Evidence is accumulating that regular, moderate drinking of alcohol can cut the risk of getting rheumatoid arthritis (RA). According to a July 11 press release, a major study in Sweden reported in BMJ, women who drank more than three glasses of alcohol a week for a period of at least 10 years had about half the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis than did the non-drinkers. The study was of 34, 000 women born between 1914 and 1948. They were followed up from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2009.
Alcohol Cuts Rheumatoid Arthritis Risk
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Secondary
The researchers reported that the risk of developing RA decreased with alcohol intake of between two and four glasses a week, but no further decreases were seen with intake above four glasses a week. Since there were no heavy drinkers in the study group the effects of high doses of alcohol were unknown.
The level of reduction in risk was similar for wine, beer and spirits, which led the study authors to conclude that the protective ingredient in the alcohol was ethanol. The authors concluded that the results of their study added to the body of evidence that moderate alcohol consumption was not harmful and could even be protective against chronic diseases such as arthritis.
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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