China is a big wine producing country, and also a big drinking country, with a long history of wine culture, and drinking is very common. Within the limits of safe drinking, moderate drinking is beneficial to health, but excessive or incorrect drinking can cause damage to the human heart, nerves and digestive system. First, the current situation of drinking The Chinese Health Association, the Chinese Medical Association and many other units jointly released a survey report on the health of the Chinese people’s drinking in 2007. The survey shows that China has more than 500 million drinkers, and the current drinking ratio of men and women in China is as high as 84.1% and 29.3%, respectively. 65% of the drinking population is unhealthy drinking, and the main problem is excessive drinking, with an average of 2.7 taels of alcohol. The report states that under normal circumstances, men should consume no more than 20-40 grams of pure alcohol per day. The World Health Organization International Collaborative Study points out that the limit of safe drinking for men is no more than 20 grams of alcohol per day; the standard of the U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism is that men’s daily intake of pure alcohol should not exceed 40 grams; the current standard in China is a daily alcohol intake of no more than 15 grams. The average amount of alcohol consumed by the drinking population in China is 2.7 taels (38 degrees wine as the standard), which is converted into 41.04 grams of pure alcohol, exceeding the international safe drinking standard and the current safe drinking standard in China. Second, the danger of excessive drinking to the heart People may know that drinking alcohol can become addictive and lead to toxic encephalopathy and alcoholic liver disease, but they know little about the toxic effects of alcohol on the heart. In fact, alcohol consumption is currently the leading cause of dilated cardiomyopathy in China. Dilated cardiomyopathy caused by alcohol consumption, also known as alcoholic cardiomyopathy, is also now common in the clinic and can progress to heart failure without timely detection and abstinence from alcohol and treatment. How does alcohol damage the heart? 1, Alcohol and its metabolites, acetaldehyde and acetate, can directly poison the heart muscle. 2. Lack of certain vitamins (vitamin B1, etc.), minerals (selenium, etc.) or electrolytes (magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, etc.) can exacerbate the effects of alcohol on the function of the heart muscle. Drinking alcohol leads to diuretic effect and other reasons can lead to the lack of the above substances. Some specific substances added to alcoholic beverages, such as lead (usually found in “moonshine”) or cobalt, can also be toxic to the heart muscle. 4. Cardiomyocytes are the basic units of the heart, with contractile and diastolic properties. Alcohol consumption can cause fibrosis of cardiomyocytes and interstitial myocardium, making the contractile and diastolic functions of the heart muscle diminished. Studies have found that about half of asymptomatic heavy drinkers have echocardiographically confirmed left ventricular hypertrophy and reduced diastolic function. As many as 30% of asymptomatic chronic drinkers have echocardiographically confirmed left ventricular systolic dysfunction. If heavy drinking continues, some individuals will develop alcoholic cardiomyopathy with an enlarged heart and heart failure, manifested by palpitations, breath-holding and arrhythmias. The development of alcoholic cardiomyopathy correlates with the amount of alcohol consumed over a person’s lifetime. In the United States, most men who develop alcoholic cardiomyopathy consume about 80 grams of alcohol or more per day (one liter of wine, eight glasses of beer, or 235 milliliters of spirits) and continue to do so for at least five years. And women’s hearts are more susceptible to the toxicity of alcohol. The diagnostic criteria for alcoholic cardiomyopathy in China are: a history of heavy drinking (about 125ml of pure alcohol, i.e. 4 bottles of beer or 150g of liquor per day) lasting for more than 10 years, with manifestations of heart failure, and if other causes of heart disease can be excluded, the diagnosis of alcoholic cardiomyopathy should be considered. Third, the prevention and treatment of alcoholic cardiomyopathy If there is a history of alcohol consumption, heart enlargement and symptoms of heart failure, the possibility of alcoholic cardiomyopathy should be thought of. It is necessary to visit a specialized cardiology department and improve the relevant examination. Treatment measures include abstinence from alcohol, heart failure and treatment of arrhythmias. Abstinence from alcohol is the fundamental measure to prevent and treat alcoholic cardiomyopathy.