Alcohol Consumption and Risk for Development of Impaired Fasting Glucose or Type 2 Diabetes in Middle-Aged Japanese Men

Abstract

OBJECTIVE—To investigate the association between alcohol consumption and risk for development of diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—We examined 2,953 Japanese male office workers aged 35–59 years who did not have impaired fasting glucose (IFG) (a fasting plasma glucose concentration of 6.1–6.9 mmol/l), type 2 diabetes (a fasting plasma glucose concentration of ≥7.0 mmol/l or receipt of hypoglycemic medication), medication for hypertension, or a history of cardiovascular disease. Fasting plasma glucose concentrations were measured at periodic annual health examinations from May 1994 through May 2001.

RESULTS—There was a U-shaped association between alcohol consumption and the incidence of IFG or type 2 diabetes during 7 years of follow-up, with the lowest incidence at alcohol intake of 23.0–45.9 g ethanol/day. After controlling for age, family history of diabetes, BMI, cigarette smoking, and physical activity, the relative risk for development of IFG or type 2 diabetes compared with alcohol consumption of 23.0–45.9 g ethanol/day was 1.51 (95% CI, 1.07–2.13), 1.31 (95% CI, 0.93–1.84), 1.18 (95% CI, 0.87–1.61), and 1.43 (95% CI, 1.01–2.02) with alcohol consumption of 0, 0.1–22.9, 46.0–68.9, and ≥69.0 g ethanol/day, respectively (P for quadratic trend = 0.016). Analyses by presence or absence of a risk factor revealed that a U-shaped association was more evident in older men, men without a family history of diabetes, and nonsmokers.

CONCLUSIONS—These results indicate that moderate alcohol consumption among apparently healthy Japanese men is associated with reduced risk for development of IFG or type 2 diabetes.