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The more a person weighs, the more damage alcohol causes
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Surely many have heard that in small doses alcohol is not harmful, but even beneficial to health. In particular, this applies to red wine. Scientists who have conducted more than one study say that one or two glasses of red wine have a beneficial effect on the heart, prevent the development of atherosclerosis, remove toxins, reduce cholesterol levels, and so on. But is this really true? Maybe this data is already outdated, and it is worth thinking about your own health so as not to harm?
It turns out that the idea that a couple of glasses of wine does no harm and is good for your health may not be true for most people.
Researchers from Curtin University, Australia, have found that if a person has problems with excess weight and especially obesity (and this is usually associated with increased stress on the heart), then even moderate doses of alcohol can negatively affect heart health.
Scientists Tim Dobstein and Mike Dob presented a report published in the journal Public Health. In their article, the experts question the results of all previous studies that examined the impact of alcoholic beverages on human health. Previously, numerous studies presented results that small doses of alcohol can be used to prevent cardiovascular diseases. However, the current study by scientists takes into account one important aspect, namely, a person's weight.
Experts do not dispute the fact that a small amount of wine, if it is of good quality, can have a beneficial effect on the body, but only if the person does not have problems with excess weight.
Excess weight combined with alcohol, which puts extra strain on the heart, can lead to an increased risk of developing diabetes, stroke and cancer.
"We are concerned that the research data that underlies the claims about the benefits of wine comes from a series of publications that are more than forty years old, and at that time there were far fewer problems with obesity. Therefore, these data cannot be called objective, and the studies that are based on them are unlikely to present a complete picture of reality, especially considering that obesity and excess weight have become the number one problems in the modern world," comments Tim Dobstein.
Given the current weight problems that many people are experiencing, scientists decided to conduct their own study. The experts set out to find out whether there is a connection between weight and moderate amounts of wine, and whether the combination of these two factors affects the human body.
As a result, experts came to the conclusion that for people whose body mass index is higher than 27.5 kg/m², even moderate doses of wine cause more harm than the same amount drunk by people with a lower weight.
According to experts, this evidence is quite sufficient and it confirms that alcohol has a negative impact on the health of overweight people.