"The idea that alcohol might be good for our hearts and blood vessels is a popular one right up there with the notion that chocolate is a health food. But before you pour your next cocktail beer or glass of wine you should know this the science suggesting a benefit has never been conclusive. And some experts believe the evidence is getting thinner all the time. In health as elsewhere if something looks too good to be true it should be treated with great caution says an editorial httpdx.doi.org.bmj.h published this week in the medical journal BMJ. Mike Daube professor of health policy at Curtin University in Australia writes that the oncetouted benefits of moderate drinking are now evaporating. His editorial accompanies a British study http that finds death rates among moderate drinkers and nondrinkers are not different enough to suggest any real health benefits for drinkers. The only possible exception women over age . Also a recent Swedish study found that middleaged people having more than two drinks a day  just above the moderate level for men  had a markedly increased stroke risk. Studies will continue and not everyone has given up the idea that moderate drinking  up to two drinks a day for men and one day for women  might have some cardiovascular benefits. Heres what U.S. experts say you need to know for now  Any benefits are unclear. I cannot prove and I dont think anyone can prove that alcohol consumption can prevent anyone from dying or prevent heart attacks says Kenneth Mukamal an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School Boston. But he says some studies show moderate drinking can boost levels of good HDL cholesterol and a hormone key to blood sugar control. Some studies following moderate drinkers and nondrinkers for decades find lower death rates and fewer heart attacks and strokes in the drinkers he says. But those studies do not prove alcohol is the reason for the differences. One theory backed by the new British study the results are skewed by the fact that some nondrinkers are former drinkers with health problems.  The risks are real. For some people even moderate drinking is clearly risky. Those include people taking bloodthinning medicines and those with uncontrolled high blood pressure says Curtis Rimmerman a cardiologist at Cleveland Clinic. Alcohol raises blood pressure and thins blood he say. Its also a source of nonessential liquid calories a big concern in an overweight nation he says. And heavy drinking is not good for anyone It has long been linked with stroke heart failure and many noncardiovascular hazards including car crashes.  Gender matters. Women are advised to drink less than men partly because they tend to be smaller. But thats not the only reason says Lori Mosca a professor of medicine at Columbia University Medical Center and a spokesperson for the American Heart Association. Our blood vessels have a different hormonal milieu she says and women are more vulnerable to the anticlotting effects of alcohol  something that could raise the risk of bleeding strokes. Another consideration even light drinking is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer according the National Cancer Institute.  Age matters too. Theres no evidence drinking in your s or s has any health benefits. At those ages any benefit we get from moderate drinking is only to the extent that someone who is moderately drinking is not heavily drinking Mukamal says.  Theres probably nothing special about wine. About a decade ago there was this myth that red wine was better than white wine and wine was better than beer and spirits Mosca says. Studies have failed to prove any difference. I dont want to be a killjoy Mosca says. But I would never recommend alcohol as a preventative intervention. There may be some evidence that perhaps one glass with a meal is OK says Demetrius Lopes a neurological surgeon at Rush University Medical Center Chicago and another spokesperson the heart association. But its a slippery slope to saying OK maybe two is better. I do think people dont know the dangers. Alcohol guidelines No health agency or major medical group recommends drinking for health. But if you do drink groups including the American Heart Association and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend  No more than two drinks a day for men.  No more than one drink a day for women and none for pregnant women. A drink is   ounces of beer   ounces of wine  . ounces of proof spirits or  ounce of proof spirits."