ONE pint a day increases blood pressure and damages your heart, a new study has found.

Scientists say that consuming between seven and 13 drink a week can substantially increase the risk of hypertension.

Researchers analysed data from more than 17,000 US adults, who were quizzed on their drinking habits and had their blood pressure measured.

Participants were split into three groups - those who never drank alcohol, moderate drinks (seven to 13 drinks a week) and heavy drinks (14 or more drinks a week).

They defined first stage of hypertension, stage 1, as having systolic blood pressure between 130-139 or diastolic pressure between 80-89.

The next, stage 2 hypertension, was assessed as having systolic pressure above 140 or diastolic pressure above 90.

Researchers found that compare with those who never drank, moderate drinkers were 53 per cent more likely to have stage 1 hypertension and twice as likely to have stage 2.

Heavy drinkers were 69 per cent more likely to have stage 1 hypertension and 2.4 times as likely to have stage 2 hypertension.

Overall, the average blood pressure was about 109/67 mm Hg among never-drinkers, 128/79 mm Hg among moderate drinkers and 153/82 mm Hg among heavy drinkers.

Dr Amer Aladin, a cardiology fellow at Wake Forest Baptist Health in North Carolina and the study's lead author, said: "It's the first study showing that both heavy and moderate alcohol consumption can increase hypertension."

Researchers said that alcohol's impact on blood pressure could stem from a variety of factors because it increases appetite as it's very energy-dense, so drinking often leads to greater caloric intake overall.

Alcohol's activities in the brain and liver could also contribute to spikes in blood pressure, they said.

Dr Aladin said the study's large sample size likely helps explain why the findings appear to contrast with previous studies in this area.

"This study is not only large but diverse in terms of race and gender," he said.

"If you are drinking a moderate or large amount of alcohol, ask your provider to check your blood pressure at each visit and help you cut down your drinking and eventually quit."