Full circle ─ rigorous study links moderate drinking in older age with lower risk of death ─ but more research still needed
Research Society on AlcoholismAlcohol consumption in later life has increased over the past decade. Although moderate alcohol intake in older adults has been previously linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and death, recent studies have suggested little ─ if any ─ health benefit to alcohol. Assessing the relationship between alcohol intake and mortality is extremely challenging, partly because of the need to disentangle the effect of alcohol from that of other factors that influence health, and also because people’s drinking habits often change over time. However, research methodology and data quality continue to improve. A new report in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research presents a 16-year follow-up of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) ─ one of the largest and most rigorous US studies of the relationship between alcohol consumption and mortality to date.