In a new study, researchers found that even light to moderate alcohol drinking was linked to higher cancer risks.
They also found the overall cancer risk appeared to be the lowest at zero alcohol drinking.
The research was conducted by a team at The University of Tokyo and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Although some studies have linked limited alcohol consumption to lower risks of certain types of cancer, even light to moderate consumption has been linked to a higher risk of cancer overall.
To study the issue, of, the team examined 2005-2016 information from 33 general hospitals throughout Japan.
The team examined clinical data on 63,232 patients with cancer and 63,232 healthy people.
All participants reported their average daily amount of standardized alcohol units and the duration of drinking.
The team found the overall cancer risk appeared to be the lowest at zero alcohol drinking, and there was a strong link between cancer risk and alcohol drinking.
The association suggested that a light level of drinking at a 10-drink-year point (for example, one drink per day for 10 years or two drinks per day for five years) would increase overall cancer risk by 5%.
Those who drank two or fewer drinks per day had a higher cancer risk regardless of how long they had consumed alcohol.
The higher risk appeared to be explained by alcohol-related cancer risk across relatively common body sites, including the colon, stomach, breast, prostate, and esophagus.
The team says in Japan, the primary cause of death is cancer.
Given the current burden of overall cancer incidence, they will further encourage promoting public education about alcohol-related cancer risk.
One author of the study is Masayoshi Zaitsu, MD, Ph.D.
The study is published in Cancer.
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