To Lower Blood Pressure, Cut Back on the Booze

Don't even try to argue that stress reduction lowers blood pressure, and a drink or two or three lowers stress; ergo, a drink or two or three lowers blood pressure. Sadly, biology doesn't work like that. The L.A. Times directs us to a study that tells us how it does work, and the bottom line is this: more alcohol consumption = higher blood pressure.The research, conducted at Tulane University, looked at 15 randomized studies involving more than 2,000 people in which alcohol was the only intervention difference between active and control groups."Overall," the study authors conclude, "alcohol reduction was associated with a significant reduction
in mean systolic and diastolic blood
pressures of -3.31 mm Hg (-2.52 to -4.10 mm Hg) and -2.04 mm Hg (-1.49
to -2.58 mm Hg), respectively. A dose-response relationship was
observed between mean percentage of alcohol reduction and mean blood
pressure reduction." 

Wait, there's more. The L.A. Times also cites a study indicating that beer and red wine, yes, red wine, also raise blood pressure, contrary to the popular opinion of many red wine drinkers. Read the conclusions of that study here.