Alcohol consumption and subclinical atherosclerosis among South Asians: Findings from the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) study

Abstract

Background: South Asians are the second fastest growing ethnic group in the United States, and they have a high risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Moderate alcohol consumption has been associated with lower CVD risk in some race/ethnic groups, but the association of alcohol consumption and atherosclerosis in South Asians has not been investigated. Methods and Results: We used data from 906 South Asian participants who participated in the Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) cohort (2010e2012). Alcohol consumption was ascertained via questionnaire, coronary artery calcium (CAC) was measured with computed tomography, and common carotid artery intima-media thickness (cIMT) was measured using B-mode ultrasonography. We used multivariable regression models to examine cross-sectional associations of alcohol consumption with the presence and amount of CAC and cIMT.Compared with never drinkers, participants consuming 4e7 drinks/week had a 63% decreased odds of any CAC after adjusting for potential confounders and mediators. Participants consuming 4e7 drinks/week had significantly lower odds of CAC score between 1 and 300 [OR (95% CI): 0.34 (0.16e0.72)]. A similar inverse association was seen for the odds of CAC>300 [OR (95% CI): 0.28 (0.07e0.97)]. Alcohol consumption of >7 drinks/week was associated with a 0.096 mm increase in common-cIMT. Conclusion: There was an inverse association between the amount of alcohol intake and CAC among South Asians while a positive association was found between alcohol consumption and common-cIMT. Long-term follow-up of the MASALA cohort will examine prospective associations of alcohol intake with the progression of subclinical atherosclerosis, incident CVD events, and mortality. jo urnal homep age: www.el sevie r.co m/locate/nm cd

Subclinical cardiovascular disease and utility of coronary artery calcium score

“…Chevli [147] including 906 South Asian participants with structured interview questionnaire in cross sectional design showed compared to never drinkers those with 4–7 drinks/week had lower risk of having CAC 1–300 (OR:0.34) and CAC > 300 (OR:0.28) in multivariable logistic regression (with adjustment) yet in univariate comparison by chi-squared test never drinkers had lowest CACs > 0 prevalence, furthermore those with > 7 drinks/week had increased cIMT (increase of 0.096) but not a significant change in CACs, nevertheless authors suggested some J-shaped association for CACs to alcohol intake, while author notes limitations for possible residual confounding despite some adjustments, underreported alcohol intake and low number of participants with > 14 drinks/week.…”

Alcohol and Metabolic-associated Fatty Liver Disease

“…With increasing amounts of alcohol consumption, the proportion of males increases dramatically, and the heavy drinkers are almost all men, especially in large, population-based studies. 66 , 126 , 127 Thus, there is an almost inevitable sex bias because of the smaller female samples. As shown by some studies, the effects of alcohol are significantly different between male and female drinkers.…”

Association of Alcohol Consumption and Ideal Cardiovascular Health Among South Asians: The Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South Asians Living in America (MASALA) Study

“…Participants were classified as binge drinkers if they had consumed ≥ 5 drinks in a single day in the past month. (Chevli et al, 2020;Kanaya et al, 2013).…”

“…The studies examining the relationship between alcohol consumption and subclinical atherosclerosis among different ethnicities/races have also shown inconsistent results (McClelland et al, 2008;Pletcher et al, 2005). A recent study from the South Asian population found different associations of alcohol consumption with surrogate markers of subclinical atherosclerosis (Chevli et al, 2020). Thus, studies to increase our understanding of the association of alcohol consumption with health behaviors factors affecting CVD are of paramount importance.…”