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Association of Drinking Pattern and Alcohol Beverage Type With the Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome, Diabetes, Coronary Heart Disease, Stroke, and Peripheral Arterial Disease in a Mediterranean Cohort

Atherosclerosis and Metabolic Syndrome Units, Aristotelean University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Second Propopedeutic Department of Internal Medicine, Aristotelean University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Evangelos N. Liberopoulos

Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, University of Ioannina, Greece, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Dimitri P. Mikhailidis

Department of Clinical Biochemistry (Vascular Prevention Clinic), Royal Free Hospital, Royal Free and University College Medical School (University of London), London, United Kingdom, mikhailidis{at}aol.com, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Athanasios A. Papageorgiou

Second Propopedeutic Department of Internal Medicine, Aristotelean University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Emmanuel S. Ganotakis

Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, University of Crete, Heraklion, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Konstantinos Tziomalos

Second Propopedeutic Department of Internal Medicine, Aristotelean University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Anna I. Kakafika

Second Propopedeutic Department of Internal Medicine, Aristotelean University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Asterios Karagiannis

Second Propopedeutic Department of Internal Medicine, Aristotelean University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Stylianos Lambropoulos

Hospital of Kozani, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

Moses Elisaf

Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, University of Crete, Heraklion, Working Group for the Identification and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome of the Greek Atherosclerosis Society, Athens, Greece

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between alcohol consumption and the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome (MetS), type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, peripheral arterial disease (PAD), and overall cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a Mediterranean cohort. It consisted of a cross-sectional analysis of a representative sample of Greek adults (n = 4153) classified as never, occasional, mild, moderate, or heavy drinkers. Cases with overt CHD, stroke, or PAD were recorded. In our population, 17% were never, 23% occasional, 27% mild, 24% moderate, and 9% heavy drinkers. Moderate alcohol consumption was associated with a lower trend for the prevalence of the MetS (P = .0001), DM (P < .0001), CHD (P = .0002), PAD (P = .005), and overall CVD (P = .001) but not stroke compared with no alcohol use. Heavy drinking was associated with an increase in the prevalence of all of these disease states. Wine consumption was associated with a slightly better effect than beer or spirits consumption on the prevalence of total CVD, and beer consumption was associated with a better effect than spirits consumption. Alcohol intake was positively related with body weight, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, and hypertension. Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a lower prevalence of the MetS, DM, PAD, CHD, and overall CVD but not stroke compared with no alcohol use in a Mediterranean population. Heavy drinking was associated with an increase in the prevalence of all of these disease states. Advice on alcohol consumption should probably mainly aim at reducing heavy drinking.

Angiology, Vol. 58, No. 6, 689-697 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0003319707306146


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