Leggi l’articolo in Italiano

In recent years, alcohol has seemingly been getting more and more villainized. Across Europe, we’re seeing stricter proposals for regulations that include graphic labels, advertising bans, and higher taxes, with the goals of seeing alcohol treated like tobacco. Yet the more recent scientific evidence paints a more encouraging picture: Moderation is key, and the responsible enjoyment of alcohol can coexist with a healthy lifestyle.

SCIENCE BACKS MODERATION, NOT ABSTINENCE 

Large-scale studies confirm what Mediterranean cultures have long had ingrained in their diets: Moderate drinking, when paired with a balanced lifestyle, can confer health benefits. A 2025 meta-analysis, including 28 studies between 2010 and 2024, found that moderate alcohol consumption, that being 1-2 drinks a day, can actually lower one’s risk of all-cause mortality. While a different study, Risk Threshold for Alcohol Consumption, which combined 83 studies containing a total of 599,912 participants, found that 100 grams of alcohol per week, roughly a glass of wine per day, was tied with the lowest risk of overall mortality across all levels.

THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION STATEMENT    

The American Heart Association’s scientific statement echoes this data, noting that light to moderate alcohol consumption actually lowers the risk of coronary heart disease, heart failure, and stroke. However, it does emphasize the risk of heavy or binge drinking in one’s lifestyle, where we see the risk of each grow with heavy drinking.

NEW EVIDENCE ON WINE AND CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH

In 2025, a systematic review performed by Ahmad Toubasi and Thuraya Al-Sayegh found that moderate wine consumption was linked to a 49% lower risk of Ischemic stroke, while heavy drinking was found to increase the chance of stroke significantly. Similarly, a PREDIMED study performed in Spain found that participants with moderate levels of urinary tartaric acid, an indicator of wine consumption, had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease when also paired with the Mediterranean diet. The science shows a clearer picture every day: light to moderate alcohol consumption with a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle is not only compatible with good health, but may even help support it.

EUROPE TOWARDS MODERATION

Recent data from the World Health Organization’s 2024 Global Status Report on Alcohol reported that harmful alcohol use in the EU fell by over 20% in recent years. That means rates of binge drinking, unhealthy alcohol consumption, and underage drinking have already begun to decline, showing Europe’s embrace of a healthier relationship with alcohol.

EDUCATION OVER PROHIBITIONS

If we aim to improve public health, the key isn’t in prohibition but in education and targeted preventive measures.

In reality, an effective alcohol policy should consist of:

• Supporting citizens in making informed and responsible choices
• Focus central interventions on high-risk groups
• Recognizing moderate alcohol consumption as part of a healthy, balanced lifestyle

Overly rigid alcohol restrictions ignore the positive tie between moderate alcohol consumption and its health benefits. We’ve already made great strides in reducing harmful drinking; now we must further reinforce this progress, not through fear and prohibitions, but through education and moderation.

Read Fewer Myths, More Data: Alcohol Seen Without Prejudice>>>