Moderate alcohol intake reduces bile cholesterol saturation and raises HDL cholesterol.
The effect of alcohol on plasma high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and on bile cholesterol saturation was measured in 12 healthy volunteers with a very low initial alcohol intake who drank 39 g alcohol daily for six weeks, and then abstained from alcohol for 6 weeks. HDL cholesterol (mean +/- SEM) rose significantly from 1.07 +/- 0.05 to 1.25 +/- 0.08 mmol/l (41.4 +/- 1.9 to 48.3 +/- 3.1 mg/dl) when alcohol was being consumed and fell to 1.04 +/- 0.06 mmol/l (40.2 +/- 2.3 mg/dl) during abstention. Bile cholesterol saturation index fell from 1.31 +/- 0.06 to 1.08 +/- 0.06 during the period of alcohol consumption and rose to 1.27 +/- 0.09 during abstention. There was a significant inverse correlation between bile saturation index and HDL cholesterol (r = -0.56). These data provide further evidence of a biochemical link between cardiovascular disease and cholesterol gallstones and suggest that moderate alcohol intake has some protective effect against both diseases.
D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001646:Bile / Q000378:metabolism*; D002769:Cholelithiasis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000517:prevention & control; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000517:prevention & control; D000431:Ethanol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008075:Lipoproteins, HDL / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D008075:Lipoproteins, HDL; D000431:Ethanol; D002784:Cholesterol