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Binge drinking raises stroke risk

Binge drinking more than triples a man's risk of dying from a stroke.

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Binge drinking more than triples a man's risk of dying from a stroke.

Researchers studied 6,291 Korean people aged 55 years or older to examine the association between binge drinking and risks of mortality due to all causes of death with a focus on cerebrovascular disease.

It was noted that 59 percent of adults reported drinking alcohol, while 46 percent of men were heavy drinkers, meaning they consumed at least six drinks of soju (an alcoholic beverage made from rice) in one sitting at least once a week. About one in five of the men were binge drinkers, as compared to less than 1 percent of the women.

The researchers found that male binge drinkers who drank daily had a 33 percent higher risk of dying from any cause during the 20-year follow-up compared to men who didn't drink alcohol. Their risk of having any type of stroke was nearly doubled, while their risk of a hemorrhagic stroke, which is caused by bleeding in the brain, rather than blockage in a blood vessel, was 3 times higher.

For women, the risk of dying from heart disease was greater among binge drinkers, but it was not statistically significance.

The findings suggest that frequent binge drinking predisposes to haemorrhagic stroke. However, further studies are needed to understand the mechanisms how binge drinking causes this.

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