Drinking any amount of alcohol increases the risk of death

The habit of drinking alcohol increasing the risk of premature deathreports a study conducted by researchers from the University of Madrid, Spain.

The work was published on the scientific platform JAMA Network Open Monday (12/8).

Science has extensively studied the field of research on the passive limits of alcohol because of the interests involved. For a long time, the consensus was that moderate consumption of wine provided benefits for body function. Recently, however, the number of jobs indicates that there are no safe limits for drinking alcohol.

According to the Spanish researchers, drinking in small quantities – up to 20 grams of alcohol per day, which is equivalent to a full glass of wine or half a liter of beer – increased the mortality rate of volunteers.

The study was conducted over 12 years, monitoring the health history of 135,000 adults over 60 years of age. Participants were divided into groups based on their reported average alcohol consumption.

Occasional drinkers consumed less than 3 grams of alcohol per day, low drinkers up to 20 grams of alcohol per day, moderate drinkers up to 40 grams and heavy drinkers over 40 grams.

From time to time drinkers had better health than everyone else. Those who drank small amounts had a risk of death close to those who drank moderately, which means that even light consumption is harmful. The consumption group had the highest risk of premature death.

And the wine?

In a section of the study data, the researchers specifically assessed wine consumption. The data revealed that those who drank up to 20 grams mortality was slightly lower than the other groups.

Researchers believe, however, that the tendency may have explanations that go beyond drinking alcohol. According to them, mortality was only significantly lower among those who consumed a glass of wine per day and belonged to a group with more purchasing power. The assumption is that access to better health conditions defines the longevity of the group and not the wine.

“Further investigation of the mortality reduction observed for wine choice and wine consumption only at meals is needed as it may specifically reflect the effect of healthier lifestyles, including alcohol or beverages non-alcoholics more slowly,” the researchers concluded.

For them, this fragile benefit is not enough to justify the practice. “We found no evidence of a beneficial association between low alcohol consumption and mortality. It seems that the drink increases the risk of cancer from the first drop,” said the doctor and professor Rosario Ortolá, the main author of the study, in an interview with the New York Times.

From 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) has considered that there is no safe amount of alcohol. The WHO warns that consumption increases the risk of several types of cancer, including breast, liver, head and neck, esophageal and colorectal cancer.

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