Reacción a "Reactions: meta-analysis shows that drinking low doses of alcohol, up to 25 grams a day, is not associated with changes in mortality"

This is a systematic review and meta-analysis that jointly analyses data from a large number of studies to find out the effects of drinking different amounts of alcohol on the risk of death. It follows the relevant methodological recommendations and can therefore be considered of good quality. 

There is now no doubt that heavy drinking is clearly detrimental to health, but controversy remains about the effects of moderate drinking, although studies with more rigorous methodologies are increasingly appearing that show no benefit from drinking small amounts. The results of this study are along these lines, as they do not find a lower risk of death for low or moderate consumption, but a higher risk for high consumption. Moreover, in women the risk starts to increase with lower amounts of alcohol, something that is already known and is reflected in lower risk limits set for women than for men. The results could be perfectly applicable to our environment, since the work includes numerous studies carried out in several countries, including our own. 

Limitations of the paper include possible errors in the amounts participants say they drink, and in the classification of non-drinkers, since in some studies it is difficult to know whether they have never really drank or have stopped drinking because of health problems. 

As a result of this work, alcohol consumption should not be recommended to improve health, even in small quantities, and it should be clear that, if you drink, the less the better.