The risks and harms associated with alcohol consumption have been systematically evaluated over the years and are well documented. The World Health Organization released a statement in The Lancet Public Health: When it comes to alcohol consumption, there is no safe amount that does not affect health.
It’s the alcohol that causes harm, not the drinking
Alcohol is a toxic, psychoactive and addictive substance and was classified as a Group 1 carcinogen several decades ago by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. This is the highest risk group, which also includes asbestos, radiation and tobacco. Alcohol causes at least seven types of cancer, including the most common types, such as bowel cancer and breast cancer in women. Ethanol (alcohol) causes cancer through biological mechanisms when the compound breaks down in the body, meaning that any drink containing alcohol, regardless of price and quality, poses a risk of developing an cancer.
The risk of developing cancer increases significantly the more alcohol you consume. However, the latest available data indicates that half of all alcohol-attributable cancers in the WHO European Region are caused by “light” or “moderate” alcohol consumption – less than 1.5 liters of alcohol. wine or less than 3.5 liters of beer or less than 450 milliliters. of spirits per week. This pattern of alcohol consumption is responsible for the majority of alcohol-attributable breast cancers in women, with the highest burden observed in European Union (EU) countries. In the EU, cancer is the leading cause of death – with an ever-increasing incidence rate – and the majority of all alcohol-attributable deaths are due to different types of cancer.
The risks start from the first drop
To identify a “safe” level of alcohol consumption, valid scientific evidence should demonstrate that above a certain level and below, there is no risk of illness or injury associated with alcohol consumption. alcohol. The new WHO statement clarifies: currently available evidence cannot indicate the existence of a threshold at which the carcinogenic effects of alcohol “turn on” and begin to manifest themselves in the human body.
Furthermore, no study would demonstrate that the potential beneficial effects of light or moderate alcohol consumption on cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes outweigh the cancer risk associated with these same levels of alcohol consumption. for individual consumers.
“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol consumption. It doesn’t matter how much you drink: the risk to the drinker’s health begins with the first drop of alcoholic beverage. The only thing we can be sure of is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is – or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is,” explains Dr. Carina Ferreira-Borges, Acting Head of Unit for Management of Noncommunicable Diseases and Regional Advisor for Alcohol and Illicit Drugs at the WHO Regional Office for Europe.
Despite this, the question of the beneficial effects of alcohol has remained a controversial topic in research for years.
“The potential protective effects of alcohol consumption, suggested by some studies, are closely linked to the comparison groups chosen and the statistical methods used, and may not take into account other relevant factors,” says Dr Jürgen Rehm , member of the advisory committee to the WHO regional director for Europe. Council on Noncommunicable Diseases and Senior Scientist at the Mental Health Policy Research Institute and the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute at the Center for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada.
We are missing the big picture
Globally, the WHO European Region has the highest level of alcohol consumption and the highest proportion of drinkers in the population. Here, more than 200 million people in the Region are at risk of developing alcohol-related cancer.
Disadvantaged and vulnerable populations have higher rates of alcohol-related deaths and hospitalizations because the harms of a given quantity and pattern of consumption are higher for poorer drinkers and their families than for the richest drinkers in a given society.
“So when we talk about possible so-called safer levels of alcohol consumption or its protective effects, we ignore the broader picture of alcohol harm in our Region and around the world. Although it is well established that alcohol can cause cancer, this fact is not yet widely known to the public in most countries. We need cancer-related health information messages on alcoholic beverage labels, similar to tobacco products; we need empowered and trained healthcare professionals who would feel comfortable educating their patients about alcohol and cancer risks; and we need broad awareness about this in countries and communities,” adds Dr Ferreira-Borges.
