US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has issued a new advisory warning Americans about the link between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk, calling for updated health warning labels on alcoholic beverages, CNN reports.
The advisory, released Friday, emphasizes that alcohol is a significant, yet preventable, cause of cancer and urges greater awareness of the associated dangers.
“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States,” Murthy said.
He further highlighted that these figures surpass the 13,500 alcohol-related traffic fatalities per year, yet the majority of Americans remain unaware of the risk.
The Surgeon General’s office identifies alcohol as the third-leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., following tobacco and obesity. The advisory highlights the well-established link between alcohol consumption and at least seven types of cancer: breast, colorectal, esophageal, liver, mouth, throat, and voice box. The risk applies regardless of the type of alcohol consumed and increases with greater consumption.
The advisory underscores that mounting evidence has dispelled the decades-long belief that some alcohol, particularly red wine, could benefit health. While a recent report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine suggested that moderate drinking may be associated with lower risks of cardiovascular disease, it also acknowledged a higher risk of certain types of cancer from the same levels of alcohol consumption.
According to the Surgeon General, the cancer risk, especially for breast, mouth, and throat cancers, may start with just one or fewer drinks per day. The advisory clarifies that individual cancer risk is affected by multiple factors, including genetics and environmental factors.
Younger adults in the US are increasingly recognizing the health risks associated with alcohol. A recent Gallup poll found that nearly half of Americans now believe that having one or two drinks a day is bad for a person’s health, with younger adults more likely to view drinking as unhealthy.
Dr. Murthy’s advisory also calls for an assessment of current alcohol consumption guidelines to account for cancer risks. He advocates for raising awareness about the link between alcohol and cancer, empowering individuals to make informed decisions about their drinking habits.
Implementing updated warning labels on alcoholic beverages to reflect the cancer risk would require Congressional approval. The Surgeon General’s advisory is part of a series of recent advisories addressing critical health issues, including firearm violence, loneliness and isolation, social media and youth mental health, and the mental health of parents.
