Eat drink and be

the associations of moderate alcohol drinking and bone health are also seen in early postmenopausal Scottish women, with 1-2 alcoholic drinks/d being associated with less bone loss (5). Those who drink alcohol in moderation may have healthier lifestyles and this may confound the relation between bone health and alcohol intake (6). However, this does not explain why for postmenopausal women there is a consistent dose-response relation.

Beer contains silicon (7), small quantities of B vitamins (8), and bioactive polyphenols. Silicon has been reported to be essential for bone growth, and B-complex vitamins (vitamin B-6, vitamin B-12, and folate) are known to reduce circulating homocysteine, which has been associated with increased fracture risk. Wine, particularly red wine, contains a range of phytochemicals, many of which could plausibly influence bone metabolism, including resveratrol, which has estrogenic activity (9). White wine contains fewer bioactive components than red wine, but consumption of different wine types was not given in the Tucker et al study. If nonalcoholic constituents explain the positive associations between bone health and alcohol consumption, it can be argued that they can be obtained from other sources besides alcoholic drinks. The possible estrogenic effect of alcohol in relation to bone deserves further consideration in women. There is recent evidence that estradiol attenuates the effects of ethanol in osteoblasts but that ethanol impairs estrogen receptor signaling (10).