Correspondence (letter to the editor): Too Much Alcohol

In the section on lifestyle modifications in type 2 diabetes, you mention, among others, that moderate amounts of alcohol are allowed (up to 15 g/day for women; up to 30 g/day for men). I think that these amounts are too high, for two reasons. On the one hand, the World Health Organization's recommended amounts that are probably not detrimental to health are 0.125 L of wine for women (equivalent to 12 g alcohol) and 0.2 L wine for men (equivalent to 20 g alcohol). This does, however, apply to the general population. In diabetes patients, the risk of developing polyneuropathy is clearly increased. Alcohol is the second most important risk factor for this pathology, and the risk in diabetes patients who consume alcohol on a regular basis is therefore disproportionally increased. This also corresponds to my own experience, that diabetes patients who regularly consume alcohol develop polyneuropathies and diabetic foot more often than those who don't. A further argument is the not insubstantial amount of “empty” calories, which is likely to get in the way of the recommended weight loss. For this reason I do not think that your recommendation is expedient—or do you have study results that confirm the recommendation to be health promoting or at least not harmful?