Sensitivity of circulatory response to alcohol influences the relationship between alcohol consumption and blood pressure in Orientals

Figures & data

Table I. Profiles of the groups of subjects with low and high sensitivities of circulatory response to alcohol.

	Low sensitivity	High sensitivity
Number	177	129
Age (years)	39.0 (11.0)	41.4 (9.8)
ALST score	0.58 (0.75)**	5.16 (1.44)
Amount of drinking (g/day)	28.2 (28.9)**	16.0 (25.2)
Percentage of smokers (%)	61.4	60.5
BMI	22.96 (2.63)	23.29 (2.98)
SBP (mmHg)	128.5 (13.0)	129.8 (13.7)
DBP (mmHg)	74.9 (9.6)	76.8 (10.0)
Therapy for hypertension (%)	2.8	4.7

The data are expressed as means with standard deviations in parentheses.

ALST, alcohol sensitivity screening test (see the Methods); BMI, body mass index; SBP, systolic blood pressure; DBP, diastolic blood pressure.

Asterisks denote significant difference (p<0.01) from the values in the groups of subjects with high sensitivity to alcohol.

Table II. Relationships of alcohol drinking with blood pressure and BMI in the subjects with low and high sensitivities of circulatory response to alcohol.

	Low sensitivity			High sensitivity
	Non‐	Light	Moderate‐to‐heavy	Non‐	Light	Moderate‐to‐heavy
Number of subjects	22	91	64	54	50	25
SBP (mmHg)	129.1 (2.6)	126.5 (1.3)*	131.2 (1.5)	128.6 (1.7)*	128.6 (1.8)*	134.6 (2.5)
DBP (mmHg)	75.7 (2.0)	73.9 (1.0)	76.0 (1.2)	76.5 (1.3)	76.2 (1.3)	78.7 (1.9)
BMI	22.76 (0.57)	23.16 (0.28)	22.74 (0.34)	23.64 (0.41)	23.02 (0.42)	23.12 (0.59)
Treatment for hypertension (%)	0	2.2	4.7	1.9	4.0	12.0
Amount of drinking (g/day)	0	13.6 (0.8)	58.8 (3.3)	0	11.3 (1.2)	60.1 (4.9)

The subjects in each group (low or high sensitivity of circulatory response to alcohol) were subdivided into three groups by amount of mean daily alcohol consumption [non‐drinkers, light drinkers (less than 30 g/day) and moderate‐to‐heavy drinkers (30 g/day or more)]. The mean values with standard errors in parentheses of systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressures were calculated after adjustment for age, body mass index (BMI) and treatment for hypertension. The mean values of BMI with standard errors in parentheses were calculated after adjustment for age.

Asterisks denote significant differences (p<0.05) from the values of moderate‐to‐heavy drinkers.

Table III. Results of multiple regression analysis of the relationships of blood pressure with various items, including amount of drinking, in the groups of subjects with low and high sensitivities of circulatory response to alcohol.

	Low sensitivity		High sensitivity
	SBP	DBP	SBP	DBP
Age	0.169*	0.232**	0.221**	0.284**
Amount of drinking	0.107	0.113	0.260**	0.159*
BMI	0.165*	0.154*	0.280**	0.202*
Treatment for hypertension	0.181*	0.114	0.032	−0.061

Age, amount of drinking, BMI (body mass index) and treatment for hypertension were used as explanatory factors in the multiple regression analysis. Standardized regression coefficients are shown.

SBP, systolic blood pressure; DBP, diastolic blood pressure.

*p<0.05; **p<0.01.