It appears that drinking alcohol on long haul flights can be bad for your heart according to a study from the institute of Aerospace in Cologne, Germany. The study, the first of its kind suggests that alcohol plus cabin pressure may threaten the heart health of sleeping passengers.
Researchers established that this combination lowers the amount of oxygen in passengers blood and raises the heart rate, even for those who are young and healthy. The study comprised of 48 people aged 18 to 40. Half slept in a laboratory with normal air pressure and the others in an altitude chamber which mimicked the cabin pressure of a plane travelling at cruising height. The groups slept for four hours, half in each one having drunk no alcohol while the others drank the equivalent of two cans of beer or two glasses of wine.
Those who slept in normal conditions with no alcohol had steady blood oxygen levels at around a healthy 96 percent with a sleeping heart rate of 64 beats per minute (bpm}. However those who drank and were in the altitude chamber had a fall in blood oxygen levels to an average 85 percent and their heart rates typically rose to nearly 88bpm during sleep. This compared to an average blood oxygen level of 88 percent and a sleeping heart rate of 73bpm for those in the altitude chamber who had no alcohol. The participants slept lying down so the findings may differ from those who fly economy class the report stated.
The larger the amount of alcohol consumed the greater the effect could be, especially among older passengers and those with medical conditions. The academics suggested that it may be time to consider limiting on-board access to alcohol, especially on long haul flights.
