EVEN ONE DRINK A DAY INCREASES CANCER RISK

 

Just one alcoholic drink a day can increase your risk of cancer. But most Americans don’t know the dangers, new survey says.

BYLINDSEY LEAKE

December 5, 2024 at 6:30 AM EST

While the immediate dangers of alcohol, such as blackouts and impaired driving, are well-known, the substance’s ties to cancerapparently aren’t. Most Americans (60%) are unaware that drinking alcohol increases their risk of cancer, per a new survey conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) at the University of Pennsylvania.

Public health messages about the risks associated with drinking alcohol have to overcome the effects of decades of sophisticated marketing and positive media portrayals,” Patrick Jamieson, PhD, director of APPC’s Annenberg Health and Risk Communication Institute, said in a news release about the survey.

Beer, wine, liquor all tied to cancer

If you consume alcohol at all, you’re at risk. Whether your go-to beverage is beer, wine, or liquor, all alcoholic drinks are associated with cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Your body metabolizes the ethanol in your drink into a possible carcinogen called acetaldehyde. This toxic chemical can damage your DNA, creating ruined cells capable of turning into cancer. And that’s just one way alcohol can heighten your risk of the disease. Alcohol can increase your blood levels of estrogen, a sex hormone linked to breast cancer risk, as well as hamper your ability to absorb and break down nutrients thought to be associated with cancer risk, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

Alcohol ups your odds of developing these types of cancer, per the American Cancer Society: 

• Breast (in women)
• Colon and rectum
• Esophagus
• Liver
• Mouth 
• Throat (pharynx)
• Voice box (larynx)

In addition, the CDC notes that alcohol may increase the risk of prostate cancer in men, and research has shown that drinking three or more alcoholic beverages a day increases your risk of stomach and pancreatic cancers. Annually, alcohol-related cancers kill about 20,000 adults nationwide.

The more you drink, regularly and over time, the higher your chances of developing cancer, the NCI says—even if you consume only one drink a day. And once the damage has been done, it can take years to reverse, if at all. One study, for example, showed that it would take more than 35 years for former drinkers to lower their risks of laryngeal and pharyngeal cancers to those of people who don’t drink.