BMJ 1994;309:1581 (10 December)

Letters

Moderate drinking and loss of brain cells

Factor converting imperial to metric measures was wrong

EDITOR,--Pekka J Karhunen and colleagues' thought provoking paper on moderate alcohol consumption and loss of cerebellar Purkinje cells seems to provide a further basis on which to advise our patients (and ourselves) on safe drinking limits.1 Those familiar with imperial measures may, however, have become alarmed that the loss of cerebellar Purkinje cells was significantly increased above a daily alcohol consumption quoted as 2 fluid ounces (fl oz) of wine or 0.5 fl oz of spirits.

A useful tool in interpreting research is to place results in an everyday context: 1 fl oz is only 1.6 tablespoons full. The Finns may, however, be less familiar with imperial than with metric measures. Karhunen and colleagues seem to have applied a conversion factor to their metric data that was incorrect by a multiple of 7.75--1 fl oz is equivalent to 28.4 ml, not 220 . . . [Full text of this article]


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Relevant Article

Moderate alcohol consumption and loss of cerebellar Prikinje cells
P J Karhune, T Erkinjuntti, and P Laippala
BMJ 1994 308: 1663-1667. [Abstract] [Full Text]

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