10-Year Study Finds Increased Disease and Death Rate among Alcoholics
With many people increasing their intake of alcohol during the holiday season, it's an appropriate time to discuss the potentially deadly effects of alcohol consumption.
According to The Atlantic, alcohol is responsible for 4% of all deaths 
worldwide and 5% of all diseases. A new study that followed over 2,000 alcoholics in Tuscany over 10 years found a much higher death rate than in the general population. The causes of death included cancer, diabetes, infections, cardiovascular disease and violence. This study is one of the first to track the effects of alcoholism on such a large group of people over several years.
The study showed the impact of alcohol as a dietary carcinogen. The greatest risks are for cancer of the liver, larynx, mouth and esophagus. The study also found an increase in cancer of the breast, rectum and pancreas among test subjects.
According to Domenico Palli, one of the authors of the study, the characteristic lifestyle of alcoholics often includes drug abuse, smoking, promiscuity and poor diet, all of which further increase the risk of death.
The study provides perspective for other studies that indicate that there are benefits to be gained from drinking alcohol in moderation. People who believe or are advised that one glass of wine per day is good for the heart should be aware that drinking slightly more increases the risk of being affected by 14 cancers and 60 types of disease. Alcohol abuse can also increase the risk of death by compromising the function of several major organs.
The Million Women Study, which focused on the link between drinking alcohol and cancer, found that even low to moderate levels of alcohol consumption increases the risk of cancer for up to seven years. The study looked at the medical records of over 1,200,000 middle-aged women in the United Kingdom who consumed at least one alcohol drink per day and found nearly 13% of cancers of the liver, breast, rectum and upper aero-digestive tract were associated with women who drank alcohol. The more alcohol a woman consumed, the greater the risk of cancer.
Although it may not be news that alcohol is bad for your health, these studies are among the first to look and alcohol and disease in detail. The message of these studies is that when it comes to alcohol, less is better. Even people who don't drink extreme amounts of alcohol can experience extreme health problems.
