[Smoking, alcohol and peptic ulcer in the elderly]

The associations between smoking, alcohol intake and peptic ulcer have been investigated not a few. And it is obvious that smoking aggravate peptic ulcers. With increasing age the percentage of smoker decrease, however, 49.2 percent of men at ages over 70 still smoke in Japan. Giving up smoking is important in the prevention of peptic ulcers. On the other hand, it is not regarded that peptic ulcers are correlated with alcohol intake. But alcohol intake causes the acute injury of the gastric mucosa. It seems that moderate drinking is important in the prevention of peptic ulcers, especially in the elderly.