An advisory issued by the United States Surgeon General states that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption.
According to a report based on a review of available scientific literature, alcohol is involved in the risk of various cancers, including breast cancer in women, followed by cancers that affect the digestive system.
In fact, alcohol alone is responsible for nearly 100,000 cancer cases and 20,000 cancer deaths in the United States, according to the review.
“This body of scientific evidence demonstrates a causal relationship between alcohol consumption and an increased risk of at least seven different types of cancer, including breast (in women), colorectum, esophagus, liver, mouth (oral cavity), throat (pharynx), and voice box (larynx),” the notice states.
“The more alcohol you consume, the greater the risk of cancer. For certain cancers, such as breast, mouth and throat cancers, data shows that this risk can start to increase around one drink or less per day.”
Health advice on alcohol consumption can be somewhat mixed, with evidence suggesting that drinking in moderation may actually benefit some aspects of health, contrasting with studies that highlight harm to others .
The link between alcohol and cancer is known and established, but it is generally correlated with excessive alcohol consumption, with US Dietary Guidelines setting “healthy” limits of one to two drinks per day for men and d ‘one or less for women.
Even that, the new opinion says, is too much. An estimated 17 percent of the 20,000 alcohol-related cancer deaths are within recommended drinking limits.
“In 2019, an estimated 96,730 cases of cancer were linked to alcohol consumption, including 42,400 in men and 54,330 in women,” the advisory said. “Globally, 741,300 cases of cancer were linked to alcohol consumption in 2020; 185,100 of these cases were linked to drinking approximately two drinks per day or less.”
There are primarily four mechanisms by which alcohol can increase cancer risk: through increased oxidative stress which damages DNA and proteins; by changing hormone levels, significantly increasing the risk of breast cancer; by increasing the rate at which your body absorbs carcinogens; and breaking down into a toxic compound called acetaldehyde, which also damages DNA.
“The largest alcohol-related cancer burden in the United States is breast cancer in women, with approximately 44,180 cases in 2019, representing 16.4 percent of the total of approximately 270,000 cases of breast cancer in women,” the report reveals.
The purpose of this advisory is to raise awareness of the link between cancer and alcohol consumption, since nearly half of all American adults are unaware that a link even exists. In fact, alcohol is considered a Group 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer. Other members of this group include formaldehyde, ionizing radiation, tobacco, processed meat and asbestos.
The U.S. Dietary Guidelines are expected to be updated this year. The Surgeon General’s office also recommends updating alcohol warning labels to include a warning about cancer risk, as well as improving education efforts at all levels, so individuals are able to make choices informed by the most recent scientific evidence.
You can read the Surgeon General’s entire opinion and access its cited sources on the Office of the Surgeon General’s website.
