A tipple a day keeps the doctor at bay

London: Here's a perfect excuse to go out for a drink tonight -- a tipple a day keeps the doctor at bay, say researchers.

A new study, published in 'The Lancet' journal, has found that people who down a drink or two daily are not only healthier but they also possess a lower risk of developing heart disease than those who abstain from alcohol.

In fact, for some people this risk could be reduced by as much as a quarter, the study says. The study also revealed that mild alcohol intake can actually improve blood cholesterol levels and reduce other important compounds in the blood linked to inflammation; it is this process that may help protect the heart and blood vessels from clogging up, the 'Daily Express' reported.

The study has reviewed over 84 cases in alcohol consumption and its relation to death. In the study, the researchers at the Calgary Institute for Population and Public Health in Canada showed that a drink a day reduced the risk of heart disease by 25 per cent. It also reduced the risk of dying from heart disease by a quarter and of having a stroke by two per cent.

However, the study found that drinking heavily raises the risk of all these health problems. In a separate study by the same research team, it found that moderate alcohol intake actually boosted levels of "good" cholesterol and other blood biomarkers which might explain its "healthy heart" effect.