A STUDY of men and women age 70 to 79 found that those who downed one to seven alcoholic drinks a week had a significantly lower risk of heart problems or death than those who did not imbibe, researchers said today. Why the apparent protective effect exists is not clear, the report from the US Institute on Ageing and the University of Florida said, but it does not appear to be related to speculation that alcohol consumption has an anti-inflammatory effect. The study involved 2487 men and women, without heart disease and between the ages of 70 and 79, who...