Even Light Drinking Raises Cancer Risk

Most people think the problem with drinking is when you drink too much. But a little bit is fine, right?

Maybe not. A giant new study from Japan suggests that any drinking of alcohol upped the risk of cancer of the colon, stomach, breast, prostate, and esophagus.

In wealthier countries around the world, cancer causes more than half of deaths among middle-aged people, compared to less than a quarter for heart disease. (That's good news, in a way, as heart disease rates have fallen with better prevention and care.)

Cancer deaths are falling too, by 26 percent in the United States between 1991 and 2015. One reason: The number of smokers has fallen thanks to a wave of public education and restrictive new laws. But obesity is on the rise and that will lead to more cancer cases.

The new study was large, following more than 63,000 cancer cases and the same number of controls at several medical centers in Japan. People who downed 2 drinks a day or less had a 5 percent higher risk of any kind of cancer, compared to people who didn't drink at all. This elevated risk also applied to most gastrointestinal cancer, and breast and prostate cancer. For other cancers, the risk was slightly less; for esophageal cancer, it was more.

Participants reported their drinking habits based on standard alcohol units for sake, beer, wine, and whisky.

Why would alcohol affect breast and prostate cancer? It might be changing levels of sex hormone levels. In 2018, the American Society of Clinical Oncology stated that more than 5 percent of new cancer cases were attributable to alcohol consumption.

You've probably heard that wine protects you against cancer and heart disease. There is some evidence of a protective effect for some cancers, but always with very moderate consumption and now we have evidence that other parts of the body may be hurt.

If you're at risk for cancer because of a family history, previous cancer, or other factors, you may want to steer clear of alcohol.