Theories about the potential health benefits of moderate alcohol consumption have been evolving in modern medicine for almost a century now, since Pearl's work on the relationship between alcohol intake and reduced mortality. Although this work was largely ignored by the medical profession at the time, the principal findings are now widely accepted among the profession and the general public alike; up to a hundred epidemiological studies conducted over the past three decades have demonstrated that moderate drinkers seem to be healthier and seem to have lower mortality rates than non-drinkers and heavy drinkers, the so-called U or J shaped curve. The resulting assumption has been that the pharmacological properties of alcohol, when consumed in moderation, have significant health benefits, especially with respect to cardiovascular disease. As a result, some expert groups have advised, albeit with caution, moderate alcohol consumption for middle aged and older men and post-menopausal women, i.e. those individuals at highest risk of cardiovascular disease