A recent study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association revealed that moderate and heavy alcohol consumption were linked with hypertension and cardio vascular risk in patients with type 2 diabetes. 10200 eligible participants from the ACCORD (Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes) trial were chosen as the study cohort to analyze the association of alcohol consumption with prevalent hypertension.

      Alcohol consumption was categorized as none, light (1–7 drinks/week), moderate (8–14 drinks/week), and heavy (≥15 drinks/week). Blood pressure was categorized using American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines as normal, elevated blood pressure, stage 1 hypertension, and stage 2 hypertension. Multivariable logistic regression was used to explore the association between alcohol consumption and prevalent hypertension. The study observed that light alcohol consumption was not associated with elevated blood pressure or any stage hypertension. But moderate alcohol consumption was associated with elevated blood pressure, stage 1, and stage 2 hypertension (odds ratio [OR], 1.79; 95% CI, 1.04–3.11, P=0.03; OR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.05–2.60, P=0.03; and OR, 1.62; 95% CI, 1.03–2.54, P=0.03, respectively) and heavy alcohol consumption was associated with elevated blood pressure, stage 1, and stage 2 hypertension (OR, 1.91; 95% CI, 1.17–3.12, P=0.01; OR, 2.49; 95% CI, 1.03–6.17, P=0.03; and OR, 3.04; 95% CI, 1.28–7.22, P=0.01, respectively).

      These observations strongly correlate the association between moderate alcohol consumption with hypertension in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and elevated cardiovascular risk. It also marked a dose‐risk relationship with the amount of alcohol consumed and the degree of hypertension.