Healthy drinking in moderation is a myth, says new study
The only safe amount of alcohol is none at all, according to the latest research

A major study has concluded that even moderate amounts of alcohol are harmful. The findings are unlikely to be welcomed by moderate drinkers who consider themselves healthy.
The report, published in medical journal The Lancet yesterday, makes grim reading for those of us who believe that the occasional glass of wine is good for us.
Researchers from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington drew on more than 1,300 studies to accurately assess rate of alcohol consumption and accompanying disease burden in 195 countries between 1990 and 2016.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Their research, described by one peer as “state-of-the-art”, found that drinking was responsible for around 2.8 million deaths in 2016.
Globally, the study found that alcohol consumption was a contributing factor in 9% of premature deaths across the world. Men are three times more likely to die in alcohol-related circumstances than women.
Cancers and cardiovascular diseases are linked to alcohol consumption, as well as “intentional injury such as violence and self-harm, and traffic accidents and other unintentional injuries such as drowning and fires”, CNN reports.
As for the supposed health benefits of moderate drinking, senior study author Emmanuela Gakidou acknowledged that there was some evidence that alcohol’s “protective effects” slightly lower the risk of Type 2 diabetes and ischemic heart disease.
But those benefits are “outweighed by the overall adverse health impact of alcohol, even at moderate levels”, she said.
Researchers concluded that alcohol was a “leading risk factor for global disease burden and causes substantial health loss”, and that the only level of consumption connected with better health was “zero”.
Gakidou said that the link between even moderate drinking and poorer health was the “most surprising finding” of the study.
“We're used to hearing that a drink or two a day is fine,” she said. “But the evidence is the evidence.”
Most national guidelines, including the UK’s, urge moderate alcohol consumption rather than total abstention, The Guardian reports.
But David Spiegelhalter, Winton professor of the public understanding of risk at the University of Cambridge, says that governments must put the findings in context before making any changes to public policy.
“Given the pleasure presumably associated with moderate drinking, claiming there is no ‘safe’ level does not seem an argument for abstention,” he said.
“There is no safe level of driving, but the government do not recommend that people avoid driving. Come to think of it, there is no safe level of living, but nobody would recommend abstention.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How will Wall Street react to the Trump-Powell showdown?
Today's Big Question 'Market turmoil' seems likely
By Joel Mathis, The Week US
-
Google ruled a monopoly over ad tech dominance
Speed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi hailed the ruling as a 'landmark victory in the ongoing fight to stop Google from monopolizing the digital public square'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
El Salvador's CECOT prison becomes Washington's go-to destination
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Republicans and Democrats alike are clamoring for access to the Trump administration's extrajudicial deportation camp — for very different reasons
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
By Abby Wilson
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Data blunders put Japan's after-work boozing culture in the spotlight
Under The Radar Excessive alcohol consumption and an analogue work culture combine to create a recipe for disaster when it comes to sensitive files
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff
-
Why Assad fell so fast
The Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
By The Week UK