Drinking one or two alcoholic beverages per day seems to reduce plaque buildup in the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart, new research indicates. This may help explain why moderate alcohol use has been tied to a reduced risk of heart disease.

The findings are based on a study of 1795 subjects without heart disease who were evaluated with CT scans to look for calcium deposits in the coronaries, an indicator of plaque build-up.

Dr. Jacqueline C. M. Witteman, from Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, and colleagues report their findings in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Seventeen percent of subjects consumed one or two alcoholic drinks per day. Sixty-two percent of subjects consumed less than this amount and 21 percent consumed more.

Subjects who consumed one or two drinks per day had the fewest calcium deposits, while non-drinkers had the most. The other subjects fell between these two extremes.

SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine, November 22, 2004.