Study: Even Moderate Drinking Can Harm Health

You may have heard that moderate alcohol consumption can be beneficial for your health. Some doctors even recommend an occasional glass of wine, referencing studies that highlight the potential health benefits of light drinking. However, recent research has revealed a significant flaw in these studies, which could mean we've been misunderstanding their conclusions. 
 
Canadian scientists examined 107 different studies on alcohol consumption and longevity and found a glaring issue. These types of research typically compare two groups: those who drink alcohol and those who abstain or only consume small amounts. The problem lies within the latter category, as it often includes former heavy drinkers who stopped due to various reasons, such as health complications. 
 
Consequently, this group of non-drinkers or moderate drinkers might suffer from health problems directly related to their past excessive drinking habits, impacting their life expectancy negatively. Despite this fact, they are still classified as 'non-drinkers' for these studies. 
 
In theory, non-drinkers should be healthier than drinkers, but many older pieces of research do not reflect this because they include previous heavy drinkers in the non-drinker group. This skews the average health condition within the group, making it appear as though moderate alcohol intake is healthy. 
 
"The idea that moderate use lengthens people's lives has been a propaganda coup for the alcohol industry," said Dr. Tim Stockwell while speaking to The Guardian about his findings.It's influenced national drinking guidelines worldwide and hindered effective policymaking regarding public health." 
 
Stockwell’s team first reviewed these aforementioned studies without questioning the quality of participants categorized as non-drinkers. Their collective data suggested that light-to-moderate drinkers had a 14% lower risk of dying compared to abstainers, with light-to-moderate defined as between one drink per week and two drinks per day. 
 
Once they began comparing participant quality across both categories in each study, however, things changed drastically, particularly when looking at high-quality papers involving younger individuals where former and occasional drinkers were not classified as non-drinkers. Here, they found no evidence to suggest that light-to-moderate drinkers outlived those who abstained from alcohol. 
 
Only studies failing to separate former heavy drinkers from the group of abstainers presented health improvements related to moderate alcohol use. Stockwell explained this by pointing out that individuals who quit drinking due to health issues and were then included in the abstinence group made those healthy enough to continue consuming alcohol appear healthier in comparison. 
 
For instance, UK adults are advised not to exceed 14 units of alcohol per week for risk reduction, with a half pint of beer equaling one unit and 125 ml (4.4 fl oz) of wine equaling 1.5 units. In the US, according to the to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), moderate drinking is defined as two drinks or less daily for men and one drink per day for women. 
 
Yet, even the CDC admits that there's no level of alcohol intake that can provide health benefits, citing recent studies suggesting even moderate consumption increases overall death risks, including chronic diseases such as cancer or heart ailments, compared with total abstinence. 
 
So next time your doctor suggests a glass of wine might be beneficial, remember these findings published in National Library Medicine; it may just change their perspective too.