Alcohol Consumption and Mortality among Middle-Aged and Elderly U.S. Adults

Men and women who drink alcoholic beverages regularly have, in comparison with abstainers, higher death rates from injuries, 1 , 2 violence, 2 suicide, 2 poisoning, 3 cirrhosis, 4 certain cancers, 5 and possibly hemorrhagic stroke, 6 , 7 but lower death rates from coronary heart disease and thrombotic stroke. 8 – 27 The net balance of risks and benefits is likely to differ in different age groups and populations. Examining this balance in a particular population requires large epidemiologic studies that have information on all causes of death and include sufficient numbers of people and deaths to estimate risks reliably within subgroups defined according to age, sex, and tobacco use. . . .