Government health chiefs in Britain Friday revised official advice on alcohol consumption with a warning that any amount of alcohol increases the risk of cancer. A pint of beer containing 4 percent alcohol or a medium-sized glass of wine has 2.3 units.
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It was published on the same day as the Committee on Carcinogenicity’s latest findings, which concluded that the risk of cancer increases with the more alcohol a person drinks, even if that is just a small amount.
Under the new guidelines the gender difference will be thrown out and drinkers will be to keep off the booze for at least two days a week in order to allow their livers to recover.
“I am personally especially happy that the public might now become more aware of risks of developing cancer and that the industry’s claims for health benefits related to drinking have been dismissed by a systematic review of evidence”, he said.
The UK Chief Medical Officers have produced these new guidelines which warn that drinking any level of alcohol increases the risk of getting a range of cancers.
“While it is possible for most people to drink at low risk, equally most people can lower their long-term health risks further by drinking less than the guidelines or not at all”.
“When it comes to things like heart disease and some other conditions, there’s a question about a protection factor in lower levels of consumption”. This technically meant that men could consume around 28 units a week; although the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) recommended no more than 21 units should be drunk over seven days.
The guidance said pregnant women should avoid alcohol altogether as there is no evidence for a “safe” drinking level.
The report also lays out the evidence that alcohol consumption increases the risk of cancer. “A good way to reduce alcohol intake is to have several alcohol free days a week”, the department said in its advisory. “However, alcohol is one of the most important factors and one you can do something about”.
Previous advice for pregnant women suggested limiting alcohol consumption to no more than one or two units each week. Women in this age group benefit most when they limit their intake to around 5 units of alcohol a week, the equivalent of around two standard glasses of wine.
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He said: “There is not a clear consensus in terms of what’s going on with heart disease, but it sounds like what the Chief Health Officer has done is erred on the side of caution, and taken a conservative view of the research”.
