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Until five years ago the consensus view was that moderate alcohol consumption lowered all-cause mortality compared to non-drinkers.

Latest meta-analyses say that after controlling for reasons behind non-drinkers (‘former alcoholics’) the effect disappears.

Good starting point is https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/26997174/

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Thank you for sharing this research. As someone who abstains from drinking and is very health-conscious, I've been conflicted about all the research supposedly showing health benefits of moderate drinking. The evidence just seemed too intuitive. This gives me something to explore.

And in five years the consensus might change again. Excessive use of everything is harmful. Use common sense.

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