Listen to Story Drinking alcohol on a flight may seem like the height of luxury, often glamorised in cinema as an indulgent experience. However, a recent study highlights the serious health risks associated with drinking alcohol during flights. Published in the medical journal Thorax , the study reveals that a mix of alcohol and cabin pressure at cruising altitude may pose a risk to the heart health of sleeping passengers, especially on long-haul flights (flights 6 hours and over).
Researchers discovered that when passengers fall asleep after drinking alcohol , their heart rate increases while their blood pressure drops, even in young individuals with no significant medical history. This situation is particularly hazardous for those with heart conditions. The combination of alcohol and the low-pressure environment at high altitudes causes blood oxygen levels to decrease sharply.
Researchers discovered that when passengers fall asleep after drinking, their heart rate increases while their blood pressure drops, even in young individuals with no significant medical history. (Photo: Getty Images) This leads to hypobaric hypoxia, a condition where the brain receives insufficient oxygen at higher altitudes, which can be life-threatening. The findings revealed that the combination of alcohol and simulated cabin pressure at cruising altitude caused SpO2 levels (oxygen saturation) to drop to an average of just over 85%, while heart rate increased to nearly 88 beats per minute during sleep as a compensatory response.
The period of REM (rapid eye movement, a kind of sleep that occurs at intervals during the night) sleep was also shorter among those exposed to hypobaric hypoxia and alcohol. "Together these results indicate that, even in young and healthy individuals, the combination of alcohol intake with sleeping under hypobaric conditions poses a considerable strain on the cardiac system and might lead to exacerbation of symptoms in patients with cardiac or pulmonary diseases," the researchers wrote..
