What You Should Know About Alcohol Consumption and Cancer Risk Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Recent evidence suggests that acetaldehyde production also occurs in the oral cavity and may be influenced by factors such as the oral microbiome (28, 29). According to the federal government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020–2025, individuals who do not drink alcohol should not start drinking for any reason. The Dietary Guidelines also recommends that people who drink alcohol do so in moderation by limiting consumption to 2 drinks or less in a day for men and 1 drink or less in a day for women. Heavy alcohol drinking is defined as having 4 or more drinks on any day or 8 or more drinks per week for women and 5 or more drinks on any day or 15 or more drinks per week for men. However, these bacteria have limited capacity to break acetaldehyde down further into its non-harmful compound acetate, thus the oral epithelia are further exposed to acetaldehyde 21,44. Acetaldehyde concentrations in the saliva of drinkers are between 10 and 100 times higher than in the blood; this goodbye letter to alcohol is further doubled in smokers who drink alcohol as tobacco smoke contains high levels of acetaldehyde 21.

1. That recommendation “was intended to prevent people from becoming alcoholics,” psychologist Tim Stockwell, PhD, of the University of Victoria noted in a recent article in Scientific American.
2. However, researchers have found no association between moderate consumption of red wine and the risk of developing prostate cancer (32) or colorectal cancer (33).
3. We also searched the WCRF’s Continuous Update Project reports for meta-analyses on alcohol consumption and cancer risk.
4. It is also possible that ethanol might aid these carcinogens to penetrate cells, especially those of the mucosa of the upper aerodigestive tract 21,48, where tobacco and alcohol have a synergistic effect on the risk of cancer 11,12.

A large cohort study found DHEAS levels 25% higher among women consuming at least 20 g alcohol per day compared with non-drinkers 41. However, some of the associations among alcohol drinking premenopausal women were limited to those taking oral contraceptives 40. Many observational studies have been conducted to identify and define the risks from drinking alcohol and cancer development. Some limitations in these studies have been identified, such as lack of sufficient adjustment of confounding factors, for example tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption are both common risk factors for oral cavity cancer. There are also concerns around reverse causality, with the reference categories of alcohol non-drinkers possibly including former drinkers who still have an elevated risk of cancer. There are other concerns over the accuracy of recording of alcohol exposure data where bias may be incorporated through non-participation of heavy drinkers in health studies, and under-reporting of alcohol consumption by the study subjects.

Epidemiology and pattern of alcohol use in India

Another MR study on UK Biobank data found that drinking alcohol, especially above the UK’s low-risk guideline of up to 14 units per week, was causally related with head and neck cancers, but not breast cancer 17. A further updated MR study using UK Biobank data did not find an association between alcohol exposure and cancer of any site, though they noted limitations of a lack of precision in their analyses due to low variance explained by the single nucleotide polymorphisms 18. An MR analysis by Ong and colleagues found no significant increase in breast cancer risk per genetically predicted drink per day (odds ratio 1.00 (95% CI 0.93–1.08)) 19.

Studying the Impact of Total Diet on Cancer Risk

Alcohol research and control efforts supported by multiple governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) internationally mesclun psychedelic have found that the public health impact of harmful alcohol consumption is substantial. In 2016, it resulted in an estimated 5.1% of the global burden of disease and injury, and 5.3% of deaths (1). A large meta-analysis of 23 health outcomes showed that the number of daily alcohol beverages that minimized harm overall was 0 (95% uncertainty interval 0.00–0.08) (2).

We also searched the WCRF’s Continuous Update Project reports for meta-analyses on alcohol consumption and cancer risk. A high proportion of American adults, both drinkers and non-drinkers (35), are unaware of the association between alcohol consumption and cancer risk. However, the fact that most Americans are unaware of the association suggests effective evidence-based strategies are needed to increase awareness, encourage informed decision making, modify health behavior, and develop policies to reduce consumption.

Alcohol and Cancer: Epidemiology and Biological Mechanisms

It can also increase blood levels of estrogen, a sex hormone linked to breast cancer, and make the carcinogens found in tobacco smoke easier for the body to absorb. Researchers have explored trends over earlier time periods in previous studies and found similar associations. While alcohol consumption is declining in some areas of the world, such as parts of Europe, it’s on the rise in other areas, including China, India, and many sub-Saharan African nations. But most Americans aren’t aware of this link, thanks to seemingly contradictory research and mixed messaging from public health experts.

This attenuation was also observed for risk of postmenopausal breast how do you smoke moon rocks cancer among women who drink alcohol and have higher folate levels 37. The effect of alcohol on one-carbon metabolism and folate might also be important in colorectal cancer development 20. Cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract can also be characterised as having a more than multiplicative increased risk when alcohol and tobacco are consumed together.

Alcohol use while receiving cancer therapy can be especially taxing on the liver, burdening it with removing the toxic compounds in alcohol as well as in cancer drugs. There has been a marked increase in alcohol consumption in low- and middle-income countries over the last decade. From 2010 to 2017, India recorded a 38 per cent increase in per capita alcohol consumption7.

Which Cancers Are Most at Risk From Drinking Alcohol?

While the exact causes of this trend are still being investigated, research consistently shows a link between frequent and regular drinking in early and mid-adulthood and a higher risk of colon and rectal cancers later in life. A person’s risk of alcohol-related cancers is influenced by their genes, specifically the genes that encode enzymes involved in metabolizing (breaking down) alcohol (27). The mechanisms by which alcohol consumption may decrease the risks of some cancers are not understood and may be indirect. ERs are important transcription factors within cells and may provide the main pathway by which alcohol promotes breast tumour growth 40. Elevated concentrations of oestrogen due to alcohol use may lead to increased transcriptional activity of ER (up to 15 times higher than normal activity), resulting in proliferation of ER+ cells 39.

Sept. 18, 2024 – Cancer is becoming a more survivable illness in the U.S., but a lack of awareness about the risks linked to alcohol and unhealthy lifestyle choices could slow this progress. “If you’re pouring it yourself, a lot of people may not be doing things like using a shot glass to make a mixed drink at home. That’s a major concern with excessive alcohol consumption, that people aren’t honest with themselves,” said Dr. Abnet.