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People with hypertension (high blood pressure) who binge drink are much more likely to die than other individuals, says a study published in the medical journal Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association. The definition of hypertension in this study was blood pressure of at least 168 /100 millimeters of mercury. (Source: Medical News Today, 8/20/10)

Treatment for high blood pressure as a result of binge drinking has increased 74 percent in five years in the U.K., the Daily Mail reported June 28. Hospitals treated approximately 330,000 patients for drinking-related hypertension in 2008-2009, up from 191,000 in 2004-2005, according the U.K. Department of Health. One in five Britons suffer from high blood pressure, and the country’s notorious pub culture a likely factor: Men who drink more than eight servings of alcohol per day quadruple their risk of hypertension, while women who drink more than six per day double their risk. (Source: Join Together, 7/1/10)