According to a study in the U.S., college students who over indulge in alcohol are increasing their risk for future heart disease.
Elizabeth Donovan, lead researcher of the study and an undergraduate student at the College of Saint Benedict in St. Joseph, Minnesota, has found that a group of college students who drank heavily had higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP); CRP is a blood marker for inflammation which can increase the risk for heart disease.
Donovan says increased CRP placed heavy drinkers at moderate risk for cardiovascular disease in early adulthood and highlights an additional reason to be concerned about heavy drinking in college-age individuals.
In the main previous studies of alcohol and CRP levels have focused on older people, this study has looked at individuals in early adulthood and Donovan says if high CRP levels are recognized at an early age, a person has the chance to make healthier lifestyle choices.
The small study involved twenty-five college-age individuals who completed surveys that assessed factors that can affect CRP levels such as alcohol consumption patterns, medication use, smoking habits and recent weight loss; the students were then assigned to one of three groups:
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Non-drinkers, meaning they consumed one or less drinks one day a week;
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Moderate drinkers, who consumed two to five drinks of alcohol on a typical drinking day, one to two days a week;
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Heavy drinkers, who consumed three or more drinks at least three or more days a week or consumed five or more drinks in one sitting at least two or more days a week.
One drink equated to 12 ounces of beer, five ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of hard alcohol.
Students on oral contraceptives, hormone therapy, cholesterol-lowering therapy or who had a significant recent weight loss were excluded from the study.
The average CRP for students in the study was 0.9 milligrams per liter (mg/L), placing the group as a whole at low risk.
CRP levels less than 1 mg/L are associated with low risk for cardiovascular disease.
CRP levels between 1 and 3 mg/L are associated with moderate risk and CRP levels above 3 mg/L are associated with high risk for future cardiovascular disease.
The researchers found that college students who were moderate drinkers had significantly lower CRP levels than heavy drinkers, with the average level at 0.58 mg/L for moderate drinkers, but rising to 1.25 mg/L for heavy drinkers.