Undoubtedly, the common alcoholic “myths and legends” include the belief that certain types of alcoholic beverages in certain doses lower blood pressure. Alcohol and pressure: lowers or boosts? It is believed that alcohol in a certain dosage can even be treated for hypertension. Is this so: does alcohol raise or lower blood pressure? Let's try to figure out how it affects the human body, bringing benefits or causing harm.
Consumption standards
Firstly, when it comes to the benefits of drinking alcohol, the dose that is acceptable to the human body is always negotiated. According to scientific data, such standards are: half a liter of beer, 300 ml of wine, 50 ml of vodka or another forty-degree drink. And this is a day! It does not mean that you need to immediately drink the first, second and third. It will be enough to dwell on one thing, and even then not every day. Everything that is used above the specified, causes irreparable harm to health. So if we talk about whether alcohol raises or lowers blood pressure, everyone needs to remember these norms of its consumption. In addition, those people who have hypertension, as a rule, should not drink alcohol due to its incompatibility with certain medications prescribed by a doctor and used just to reduce blood pressure.
Science research
So after all, does alcohol raise or lower blood pressure? The results of studies conducted in middle-aged men who consumed daily up to 50 mg of ethyl alcohol (of course, not in pure form, but as wine, beer or vodka), showed a steady increase in pressure over time. Also, in men the number of heart contractions (pulse rate) increased, and regardless of the type of drink!
Factors
The circumstances affecting whether alcohol increases or decreases blood pressure are quite diverse. This is a person’s age, and his lifestyle, and diet. Alcohol has a complex effect on the human body. Once inside, combined with food, it can both increase pressure and lower it in the short term. Of course, you can not use alcohol instead of medications, especially for older people. It is better for them to completely refuse to take alcohol in any of its manifestations.
Different phases of intoxication
Raises or lowers the pressure of alcohol, also depends on the stage of intoxication of a person. Immediately after consumption, ethanol (one of the components of alcoholic beverages) dilates blood vessels. At the same time, their tone is reduced. In simple terms, the walls of the vessels become flexible and more elastic. As a result, blood meets less resistance in its path, and the pressure decreases briefly. With alcohol, the pulse rate (heart rate) increases . Because of this, the blood passes through the ventricles faster, and they are unable to push it out as hard as necessary. Result: not only a decrease in blood pressure, but also a deterioration in the blood supply to some parts of the body (fingers and toes, for example). That is why it is not recommended to take alcohol in the cold, supposedly for "sugrevu", you run the risk of frostbite on the nose and limbs. Therefore, it is still not worth talking about the safety and even more benefit of drinking.
In the subsequent stages of intoxication, the pressure tends to increase, since ethanol stimulates the nervous system. In those people who regularly drink alcohol, the pressure is steadily increased.
So after all, does alcohol raise or lower blood pressure?
In general, we can say that the positive effect of taking alcohol (no more than 20-30 mg of pure alcohol per day) with pronounced hypertension is unstable and depends on the frequency of alcohol intake and the age of the patient. And most importantly, if the daily dose is exceeded, then this will lead to the opposite effect, and the pressure will increase. So it’s not worth the risk. Moreover, many representatives of the stronger sex do not comply with the measure. And excessive drinking is fraught with a steady increase in pressure.
Inverse effect
Often in men, after taking a couple of glasses of wine or liters of beer, the pressure suddenly “jumps”, and then the light becomes not nice. In addition to the above, there are several more medical explanations for this phenomenon:
- After some time, ethanol provokes the release of norepinephrine and renin. Hormonal function is getting better, pressure is rising.
- There is a malfunction in the kidneys. Frequent urination occurs (ethanol produces a diuretic effect). The water balance is disturbed, the pressure rises.
- In addition, in people with ischemia (focal) of the brain, a rash intake of alcohol can even lead to death, since the risk of hemorrhagic stroke will sharply increase.
What alcohol lowers blood pressure?
If you really cannot wait to be treated with alcohol, use small doses of cognac or white grape wine for a short-term reduction in pressure. But red wine, beer, champagne for these purposes can not be used. And remember the dosage!