How much alcohol does it take to increase cancer risk?

The U.S. Surgeon General warned Friday that even mild or moderate alcohol consumption can increase cancer risk.

in new reportSurgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said alcohol use is directly linked to at least seven types of cancer, including cancers of the mouth, throat, larynx, esophagus, breast, liver, colon and rectum. In 2020, 741,300 cancers worldwide were caused by alcohol use.

However, public awareness of this link is low, with only 45 percent of Americans believing that alcohol has a significant effect on whether they develop cancer. 2019 National Survey According to the American Cancer Institute.

Research has shown that the more alcohol a person drinks, especially the more alcohol they consume on a regular basis over a long period of time, the higher their risk of cancer. This relationship applies to all types of alcohol, including beer, wine, and spirits.

But even what we consider “light” or “moderate” drinking (up to one drink per day) increases the risk of some cancers, including those of the mouth, throat, and breast.

“There is no safe alcohol level when it comes to cancer risk.” “The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center's Vice President and Director of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences, Dr. Ernest Hawk, said:

The amount of alcohol you drink affects your risk.

The Surgeon General's report defines a standard drink as containing 14 grams of alcohol, the equivalent of a 5-ounce glass of wine, a 12-ounce beer, or a 1.5-ounce shot of liquor. be. The report examined the evidence regarding cancer based on how much people consume each day or week.

Less than 1 drink per week: Research on the relationship between very light alcohol consumption and cancer is limited. The Surgeon General's report looked at the absolute risk of certain cancers at different levels of drinking, known as the probability that a certain outcome will occur over a given period of time. To do so, we examined the following data: Australian research Nearly 250,000 adults published in 2020.

The report found that, on average, about 17 in 100 women who drink less than one drink a week are at risk of developing alcohol-related cancer over their lifetime. Approximately 11 out of 100 women will develop breast cancer, which is considered an alcohol-related cancer. Research shows that alcohol can increase estrogen, a sex hormone linked to breast cancer.

Men who drank less than one drink a week had about a 10% chance of developing alcohol-related cancer over their lifetime.

The researchers considered this “less than one drink per week” group as a reference group and compared higher levels of drinking. Like many studies, the study did not include non-drinkers to avoid a phenomenon known as the “smoking due to illness” effect. This phenomenon occurs when research data is confounded by people who have stopped drinking due to illness.

1 drink daily: For many years, it was widely thought that: small or moderate alcohol It was especially good for your soul. But in recent years, more studies have shown that even one drink a day is associated with greater health risks.

The Surgeon General's report found that the lifetime risk of developing alcohol-related cancers jumped to 19 per cent (19 in 100 women) for those who consumed one alcoholic drink per day (seven drinks per week). That's what it means. At this level, the lifetime risk of breast cancer increases to 13.1%, or 13 in 100 women.

The Surgeon General's report found that on average, about 11 in 100 men who drink one drink a day will develop alcohol-related cancer during their lifetime.

Although the absolute increase in risk may seem small, it reflects a marked increase in relative risk compared to those who drink less.

A 2013 study published in the Annals of Oncology specifically looked at the link between “light drinking” and cancer, finding that compared to non-drinkers, those who drank up to one alcoholic drink per day Those who consume 30% more likely to develop esophageal cancer17 percent more likely to develop oral and pharyngeal cancer, and 5 percent more likely to develop breast cancer.

2 drinks per dayFor those who drank two drinks a day (14 drinks a week), the proportion of women who would develop alcohol-related cancer over their lifetime increased from 16.5 (in the “less than one drink a week” group) to nearly 22 percent, the report found. states. Surgeon General's Report. The proportion of people who develop breast cancer increased to 15.3%.

Among men who drank at that level, the lifetime chance of developing an alcohol-related cancer increased to 13 percent.

4 or more drinks per day: In addition to being associated with cancers of the mouth, oropharynx, larynx, esophagus, breast, and colorectal areas, heavy drinking (generally defined as four or more drinks per day) is associated with cancer of the liver, stomach, gallbladder, and pancreas. It is related to.

A large meta-analysis comparing light, moderate, and heavy drinkers with non-drinkers and occasional drinkers found that heavy drinkers were more than twice as likely to consume alcohol. Risk of liver and gallbladder cancer compared to non-drinkers and occasional drinkers. The risk of stomach, lung, and pancreatic cancer was about 15 to 20 percent higher.

For women, drinking four or more drinks in a two-hour sitting is considered binge drinking, while for men, drinking five or more drinks is considered binge drinking. Dr. Timothy Naimi, director of the Canada Research Institute, says that while there are many known harms to binge drinking, most human studies have shown that drinking large amounts all at once and splitting the same amount over several days are important. It is said that the difference in cancer risk between people who drink alcoholic beverages has not been investigated. Awarded for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria. “This is a necessary area for future research.”

Other risk factors are also important.

Although the report focuses specifically on alcohol consumption, many other factors, including gender, genetics, diet, and family history, also influence how much alcohol is consumed on cancer risk.

For example, you need less alcohol. adversely affect women's health This is probably because it takes women longer to metabolize alcohol, and alcohol stays in the body for a longer period of time.

Experts say people with genetic mutations or family histories that predispose them to these types of cancer may already have a higher baseline risk for the disease.

Certain behaviors and lifestyle choices can also exacerbate your risk of alcohol-related cancer. Elizabeth Platz, a cancer epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said drinking alcohol and smoking, for example, are known to increase the risk of head and neck cancer. Also, drinking alcohol when you have poor eating and exercise habits can further increase your risk of becoming overweight and developing obesity, another disease associated with cancer.

Reducing the amount of alcohol you drink reduces (some of) your risk.

A working group at the International Agency for Research on Cancer recently found that: Long-term abstinence or reduction in alcohol consumption It was associated with a reduced risk of oral cancer and esophageal cancer. But the Surgeon General's report says it's unclear whether or when the cuts will bring risks back to baseline.

Dr. Naimi said even if you're a heavy drinker, there are long-term health benefits to cutting back on alcohol consumption somewhat. “Less is more,” he said.