Alcohol is healthy because it can reduce heart disease.

The argument

Heart disease, such as heart attacks and strokes, are a major cause of death and medical problems in our society. Alcohol has been linked to reduction of heart disease. Alcohol consumption can increase healthy HDL cholesterol levels in the bloodstream, which protects against heart disease. It can also reduce blood clotting and inflammation, both of which can cause heart attacks or strokes.

Premises

Counter-arguments

-There is not proven causational evidence for alcohol improving heart health. -Not everyone who consumes alcohol will do so in healthy amounts. -Alcohol can cause other health problems such as obesity that outweigh its benefits.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] Not in dispute, and it establishes only that cardiovascular risk matters — which no one denies. [Rejecting P2] The mechanisms are real and the population evidence is far weaker than the premise implies. The apparent benefit comes largely from observational studies whose non-drinking comparison groups include people who stopped because they were already ill, and genetic studies designed to avoid that problem find no protective effect — with recent reviews concluding there is no level of consumption that improves health overall. [Rejecting C] The conclusion generalises from one organ system to health as a whole. Alcohol is an established carcinogen and contributes to liver disease, hypertension and dependence, none of which the premises weigh against the effect they describe.