Links Between Alcohol Sales Laws and Disease Prediction

(Fall 2016) The University of California, San Francisco recently released the results of a study investigating possible correlations between alcohol usage and cardiovascular disease. The study is the largest of its kind to date and concludes that laws prohibiting alcohol sales may have both positive and negative impacts on public health. The study’s subject is relevant, as alcohol is one of the most-used drugs and heart disease is a leading cause of death around the globe.

Using data from Texas, researchers learned that counties that alcohol sales – “wet counties” – reported a greater frequency and pervasiveness of liver disease, alcohol misuse and some heart problems and a smaller number of heart attacks and congestive heart failure compared to counties which didn’t permit alcohol sales – “dry counties.”

Since this was an observational study, its authors can only conclude that there is a correlation between “wet counties” and lower rates of some heart diseases. They suggest scientifically-controlled studies to further investigate this issue.

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