A glass of wine may ease the retirement blues — but there are caveats

If you’ve recently retired and turned to a modest drink to cope with low mood, don’t be too hard on yourself, researchers from the U.S. and Chile say.

They found that moderate alcohol use during this transition may help protect against depression. But the researchers warn against drinking even modest amounts every day for new retirees.

How Was the Study Conducted?

The research team involved over 27,500 participants. For 14 years, they monitored the health of these individuals while tracking their alcohol consumption habits.

The researchers observed that retirees showed more signs of depression than people who were still working. But the analysis found retirees who drank in moderation reported fewer depressive symptoms than those who either abused alcohol or abstained completely.

The researchers defined moderate drinking as one to three servings of wine per day for women and one to four servings per day for men.

Alcohol abuse was defined as four or more servings per day for women and five or more for men.

One serving of alcohol was counted as a standard unit — 10 grams of pure alcohol, roughly 25 grams of vodka, 100 grams of dry wine, or 200 grams of beer.

The authors say moderate drinking was linked to fewer depressive symptoms, which they suggest could reflect alcohol’s short-term mood-lifting effects and increased socializing, according to the Daily Mail.

Daily Drinking Is Too Much

But the researchers cautioned that drinking even moderate amounts every day to cope with retirement is risky.

Dr. Antonia Díaz-Valdés from Universidad Mayor (Chile) warned, “Alcohol consumption increases the risk of falls and other injuries and can lead to dependency and deteriorating health.”

The authors emphasized the importance of providing psychological support to people transitioning into retirement to prevent excessive alcohol use and help them adapt to change.

The study’s findings were published in the journal Aging and Mental Health.

Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) say there is no safe level of alcohol consumption for health.