Does drinking an excessive amount of alcohol increase the amount of fat deposits in the body? The answer is yes according to new findings from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine found that heavy alcohol consumption is associated with higher levels of ectopic fat, which refers to fat around organs such as the heart, liver and intestines.
Computerized tomography scans were performed in a subset of participants, which enabled the research team to analyze data on the amount of fat that can build up in certain locations such as around the heart and in the liver .
The research team found that heavy alcohol consumption and binge drinking, compared to participants who never had alcohol, was associated with significantly higher pericardial fat. Results were similar for other ectopic depots with the strongest associations for pericardial and hepatic. When compared with beer and liquor or"hard" spirits, consumption of wine appeared to be less associated with higher pericardial fat, but according to Kazibwe, one possible explanation might be the benefits of polyphenols, beneficial compounds found in wine.
Kazibwe said that multiple previous studies have reported a J-shaped relationship between alcohol consumption and cardiovascular risk where low-moderate alcohol consumption is tied to the lowest cardiovascular risks, while excessive alcohol intake is linked to a higher risk.
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