Smoking, alcohol consumption, lipid and lipoprotein levels

The lipid profiles of 1165 French Canadian men (aged 42 to 59 years) were studied and related to drinking and smoking habits. Alcohol consumption and smoking were closely related, smokers consuming twice as much alcohol as non-smokers. When relative body weight, total cholesterol, triglyceride and alcohol consumption were controlled in a covariate analysis, plasma levels of high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, HDL2 and HDL3 differed significantly between smokers, ex-smokers and nonsmokers. Ex-smokers had higher levels of HDL cholesterol than nonsmokers who had higher levels than smokers. The higher levels of HDL in ex-smokers could be explained by the confounding effects of alcohol intake. Alcohol users had significantly higher levels of HDL cholesterol, HDL2 and HDL3 than nondrinkers. Men who drank the equivalent of more than 3 ounces of absolute alcohol per week had significantly higher levels of HDL cholesterol and HDL3 than those who drank less than 3 ounces or did not drink at all. HDL2 levels were only significantly different between nondrinkers and those who consumed more than 3 ounces per week. These results show that smoking and alcohol have strong but opposing effects on HDL and its subfractions in middle-aged French Canadian men.