For nearly 60 years, cigarette packages have carried a warning from the surgeon general: “Smoking causes lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema and may complicate pregnancy.”
But, despite the damage it can do, alcohol has never carried any such warning, other than those urging drinkers not to drive and not to drink while pregnant.
The present surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, wants to see this change. His 17-page advisory, titled “Alcohol and Cancer Risk,” outlines the evidence for a strong link between alcohol consumption and at least seven types of cancer.
What is a Surgeon General’s advisory?
A Surgeon General’s Advisory is a public statement that calls the American people’s attention to an urgent public health issue and provides recommendations for how it should be addressed.
Advisories are reserved for significant public health challenges that require the nation’s immediate awareness and action.
Health issues that have prompted a surgeon general’s advisory in the past include cigarettes, AIDS, and obesity.
In the late 1980s, Surgeon General Dr Everett Koop issued an advisory on deaths due to drunk driving in the United States. This advisory resulted in tougher blood-alcohol level standards and higher taxes on alcoholic beverages.
But this is the first time an advisory has warned us about the direct health consequences of drinking alcohol.
What the advisory says about alcohol and cancer
“Many people out there assume that as long as they’re drinking at the limits or below the limits of current guidelines of one a day for women and two for men, that there is no risk to their health or well-being,” Dr. Murthy said in an interview. “The data does not bear that out for cancer risk.”
Here are the main points of Dr. Murthy’s advisory:
- Consuming alcohol increases the risk of developing at least seven types of cancer:
• Mouth
• Throat
• Esophagus (esophageal cancer has doubled in adults under 65)
• Voice box (also known as laryngeal cancer)
• Breast
• Liver
• Colon and rectum - Alcohol causes cancer in four ways:
• Alcohol breaks down into acetaldehyde, which damages DNA in multiple ways, resulting in an increased risk of cancer.
• Alcohol induces oxidative stress, which increases cancer risk by damaging cells and increasing inflammation.
• Alcohol affects estrogen levels which can increase breast cancer risk.
• Alcohol leads to greater absorption of carcinogens.
How much is too much?
Dr. Murthy says it’s important to know that our cancer risk rises as we consume more alcohol.
At the same time, each person’s risk is particular to their family history, genetic makeup and exposure to environmental toxins.
“I wish we had a magic cutoff we could tell people is safe,” Dr. Murthy says. “What we do know is that less is better when it comes to reducing your cancer risk.”
“If an individual drinks occasionally for special events, or if you’re drinking a drink or two a week, your risk is likely to be significantly less than if you’re drinking every day.”
Three years ago, a Chinese study confirmed that alcohol causes cancer. But we still haven’t caught up with this news.
Dr. Murthy hopes that warning labels will convince us to avoid alcohol as much as possible.
Hopefully, his warning will make you rethink the amount of alcohol you consume. Just another way to buy yourself more years of a healthy life.
Sources:
Alcohol labels should carry cancer risk warning, U.S. surgeon general urges — NBC News
Surgeon general calls for cancer warnings on alcohol — NY Times
Alcohol and cancer risk — Office of the Surgeon General
New genetic study confirms that alcohol is a direct cause of cancer — Oxford Population Health
Alcohol metabolism genes and risks of site-specific cancers in Chinese adults: An 11-year prospective study — International Journal of Cancer
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