Drinking and coronary heart disease: the Albany Study.

The relation of alcohol consumption to coronary heart disease (CHD) was examined in a cohort of 1910 employed men aged 38 to 55 years enrolled in the Albany Study, a prospective investigation of factors related to cardiovascular disease. Two follow-up periods were examined, one between 1953-54 and 1971-72, the other after 1971-72. In the initial period, there was no clear evidence of a relation between the rate of alcohol consumption and CHD incidence. In the later period, men whose monthly consumption was 60 ounces or more had a lower than average CHD incidence rate. A negative relationship with drinking held for all manifestations of CHD. Other CHD risk factors were examined, special attention being given to cigarette smoking and HDL-cholesterol. The fact that drinking is a matter of choice may introduce some confounding factors. The absence of a relation between drinking and CHD risk in the earlier follow-up suggests the need for caution in interpreting the results.