Is alcohol the new cigarettes?
The link between alcohol and cancer is well known, so are we doing enough to discourage drinking? Does alcohol require a public campaign similar to cigarettes?
There are at least seven cancers linked to alcohol: mouth, upper throat, larynx, oesophagus, breast, liver and bowel cancer.
Alcohol delivers a three-pronged attack on our cells. It damages cells and stops our bodies from repairing that damage; it affects chemical signals, which can make cells divide more often, and it can also make it easier for cells in our mouth, throat and bowel to absorb harmful chemicals, all of which can lead to cancer.
And despite all the claims that red wine is good for us, or a beer or two doesn’t hurt, a World Health Organization (WHO) report states that no level of alcoholic consumption is ‘safe’.
No safe level
WHO gets straight to the point.
“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol use. It doesn’t matter how much you drink – the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage. The only thing that we can say for sure is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is – or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is,” explains WHO’s Dr Carina Ferreira-Borges.
“Although it is well established that alcohol can cause cancer, this fact is still not widely known to the public in most countries.
“We need cancer-related health information messages on labels of alcoholic beverages, following the example of tobacco products; we need empowered and trained health professionals who would feel comfortable to inform their patients about alcohol and cancer risk; and we need overall wide awareness of this topic in countries and communities.”
Are we doing enough to warn people?
Currently the only legal requirement on Australian alcohol packaging is a warning that drinking while pregnant can cause “lifelong harm to your baby”.
And advertising for alcohol is governed by an industry code, not legislation.
Contrast this to Australia’s aggressive campaign against cigarettes. All cigarette and smoking advertising is banned.
And we could all quote advertisements against smoking including ‘every cigarette is doing you damage’ and who can forget the sponges soaked with tar or the gruesome imagery on cigarette packaging?
All the evidence shows the campaign works. There has been a long-term downward trend in tobacco use, which has fallen by 24 per cent since 1991.
Yet alcohol gets a relatively free pass.
On the campaign trail
There is a growing push to do more. A survey by the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education found Australians overwhelmingly support more warnings on alcohol products.
A poll of 1004 people found 78 per cent support the measure, while just 10.5 per cent said they did not want health warnings on alcohol and 11.6 per cent were unsure.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has come out in support and called for ‘confronting’ warnings on packaging.
RACGP president Dr Nicole Higgins said the findings confirm that Australians want the facts about the harm alcohol causes to people’s health.
“Everyone deserves to stay healthy and well, but alcoholic products contribute a heavy disease burden in Australia, and people need better information and support,” she said.
“GPs see alcohol’s harm to people’s health firsthand in their practices, and also observe how many patients are unaware of how many illnesses are linked with alcohol use.”
Do you think there should be more warnings on alcohol packaging? Why not share your opinion in the comments section below?
Also read: Who are Australia’s biggest drinkers?
Be wary of blanket claims of “Every drop” is dangerous.
Alcohol may well be in the same corner as tobacco smoking is. They do not, per se, actually cause cancer, but they may increase the chance of the development of a list of cancers.
My mother and two of her sisters lived beyond the age of 99 and two have died with no diagnosed cancers. The remaining sister looks good for 100 with a current Drivers License and living independently in her home in the country with no cancers. (There eldest sister died in her 70’s from medical malpractice whilst in hospital.)
All partake in the traditional whiskey with water before the evening meal. Wine on the table for family gatherings.
Their father died at the age of 75 of lung cancer and had been a lifelong smoker of rollies so was it the unfiltered cigarettes or the whiskey at the end it the day. Or living a full life as a farmer from his teen years and the best time away was his time in Egypt (and Gallipolli) from 1915 to 1918.
Whilst those who drink alcohol regularly may have a chance of developing more cancers than those who do not, consider if these cancers actually caused the death of the individual, or even had an adverse effect of their quality of life?
Probably the real message here should be that every one should have a good relationship with a responsible GP and regular full body checkups.
Being drunk almost certainly causes the deaths of more people directly than the cancers.
I’ve had kidney cancer which I’m sure was from taking long term doses of Naproxen 1000mg daily for hip pain. These days I’m very mindful of taking any anti-inflammatory medication but what concerns me is the advertising for children’s Nurofen and parents using this as pain medication for young children. Yes, the article above is about alcohol and cancer but more awareness needs to be made about kidney cancer and possible causes of this disease.
Dear Jan Fisher
I doubt my comments will get published if even read , at least getting it of my chest and leaving it to kalma and the universe, I have written many time no publication and no response from yourself .
Could I ask that you publish something positive, in this day and age I don’t think people want to hear all your negativity.
There’s the link between Parkinson’s and belly fat , have you not see that there is more or just as many thin people have Parkinson, just look at the celebrities the ones that come straight to mind with Parkinson are not fat .
Therm recently the Alcohol and cancers , come on Jan stop grabbing at straws, get out and find something positive and give people a reason to smile.
I love Your life choices but I must admit you are a spoiler alert to YLC it saddens me that there’s no positivity in your post .
Saddened by you Jan Fisher .