The Moderate Drinker's Dilemma? Get Cancer or Prevent Alzheimer's?

Two new studies have thrown the state of moderate drinking into a tizzy. One study leads you to believe that continued moderate drinking leads to increased risk of cancer, while another study insists that it prevents memory decline.

According to a study presented at the 2011 Alzheimer's Disease International Annual Conference, heavy alcohol consumption is associated with an increased risk for cognitive impairment, whereas light to moderate alcohol consumption reduces the risk. Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) scores were higher for light to moderate drinkers compared with both nondrinkers and heavy drinkers. Light and moderate drinkers consumed less than 400 grams for men and less than 280 grams for women per week. Brandy containing 45% alcohol would deliver about 21 grams of alcohol in 1 drink: wine at 12% about 9.6 grams of alcohol per glass and beer at 4% about 10.5 grams in a can. In conclusion, the researchers state: "We have known for years that in western populations some drinking is good for you and a lot of drinking is very bad for you, so we recommend that everybody drink a glass of wine every day — maybe 2 and maybe even 3 — but beyond that, it is detrimental."

Alternatively...

"A considerable proportion of the most common and most lethal cancers is attributable to former and current alcohol consumption," concludes a large European study published in British Medical Journal. The researchers attribute about 10% of all cancers in men and about 3% of all cancers in women to previous and current alcohol consumption. The estimates come from an analysis of data from the huge ongoing European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer (EPIC) and from representative data on alcohol consumption compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO). The risk increases even with drinking moderate amounts.

The researchers assumed a causal association between alcohol and cancer of the upper digestive tract (which includes the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, and esophagus), liver cancer, female breast cancer, and colorectal cancer. The team then calculated that in 2008, alcohol was responsible for 44% of the upper digestive tract cancers in men and 25% in women, 33% of liver cancer in men and 18% in women, 17% of colorectal cancer in men and 4% in women, and 5% of breast cancer in women. A substantial portion of these cancers attributable to alcohol consumption was linked to drinking more than the currently recommended upper limit: maximum of 2 drinks per day (about 28 g of alcohol) for men and 1 drink (about 12 g) for women. The team calculated that drinking more than this was responsible for 57% to 87% of the cancers attributable to alcohol in men and from 40% to 98% in women.

"The cancer risk increases with every drink, so even moderate amounts of alcohol - such as a small drink each day - increases the risk of these cancers," according to Cancer Research UK. "Thus, alcohol consumption should not be recommended to prevent cardiovascular disease or all-cause mortality. There is no sensible limit below which the risk of cancer is decreased," they write.

Bonnie - we are not convinced with the results of this data because we have previously seen research to the contrary. If you take these new studies at face value, however, beyond the fact that we agree that heavy drinking is worse for both diseases, it would seem that light drinking may be the solution. Could it be that for some individuals, moderate drinking would be completely agreeable with their individual needs? Of course. Do we believe, as the memory study suggests, that not drinking will lower your memory scores? Absolutely not. I think what is most is most important to remember for our clients that drink is to consume alcohol that is well tolerated and does not contain allergens, intolerants, or chemicals that affect you adversely. This is supersedes the light to moderate drinking issue.