Top doctor moots daily bottle of wine for good health
22 Apr 2014
Dismissing the widely accepted limit of four units of alcohol a day, top Helsinki University researcher Dr Kari Poikolainen has hiked the intake to 13 units - equivalent of six pints of strong ale - a day as being an acceptable daily consumption limit.
Dr Poikolainen's studies, based on decades of research into the effects of alcohol consumption suggested drinkers lived longer than people who did not drink, according to Daily Star.
According to the Helsinki University professor, who used to work for the World Health Organisation, the evidence showed that moderate drinking was better than abstaining and heavy drinking was worse than abstaining.
Dr Poikolainen said drinking was only harmful when people consumed more than 13 units a day, which was four to five pints of beer or more than a bottle of wine - which typically contained around 10 units.
Dr Poikolainen reportedly told The Mail that the weight of evidence showed moderate drinking was better than abstaining and heavy drinking was worse than abstaining – though the moderate amounts could be higher than what the guidelines said.