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More than half of American adults misunderstand or underestimate Relationship between drinking alcohol and cancerResearchers warn with potentially dangerous consequences.
About 53 percent of nearly 7,000 adults surveyed did not know that alcohol affected people’s risk of getting cancer, a new study Found at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
The survey also showed that more than 37 percent of US adults think there is a connection, and there were even some – 1 percent – who believe that drinking alcohol reduces cancer risk.
The researchers said that people who had recently consumed alcohol or who believed that cancer was not fatal or preventable were more likely to think that drinking alcohol did not affect the risk of getting cancer.
“It is concerning that people who drink alcohol most likely believe it has no effect on cancer risk,” said Dr. Sanjay Shete, professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at MD Anderson. statement,
The researchers also identified certain groups that were less likely to know how alcohol affects cancer risk. Those individuals include cigarette smokers, black people, people who do not believe that cancer can be prevented, and people with low education levels.
More than half of the participants had consumed alcohol in the past month and about 10 percent had a personal history of cancer.
Alcohol is classified as a cancer-causing substance and is linked to several types of cancer, including mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, colon, rectal, liver, and breast cancer.
Drinking it can increase chronic inflammation, cause DNA damage, increase production of the hormone estrogen linked to breast cancer and make it easier for the mouth to absorb cancer-causing chemicals. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
People do not need to drink excessively to increase their risk. The agency says just three or more alcoholic drinks a day can increase the risk of stomach and pancreatic cancer.
Alcohol consumption contributes approximately 100,000 cancer cases and 20,000 cancer-related deaths Every year.
Number of annual deaths due to cancer caused by drinking alcohol has doubled in recent years in America, is increasing From 11,896 in 1990 to 23,207 as of 2021. The change has resulted in Biden-era Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy calling for updated warning labels on liquor bottles.
Shete said clearing up misconceptions could help save lives.
“People’s beliefs play an important role in whether they choose healthy behaviours, we need to work on correcting these misconceptions, which may be essential to reducing the increasing burden of alcohol-related cancers,” he said.