Reactions: meta-analysis shows that drinking low doses of alcohol, up to 25 grams a day, is not associated with changes in mortality
Drinking less than 25 grams of alcohol a day (2.5 standard drinking units, the equivalent of two and a half pints) does not reduce mortality, according to an analysis that aggregates data from 107 previous studies and 4.8 million people. Some studies claim that people who drink alcohol in low doses live longer and are less likely to die of cardiovascular disease than those who abstain completely. This meta-analysis published in JAMA Network Open, which brings together studies published between 1980 and 2022 in several countries, found no such protective effect. It did find a significant increase in the risk of mortality at 25 g per day for women and 45 g per day for men. In Spain, the Ministry of Health sets the limits for low-risk consumption at 10 g of alcohol per day for women and 20 g for men.