke is most evident in post-menopausal women and men aged over 40 years, when the risk factors for cardiovascular disease significantly increase. This protective effect does not diminish with increasing age. Since evidence is increasing that vascular disease is associated with cognitive impairment and dementia, research is also demonstrating that light to moderate alcohol consumption may also reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Indeed at the World Alzheimer Congress held in July 2000, it was reported that one or two alcoholic drinks/day reduces the risk of the disease significantly.

Heavy alcohol consumption will, however, cause neural damage and memory loss.

The evidence?

A population-based prospective study in Bordeaux, France has reported an inverse association between wine consumption and the risk of dementia. In this study, Monique Breteler et al. (2002) observed that light to moderate alcohol consumption was associated with a lower risk of dementia and examined whether the effect varied by type of alcoholic beverage.

Individuals taking part in the Rotterdam Study, a prospective population-based study of 7983 individuals aged 55 years and older, were studied. All participants who did not have dementia between 1990 and 1993, and who had complete data on alcohol consumption were analysed in order to compare the risk of developing dementia between individuals who regularly consumed alcohol and those who did not.

The average follow-up was six years. During this period, 197 individuals developed dementia (146 Alzheimer’s disease, 29 vascular dementia and 22 other dementia). Light to moderate alcohol consumption (one to three drinks per day) was significantly associated with a lower risk of any dementia and vascular dementia compared with no alcohol consumption.

No evidence, however, was found that the relation between alcohol and dementia varied by type of alcoholic beverage. The protective effect appeared greater in men than in women. There was no significant interactions with age, smoking or level of education. These observations thus suggest that light to moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a reduced risk of dementia in individuals aged 55 years or older, and are consistent with recent conclusions from the Canadian Study of Health and Ageing.
References: Alcohol consumption and risk of dementia: the Rotterdam Study The Lancet, 359 (9303); 2002.

Click here to read "Alcohol bane or boon for the elderly" a summary paper by Erik Skovenborg of Scandinavian Medical Alcohol Board