HHS HealthBeat (October 03, 2008)

Drinking less

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Framingham, Massachusetts, isn’t drinking like it used to. A study that’s been tracking the health of people in the city reports a decline over 50 years. That’s important because the Framingham study is a benchmark for examinations into U.S. health habits in general.

Yuqing Zhang of Boston University tells what he found:

``Average amount of alcohol consumption decreased across succeeding generations, with more moderate and less heavy consumption.’’ (8 seconds)

Paradoxically, even though the amount of drinking has gone down in general, the proportion of people who have alcohol abuse problems has not changed.

Zhang says people with alcohol problems should get help, but alcohol use in moderation can help people’s heart health.

The study in the American Journal of Medicine was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: October, 03 2008