Science Says Drinking Wine Instead of Beer or Other Spirits Can Benefit Your Cardiovascular Health

While there are a number of alcoholic beverages to choose from when you want to sit down to a nice drink, scientists say that there's one choice that can lead to a healthier lifestyle, and it's wine. According to a new study by Glasgow University researchers, drinking spirits regularly instead of wine increases the risk of cardiovascular events by 31 percent, the Daily Mail reports.

The team studied over 300,000 people from UK Biobank for the published study in the journal BMC Medicine. After diving into their research, they also found that those who consume spirits, along with beer and cider drinkers, had about a 48 percent higher chance of liver damage. This wasn't all they gathered. The researchers noted that drinking during a meal can help lower risks of death by 10 percent. Plus, spreading drinks out over the course of four days instead of having the same amount in one or two days can lower risks of death by nine percent.

Dr. Bhautesh Jani, the study's lead researcher, said that these discoveries will help improve understanding on how alcohol can impact people in the long run. "These findings are important as they may have implications for policy and could allow health professionals to give patients tailored advice on various ways they can reduce the harm of their alcohol consumption," he noted.

"Of the regular alcohol drinkers we studied, less than half reported consuming the recommended amount for low risk alcohol consumption, so our first suggestion would be for regular drinkers to follow the recommended government guidelines," Dr. Jani explained. He added that regulating how people drink alcohol can make a difference, too: "Spread consumption over the course of three or four days—whilst being careful not to increase overall intake—and consider opting for red or white wine and drinking with meals where possible."