It has long been accepted that moderate wine consumption is good for the heart. However a new study has found that this may not be the case if a person is overweight or obese.

According to Australian scientists, it is well established that alcohol increases the risk of most chronic diseases, ‘with the exception of a reported cardio-protective role from moderate alcohol intake'.

The scientists decided to investigate this further because the original studies that found this protective effect were carried out decades ago when people were, on average, slimmer.

"We were concerned that the findings from a previous generation may not apply to our modern, fatter population. So we revisited the data and examined the differences between slimmer and fatter men," explained lead scientist, Dr Tim Lobstein, of Curtin University.

The study showed that while the results remained largely the same for slimmer men, there was a risk to the heart heath of men with a body mass index (BMI) of 27.5 or more.

A BMI higher than 25 is considered overweight, while over 30 is obese.

"In effect, the standard advice about a small amount of alcohol being good for the heart doesn't stack up for overweight men," Dr Lobstein said.

He acknowledged that further studies would need to be carried out to confirm the findings and the data for women would need to be checked. However, he insisted that the findings indicate that health messages about ‘safe' levels of alcohol consumption need to be reviewed.

"We know that apart from heart disease, other causes of disease are made worse by even small amounts of alcohol, including cancer, diabetes and stroke - the major chronic disease killers. For now, the advice has to be that there is no such thing as a beneficial level of consumption, especially if you are overweight."

Details of these findings are published in the Australia and New Zealand Journal of Public Health.