Alcohol consumption is directly associated with circulating oxidized low-density lipoprotein

Findings on the association of alcohol consumption and oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which is thought to play a crucial role in the generation of atherosclerotic lesion, are inconsistent. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of total alcohol consumption and type of alcoholic beverage with circulating plasma LDL oxidation. This cross-sectional study included data of circulating oxidized LDL (ox-LDL) from a subpopulation of 587 men and women enrolled in a population-based survey conducted in 2000 in Girona (Spain). Multivariate analysis was performed to describe the independent association of alcohol consumption and ox-LDL. Increasing alcohol consumption was associated with high in vivo ox-LDL levels in the present population. The consumption of 10 g of alcohol was associated with an increase of 2.40 U/L of ox-LDL (p = 0.002). Adjustment for dietary variables, leisure-time physical activity, educational level, smoking, LDL-cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, glycemia, triglycerides, diabetes, body mass index, waist circumference, and systolic and diastolic blood pressures only slightly modified this association (p = 0.003). In this full adjusted model the consumption of 10 g of alcohol per day was associated with an increase of 2.11 U/L of ox-LDL. Consumption of wine (ml/day) was associated with increasing ox-LDL levels (p = 0.029), however, attenuated after controlling for alcohol. No significant relationship of ox-LDL with alcohol-independent consumption of wine, beer, and spirits was observed. Alcohol consumption was independently and directly associated with circulating ox-LDL in the present population.