Learn the Healthy Tips for Alcohol Consumption and Health Risks

Alcohol Consumption Guidelines and Health Risks

Though more people are calling themselves sober - curious or are trying zero - proof replacements for alcohol , drinking is a regular part of social life for most of us . A coupe of champagne can add fun to a celebration . A cocktail can take the edge off a tough day . And a cold beer can liven up a sports game.

The only way to completely avoid related health problems is to stop drinking alcohol . Plenty of people do cut it out entirely , but for many others , that s a nonstarter.

New Alcohol Guidelines and Risk Factors

A U.S. federal dietary committee is currently evaluating alcohol consumption guidelines , which recommend that men consume no more than two drinks a day and , for women , no more than one . In 2020 a federal committee proposed lowering the recommendations for men in line with the womens guideline , but it was nt ultimately adopted .

After assessing a wide range of studies , an influential group of Canadian researchers last year looked at how the risk of dying from anything alcohol - relatedincluding cancer , heart disease and accidentschanges depending on how heavily people drink . They deemed the risks with two drinks or less a week to be low ; three to six drinks as moderate ; and seven or more increasingly high.

Alcohol Consumption and Health Risks Analysis

At seven standard drinks per week [ the risk ] goes up much steeper , rises exponentially , " says Dr. Peter Butt , a clinical associate professor at the University of Saskatchewan and co - chair of the committee that developed the Canada groups 2023 guidance on alcohol and health . When it comes to things you can do to lower your individual risk of developing cancer , cutting alcohol is high on the list . About 16,800 deaths could be prevented a year if adults who drink more than the U.S. recommendations reduced their alcohol consumption , according to an April study.

Moderate Drinking Study and Health Benefits

In contradiction to the increasingly mainstream claim that any amount of alcohol is bad for one 's health , a new study suggests that moderate drinking is n't just safe but could be healthy with some very specific caveats . Published in the journal Medicine , this new analysis out of China 's Chongqing Medical University examined more than 500,000 records from the United Kingdom 's massive BioBank database and found that having a moderate amount of booze drinks per week is not only not that bad for you , but that it could have protective health benefits as well . Specifically , the researchers found that men can safely drink up to 11 total grams of alcohol defined as red wine , white wine or champagne , spirits , beer , and fortified wine per day and women can have 10 grams per day without harming their health.