Think one drink is safe? New study links low alcohol intake to cancer, heart disease, and premature death

If you've ever thought, ‘Well, a couple of drinks a week isn’t that bad,’ you'll want to hear what this new research says. Many people assume that alcohol consumption is problematic only if you find yourself knocked out by the end of the last drink, or perhaps if it leads to worse hangovers, addiction, or loss of control. But the reality is far from this. In fact, what many people assume to be ‘moderate’ can be dangerous for your health.A new study by Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health found that what many Americans consider moderate drinking is linked to an increased risk of death, disability, and chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease. The findings are published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.The new study provides much-needed benchmarks, finding that even low alcohol consumption is associated with an increased risk of cancer, heart disease, and premature death in both men and women.“This study provides the most comprehensive U.S. estimates to date of lifetime risks of alcohol-attributable mortality and morbidity, showing that even moderate levels of consumption increase the risk of premature death and disability. No protective effect of drinking was observed even at low levels,” study co-author Katherine M. Keyes, PhD, professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, said in a release.“Even low levels of alcohol use come with health risks, and that risk continues to increase the more someone drinks,” lead study author Kevin Shield, PhD, an associate professor at the University of Toronto and a senior scientist who leads the World Health Organization (WHO)/Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Collaborating Centre in Addiction and Mental Health, added.The researchers wanted to understand how lifetime drinking habits affect Americans’ risk of illness and death related to alcohol. They reviewed more than 7,200 scientific articles on alcohol-related diseases and injuries to determine the level of risk for each condition. The researchers then applied those risks to large national health datasets. They also used statistical modelling to estimate how different drinking levels influence long-term health outcomes.This new study provides more concrete guidance than the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which currently advise Americans to “limit alcoholic beverages”. It does not, however, specify how much alcohol is safe to drink.Previous guidelines recommended a daily limit of two alcoholic drinks for men and one for women. The definition of a ‘drink’ varies depending on the beverage type. For instance, 12 ounces for beer, 5 ounces for wine, and 1.5 ounces for spirits, although that too can vary by alcohol concentration.Though the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines say ‘less is best’, they do not provide a quantitative framework, the authors said. This study, however, aimed to understand that across the drinking spectrum.The findings of the study are striking. It turns out that two drinks per day, which is considered ‘moderate’ from a social standpoint, is still associated with a substantially elevated risk of premature death caused by alcohol.In addition to mortality risk, researchers also looked at how drinking patterns influence chronic and acute alcohol-related conditions such as cancer (including oesophageal, oral, and breast), cardiovascular disease, liver disease, and injury.The findings challenge the common misconception that alcohol can protect health. The researchers did not find a significant protective effect of alcohol on overall health at any level of consumption. On the other hand, they found that even at low levels, alcohol may be associated with a reduced risk of ischaemic heart disease and stroke.According to the researchers, they used statistical modelling to determine health risks based on ‘the best possible data’. They also added that one person’s health risk may not be equal to another’s. Factors such as lifestyle, genetics, drinking patterns, and other choices also influence this. “Understanding those relationships, and how much alcohol contributes to those risks, is an area that still needs further work,” Keyes and Shield said.Alcohol consumption is associated with increased risk above one drink per day for both men and women, the study said. “Having a clearer threshold helps people better understand what level of drinking is associated with increased risk and make more informed decisions when drinking,” the authors said.