High blood pressure due to alcohol. A rapidly reversible effect.

The hypothesis that the action of alcohol on blood pressure is rapidly reversible and that its effect is therefore mainly due to very recent alcohol consumption was examined in this study. Five hundred and seventy-seven subjects were screened in an occupational survey. Alcohol consumption, documented with a 1-week retrospective diary was divided into two categories: "recent" and "previous" intake. Recent intake was defined as the amount consumed on days 1, 2, and 3 immediately preceding blood pressure measurement. Previous intake was defined as the amount consumed on days 4, 5, and 6 preceding blood pressure measurement. High recent alcohol intake significantly raised systolic and diastolic blood pressure in both men and women. Previous alcohol intake, however, did not appear to influence blood pressure. We conclude that the effect of alcohol on blood pressure appears to be predominantly due to alcohol consumed in the few days immediately preceding blood pressure measurement, with alcohol consumption before those few days exerting little effect on blood pressure.