Alcohol: Does it affect blood pressure?

November, 15th, 2023

, Answer Section, ,

Drinking too much alcohol can raise blood pressure to unhealthy levels. Having more than three drinks in one sitting temporarily raises blood pressure. Repeated binge drinking can lead to long-term increases in blood pressure.

To understand how much alcohol is too much, it may be helpful to know the definitions of excessive drinking.

• Binge drinking is defined as four or more drinks within two hours for women and five or more drinks within two hours for men.
• Moderate drinking is up to one drink a day for women, two for men.
• Heavy alcohol use is defined as more than three drinks a day for women, four for men.

Heavy alcohol users who cut back to moderate drinking can lower their top number in a blood pressure reading (systolic pressure) by about 5.5 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) and their bottom number (diastolic pressure) by about 4 mm Hg.

If you have high blood pressure, avoid alcohol or drink alcohol only in moderation. For healthy adults, that means up to one drink a day for women and up to two drinks a day for men.

A drink is 12 ounces (355 milliliters) of beer, 5 ounces (148 milliliters) of wine or 1.5 ounces (44 milliliters) of 80-proof distilled spirits.

Keep in mind that alcohol contains calories and may cause weight gain. Weight gain is a risk factor for high blood pressure. Alcohol may interact with certain blood pressure medications. It may affect the level of the medication in the body or increase side effects.