The U.S Surgeon General has released a new advisory on the link between alcohol and cancer with several recommendations to increase public awareness—including adding cancer risk to the health warning label on alcoholic beverages

US Surgeon General Calls For Cancer Warnings on Alcohol

• The U.S. Surgeon General has released a new advisory on the link between alcohol and cancer.
• The advisory advocates for adding cancer risk to the health warning label on alcoholic beverages, among other recommendations.
• Despite the debate over alcohol's potential health benefits, experts say everyone can reduce their cancer risk by drinking less.

The U.S. Surgeon General has released a new advisory to spread awareness about alcohol's link to cancer.

On Friday, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy released the 22-page advisory, which makes multiple recommendations—among them calling for the Surgeon General’s health warning label on alcoholic beverages to now include cancer risk.

The advisory argues that growing research over the past four decades has illustrated the connection between alcohol consumption and elevated cancer risk, specifically for cancers of the breast, colorectal, esophagus, liver, mouth, throat, and voice box.

Alcohol is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., after tobacco and obesity, the advisory said, but only 45% of Americans are aware that drinking alcohol can increase cancer risk.

“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—greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S.,” Murthy said in a press release. “Yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk.”

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The Surgeon General's New Recommendations

The advisory's most notable recommendation is the proposed change to the Surgeon General's warning label on alcoholic beverages like beer and wine. 

The current label statement—which hasn't changed since it was established in 1988—only says that pregnant women should not drink alcohol, that alcohol impairs your ability to drive a car or operate machinery, and that it "may cause health problems." 

Despite the new recommendation, only Congress can change the label.

The advisory also calls for a reassessment of the dietary guidelines for alcohol consumption. The current Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend a limit of two drinks daily for men and one for women, but a new set of guidelines will be released this year. 

The new report also urges people to be aware of the relationship between alcohol and cancer when considering whether or how much to drink. It encourages public health professionals and community groups to increase education and awareness about this link.

"It is extremely important for the public to know of this advisory," said Starr Koslow Mautner, MD, a board-certified surgeon of the Breast Center at Miami Cancer Institute with clinical expertise in breast surgical oncology.

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," she told Health, "so if this new advisory leads to a decrease in alcohol consumption, I think we will start to see a decline in certain cancers and cancer-related death in the next 10 years."

How Does Alcohol Cause Cancer?

Alcohol and Cancer

Alcohol has been an established carcinogen since the 1980s, and the advisory explained several ways drinking alcohol can cause cancer.

First, alcohol breaks down in the body into acetaldehyde, a chemical that damages DNA, allowing cells to grow uncontrollably and potentially become cancerous.

Alcohol can also create a harmful condition in the body known as oxidative stress. This damages cells and tissue and can cause a number of health conditions, including cancer.

While these two processes are the best understood, some research also suggests that alcohol can affect levels of hormones like estrogen, which may lead to breast cancer, and that drinking alcohol makes it easier for the body to absorb other carcinogens, especially tobacco smoke from cigarettes. Scientists are still learning more about these mechanisms. 

"The link appears to be incremental, so the more you drink the higher the risk," Mautner said. "For example, the relative risk of breast cancer is increased by 7% for each additional 10 grams of alcohol consumed per day."

Despite alcohol’s link to cancer, however, there is still a debate over its potential health benefits.

In the 1980s, red wine started to gain a reputation as a healthy part of the Mediterranean diet. Research found that a compound in red wine called resveratrol may reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer.

A study published in the European Heart Journal last month found a link between light-to-moderate wine consumption and lower cardiovascular disease risk in older adults.

However, the research only shows an association, not a causal relationship. In recent years, health organizations and other research have largely debunked the claim that drinking red wine or any other alcohol is beneficial for health.

"While people used to think drinking a moderate amount of alcohol was good for you, newer studies suggest that even moderate amounts of alcohol increase cancer risk," Mautner said. "I counsel my patients that alcohol is a toxin and there is no amount of alcohol that is considered safe."

Each person's risk of cancer depends on a variety of biological and environmental factors, but experts say that everyone can lower their risk of cancer by drinking less alcohol, regardless of the type.

Alcohol Has Been Linked to Cancer. Why Is Red Wine Still Part of the Mediterranean Diet? Edited by Health with a background in health, science, and investigative reporting. Previously, she wrote full time about parenting issues for the app Parent Lab. Before that, she worked as a reporter for National Geographic covering wildlife crime and exploitation." tabindex="0" data-inline-tooltip="true"> Jani Hall Jani Hall Jani Hall is a news editor for Health with a background in health, science, and investigative reporting. Previously, she wrote full time about parenting issues for the app Parent Lab. Before that, she worked as a reporter for National Geographic covering wildlife crime and exploitation. learn more

This story originally appeared on: Health News - Author:Jenna Anderson