Excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages and HDL cholesterol

It has already been established that the consumption of alcoholic beverages increases high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in dose–response.
A cross-sectional analysis was carried out with 6,132 participants of both sexes aged between 35 and 74 years, who were active and retired workers from six Brazilian states. Heavy drinkers were categorized by sex: men > 210 g/week and women > 140 g/week; moderate drinkers: men ≤ 209 g/week and women ≤ 139 g/week. The HDL-C level was dichotomized into normal (40 mg/dL–82.9 mg/dL) and extremely high (≥83 mg/dL). The associations between baseline alcohol intake and HDL-C, which were adjusted for sex, age, income, physical activity, kilocalories and body mass index (BMI) were assessed, and the researchers found a positive association between extremely high HDL-C and the excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages. These participants were mostly women with a high income, lower waist circumference, kilocalorie consumption and also a higher consumption in all categories of alcoholic beverages. The study authors conclude that excessive alcohol consumption was associated with a higher probability of extremely high HDL-C.
Source: Enriquez-Martinez OG, Silva Pereira TS, Mill JG, Fonseca MJMD, Molina MDCB, Griep RH. Excessive Consumption of Alcoholic Beverages and Extremely High Levels of High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (HALP) in the ELSA-Brasil Cohort Baseline. Nutrients. 2023 Feb 28;15(5):1221