Even moderate drinking linked to cancer and early death, major study finds
A major new study challenges the idea that moderate drinking is safe, finding that even relatively small amounts of alcohol increase the risk of cancer, heart disease, and premature death. Researchers found no overall health benefits from drinking and warn that consuming more than one alcoholic beverage per day can significantly increase long-term health risks.
Key points
- A major study links even moderate drinking to higher risks of premature death, cancer and heart disease.
- Researchers found no overall protective health effect from alcohol at any consumption level.
- Drinking above one drink per day was tied to increased health risks for men and women.
A major new study has found that even modest alcohol consumption is associated with higher risks of premature death, disability, cancer, heart disease and other long-term health problems. The research, published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, challenges the longstanding belief that moderate drinking is harmless or may offer health benefits.
Researchers from the United States and Canada reviewed more than 7,200 scientific articles on diseases and injuries linked to alcohol, then combined those findings with large national health data sets and statistical models to estimate lifetime risks at different drinking levels.
Risks at moderate levels
Consuming two alcoholic drinks per day, a level often viewed as socially moderate, was associated with a substantially higher risk of premature death attributable to alcohol, the study found. The researchers reported no statistically significant protective effect on overall health at any level of consumption.
Low intake may be linked to a reduced risk of ischemic heart disease and stroke, but the researchers said those potential benefits were outweighed by alcohol's links to cancer, liver disease and injuries, even among people having seven drinks per week. The cancers examined included those of the esophagus, mouth and breast.
Even low levels of alcohol use come with health risks
— Kevin Shield
Guidelines and reactions
The findings offer more specific information than the latest U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which advise Americans to "limit alcoholic beverages" without naming a safe amount. Earlier recommendations set daily limits of two drinks for men and one for women.
In an accompanying editorial, Robert M. Vincent, a former associate administrator for the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, wrote that the Alcohol Intake and Health report was invited to inform the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines but that "its findings were sidelined." The research was funded by Synergy Enterprises Inc. and the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
