Moderate alcohol use may protect against some types of heart disease, but not peripheral artery disease (PAD) or stroke, a new report concludes.

Doctor's Guide reported June 11 that Greek researchers told colleagues at the 76th Congress of the European Arteriosclerosis Society that a study of more than 4,000 adults classified as nondrinkers or mild drinkers, moderate drinkers, or heavy drinkers found that moderate drinking had a beneficial effect on cardiovascular disease in general, whereas heavy drinking increased the risk of heart disease.

However, moderate drinking had no impact on prevalence of PAD or stroke. Researchers speculated that while moderate alcohol use helped raise (good) HDL cholesterol, it might be offset by increased blood pressure, raising the risk of stroke.