Major hostile cardiovascular events (MACE) through heightened stress-related neural network activity (SNA) are related to chronic stress. Previous research has shown that light or moderate alcohol consumption (ACl/m) may very well be correlated with lower MACE risk, although the precise mechanisms remain unclear.

A recent Journal of the American College of Cardiology study evaluates whether the association between MACE and ACl/m is mediated by reduced SNA.

Study: Reduced Stress-Related Neural Network Activity Mediates the Effect of Alcohol on Cardiovascular Risk. Image Credit: Aleksandar Karanov / Shutterstock.com

Background

In comparison with abstinence, light/moderate alcohol use has been linked to lower MACE risk. Nonetheless, it stays unclear whether this useful effect is on account of alcohol itself or from confounding aspects akin to socioeconomic status or associated health behaviors. A deeper understanding of the underlying mechanisms is required to develop novel treatments mimicking similar advantages without the harmful effects of alcohol. 

Light/moderate alcohol consumption is related to an array of cardiometabolic markers, none of which elucidate the impact of alcohol on MACE. Alcohol also affects the central nervous system (CNS) and, through its interactions with psychosocial stress, potentially aids within the mitigation of MACE risk. Nevertheless, the chronic effects of alcohol on the neurobiology of stress aren’t entirely understood.

Concerning the study

The present study utilized a well-characterized Biobank cohort to research the hypothesis that light/moderate alcohol reduces MACE by attenuating hostile stress-related neural mechanisms. To this end, the impact of sunshine/moderate alcohol consumption was evaluated after controlling for clinical, lifestyle, socioeconomic, and genetic aspects. Moreover, the effect of sunshine/moderate alcohol consumption on resting SNA was assessed. 

The researchers also determined whether this effect mediated the advantages of sunshine/moderate alcohol consumption on MACE. The possibly stronger influence of sunshine/moderate alcohol use on MACE in individuals expected to have chronically heightened SNA was also investigated.

Key findings

A U-shaped association between alcohol consumption and MACE was observed. After accounting for potential confounding aspects, including health behaviors and demographic and socioeconomic aspects, light/moderate alcohol consumption was related to lower MACE risk.

Advanced brain imaging results indicate that light/moderate alcohol consumption, as in comparison with abstinence, was related to lower resting SNA. This neural effect appears to mediate the useful impacts of sunshine/moderate alcohol consumption on MACE.

Light/moderate alcohol consumption was also related to stronger effects on heart problems (CVD) risk reduction amongst individuals with a history of hysteria. These findings imply that alcohol could improve MACE risk, and interventions targeting SNAs may improve CVD outcomes. Nonetheless, alternative approaches to cut back SNA are needed, as light/moderate alcohol consumption could also result in non-cardiac problems, akin to a heightened risk of cancer. 

Are there health advantages of sunshine/moderate alcohol use?

Researchers proceed to debate the useful effects of sunshine/moderate alcohol consumption. The potential presence of confounding aspects has often been cited because the important reason for the shortage of strong results.

A recent study on greater than 300,000 individuals, after adjusting for socioeconomic variables and health behaviors, suggested that light/moderate alcohol consumption could reduce CVD risk. The present study provides an extra robustness check and validation of those findings. 

Nevertheless, previous research has been limited by abstainer bias, which has caused uncertainty surrounding the protective effect of sunshine/moderate alcohol to persist. The researchers of this study also assessed this possibility by conducting a sensitivity evaluation that excluded abstainers, which also yielded similar results.

Limitations

A key limitation of the current study is its observational design. Despite controlling for various potential confounders, residual confounding aspects may not have been accounted for. Moreover, International Classification of Disease (ICD) codes were used to discover MACE, which could have led to the misclassification of events.

Dietary guidelines recommend not more than two drinks each day for men and one drink each day for girls. As a result of the restrictions of the survey instrument, the excellence between individuals consuming one drink/day and people consuming two drinks/day couldn’t be made.

The self-reported nature of the present study could have also caused individuals to underreport their alcohol consumption. The study participants’ drinking patterns can have also modified in the course of the follow-up period.

Conclusions

The study findings suggest that the useful effects of sunshine/moderate alcohol consumption on MACE risk could also be on account of its ability to attenuate SNA. Notably, the useful impact of sunshine/moderate alcohol intake was nearly twice as great amongst individuals with anxiety as in comparison with those without anxiety.

There stays a have to develop novel interventions that positively affect the neurobiology of stress without the harmful effects of alcohol.