President Joe Biden’s Surgeon General of the United States, Vice Admiral Vivek Murthy MD, has expressed concern that consumption of alcohol increases the risk of developing cancer of the breast, colon, liver, esophagus, mouth, throat, and larynx. That’s a lot of different malignancies, most of which have poor prognoses. “The direct link between alcohol consumption and cancer risk is well-established for at least seven types of cancer…regardless of the type of alcohol (beer, wine, or spirits) that is consumed.”
Alcoholic beverages in the U.S. already carry a label warning pregnant women not to drink alcohol because of the impairment it causes while driving a vehicle or operating machinery. There also should be a warning against the dangers of the fetal-alcohol syndrome caused by drinking alcohol during pregnancy. Those “dangers” include low birth weight, small head size, heart defects, behavioral and cognitive problems, and distinctive facial features. Alcohol and pregnancy are not a good mix.
Now, Dr. Murthy is calling for adding cancer warnings as well. “Alcohol is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S.—after tobacco and obesity….It is responsible for 100,000 U.S. cancer cases and 20,000 cancer deaths each year….plus the more than 13,500 traffic accident deaths annually.”
This is rather startling information and the warning coming as a result of it should be heeded strictly. The fact that the correlation between alcohol and cancer even exists should shake everyone into the reality of the harms. The American people have a rather cavalier attitude toward alcohol. Advertisers have equated drinking with male social acceptance, manliness, and toughness. For women, it assures you’re included in the group of beautiful people and makes you “one of the girls.”
Like with any “risky” legal substance we ingest, abstinence is the best deterrence, but if you just can’t bring yourself to abstain, significant moderation of intake is the next best approach. Knowing that beer, wine, and liquor increase one’s risk of 7 cancers should get everyone’s attention and be taken seriously.
Reference: US Surgeon General Urges Cancer Warnings for Alcohol Drinks Reuters Health Information 2025 January 3.
