Alcohol is harmful, even to young hearts: Alarming study from Munich!

Alcohol is harmful, even to young hearts: Alarming study from Munich!

The harmful effects of alcohol on health have long been known. Now researchers have found that even younger, healthy people can develop serious problems with their hearts from excessive alcohol consumption. A new study from Munich has pointed to alarming results showing cardiac arrhythmias occurring even in partygoers who otherwise appear fit.

As part of this study, which was carried out by the Medical Clinic and Polyclinic I of the LMU Klinikum, over 200 young men and women were observed who regularly consumed alcohol while going out at night. Some of the participants had peak blood alcohol levels of up to 2.5 per mille measured while they were taking part in the research. “Clinically relevant arrhythmias occurred in over five percent of the otherwise healthy participants,” explains Moritz Sinner, one of the main researchers. This shows how much alcohol can affect the heart, even during the recovery period after drinking.

Study shows dangers

Researchers monitored participants' heart rhythms over 48 hours using ECG machines. They compared the initial state before drinking, during alcohol consumption and in the recovery phase. What was noticeable was that the pulse rose to more than 100 beats per minute during the drinking phase. The results of this study were published in the renowned specialist magazine “European Heart Journal” and shed new light on the effects of alcohol consumption on the heart.

The study shows that alcohol interferes with heart functions in complex ways. Despite the findings, many questions remain unanswered, particularly regarding the long-term consequences of alcohol-related arrhythmias. This is seen as urgent by scientists to understand the full extent of the impact on heart health.

As early as 2015, the same research team had discovered the first indication of the link between high alcohol consumption and cardiac arrhythmias with the MunichBREW-I study at the Oktoberfest, although at that time only snapshots from the electrocardiogram were considered. This new study expands understanding and confirms that excessive alcohol consumption has widespread negative effects on heart health.

Additionally, there are other studies that show that even regular consumption of small amounts of alcohol can be considered risky. Studies from the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf show that this can trigger atrial fibrillation even in healthy people without previous illnesses. This phenomenon underscores growing concerns about how alcohol can affect the heart and the entire body, even in those who are not overweight or in poor health.

The results of the MunichBREW-II study have the potential to play an important role in future discussions about the safe consumption of alcohol. It is hoped that such studies will continue to be at the center of public health policy to raise awareness of the dangers of alcohol consumption and promote preventive measures.

For further information on the topic, please refer to the detailed reporting in Report from www.welt.de referred.