This is just a guess...If a small amount of alcohol doesn't trigger a fib, I think its safe. Small meaning 1 drink for women, 2 drinks for men max. a day.

I don't think alcohol is a trigger for everyone with afib. If it is a trigger for you then I would avoid it. See http://www.theheart.org/article/1410959.do

If it is not a trigger then follow the advice of Dr Douglass Severance:
"Consuming too much alcohol at one time can lead to arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation. Studies have found that binge drinking (having five drinks in two hours for men, or four drinks for women) can lead to a higher risk of atrial fibrillation. If you have been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, it is important that you take this seriously and limit drinking to no more than 1 or 2 alcoholic drinks a day. Long-term alcohol use can cause your heart to beat ineffectively and may lead to cardiomyopathy, arrhythmias, and atrial fibrillation. Talk to your doctor about your heart rhythm problem and ask if alcohol may be a concern"

opsyn

Thank you, Marikay and Opsyn for your input. I did not realize that some people with afib could drink daily. Well maybe that is "fair" since I can drink coffee ( 2 cups) daily. For me that is more than fair since ceffeine is my drug of choice.

Alcohol is not a trigger for me if I have one or two beers per week where I drink each one at separate times . Anything more than that I have a "reversible" episode. From a reading of Marcus it looks like those researchers simply do not know how alcohol affects the heart's electrical performance. Hence their prudent recommendation of abstinence. So in answer to my question Marcus et al simply do not know what the long term effect of alcohol is and if their recommendation is in error at least they are erring on the safe ( albeit not fun :) ) side. Thanks again.

Any Alcohol seems to be a trigger for me. I have not had alcohol for over a year, but I still have lots of afib.
I had a terrible episode yesterday:-(

PS. I gave up caffeine when diagnosed (took a month to do it). I seem to be OK with black tea in small amounts every so often.

Chocolate is my Drug of Choice:-)

Sorry you had a tough day yesterday yoga. I hope you're feeling better today. And I'm with you, chocolate is my drug of choice as well. I have track marks on my arms from injecting Hershey Syrup. :)

I think the effect of alcohol varies with the individual. If I have an occasional drink an hour before bedtime, it seems to trigger PACs or PVCs (I don't know which). If I have a couple of drinks 5 or 6 hours before bedtime (every week or two), I have no consequences. Everyone needs to identify their own triggers for AFib.
Mitch

Yoga, I'm so sorry to hear you had an afib event. For me it's like
having run in a triathalon. So tired.

My Doc told me that drinking thins your blood and if you are on blood
thinners it may cause a problem. so I stopped. Sometimes it would
trigger afib and sometimes not. I felt it prudent just to quit.

God bless and hang in there Yogacat. @ Steve, as you know many posts on this subject here on DS. Smoking is a poor comparative and can usually inflict irreparable damage to ones organs and health. AF is a conundrum for many as are each one's triggers. IMO. ;)

Since Alcohol was what triggered my a fib, I worried about the same thing. I asked my doctor and he stated that in moderation it shouldn't be a problem especially since I use to only drink twice a week. Although I took him at his word and drink in moderation without incident it always raised my blood pressure and that alone scared me so my drinking is really down to a minimum now......

Thanks Lance. I think we are in exactly the same boat. Thaks too Surf, the point I was making wtih cigarettes was taht there is no safe level. Each puff gives you thousands of carcinogens each of which by itself I ie one molecule) can mutate one gene of the DNA of one cell adn go down teh slippery slope of cancer. I was wodnering if one molecule of alcohol has such an dramatic effect. The UCSF guys dont appear to know. So we have to completely abstain or rely on our doctors expreience. I unfortunately was nto as articulate as Lance was with hsi Dr.

Thanks to you Mtuch for reconting your experience. That helps

Thank Mitch, not Mtuch