Drinking any amount of alcohol
can put you at risk of developing 60 diseases
, including many that were not previously connected to boozing, a recent study has found.
Alcohol consumption accounted for about three million deaths worldwide in 2016 and as part of a major study in China, researchers have now analysed the risk involved with drinking booze.
The harmful effects of heavy drinking for certain diseases including liver cirrhosis, stroke and several types of cancer are well known, but few studies have assessed the impact of alcohol on an extensive range of diseases.
Oxford Population Health and Peking University published a new study last month focused on the long-term effects of consuming alcohol.
Gout, cataract, certain fractures, and gastric ulcers are among the new diseases now linked to alcohol consumption
Assessing information from China’s Biobank systems, researchers found that “among men, alcohol intake was positively associated with 61 diseases, including 33 not defined by the World Health Organization as alcohol-related.”
Gout, cataract, certain fractures, and gastric ulcers are among the new diseases that are now being linked to regular alcohol consumption (at least one drink a week).
The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine
, found that men who drank alcohol regularly had a significantly higher risk of developing any disease and experienced more frequent hospitalisations compared to men who had only drunk alcohol occasionally.
Some drinking patterns such as drinking daily or “binge” episodes particularly increased the risks of certain diseases, particularly liver cirrhosis, scientists found.
Study author Pek Kei Im said: “Alcohol consumption is adversely related to a much wider range of diseases than has previously been established, and our findings show these associations are likely to be causal.”
Professor Liming Li, a senior author and CKB co-PI from Peking University, said: “Levels of alcohol consumption are rising in China, particularly among men.
“This large collaborative study demonstrates a need to strengthen alcohol control policies in China.”
Iona Millwood, Associate Professor at Oxford Population Health and a senior author of the study, said: “It is becoming clear that the harmful use of alcohol is one of the most important risk factors for poor health, both in China and globally.”
Tuberculosis
Laryngeal cancer
Oesophageal cancer
Liver cancer
Uncertain neoplasm
Colon cancer
Lung cancer
Rectal cancer
Other cancer
Lip, oral cavity and pharynx cancer
Stomach cancer
Other anaemias
Purpura and other haemorrhagic conditions
Other metabolic disorders
Diabetes melitus
Less common psychiatric and behavioural conditions combined
Epilepsy
Transient cerebral ischaemic attacks
Cataract
Phlebitis and thrombophlebitis
Cardiomyopathy
Intracerebral haemorrhage
Sequelae of cerebrovascular disease
Hypertensive heart disease
Essential (primary) hypertension
Cerebral infarction
Complications of heart disease
Stroke, not specified
Occlusion and stenosis of cerebral arteries
Occlusion and stenosis of precerebral arteries
Other cerebrovascular diseases
Chronic ischaemic heart disease
Less common circulatory diseases combined
Unspecified chronic bronchitis
Other chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Pneumonia
Alcoholic liver disease
Fibrosis and cirrhosis of liver
Other inflammatory liver diseases
Abscess of anal and rectal regions
Gastro−oesophageal reflux disease
Gastric ulcer
Other diseases of digestive system
Other diseases of liver
Pancreatitis
Other local infections (skin/subcutaneous tissue)
Osteonecrosis
Gout
Other arthrosis
Abnormal results of function studies
Malaise and fatigue
Other ill−defined/unspecified mortality causes
Unknown/unspecified morbidity causes
Fracture of shoulder and upper arm
Fracture of femur
Fracture of rib(s)/sternum/thoracic spine
Less common injury, poisoning and other external causes combined
Intentional self−harm
Falls