THE ESSENTIAL
- A public health advisory, published this Friday, January 3, by Dr. Vivek Murthy, the Surgeon General of the United States, alerts the population to the link between alcohol consumption and the risk of cancer.
- Each year, this drink is responsible for 100,000 cancers and 20,000 cancer deaths in the United States.
- Dr Vivek Murthy is campaigning for the link between alcohol and cancer to be indicated on bottle labels.
“Alcohol is a well-established and preventable cause of cancer, indicates a public health noticepublished this Friday, January 3, by Dr. Vivek Murthy, Surgeon General of the United States. The more alcohol you consume, the higher the risk of developing cancer. For some cancers, such as breast, mouth and throat, data shows that this risk may begin to increase around one drink or less per day.”.
Alcohol: “Clearly visible, illustrated and rotating messages are more effective in influencing awareness”
Alcohol is in fact involved in different cancers: liver, colon-rectum, esophagus, pharynx, oral cavity, larynx and breast. For the latter, out of the total number of cancers contracted, alcohol is responsible for 16.4% of them, specifies the opinion of the chief medical officer of the United States. The purpose of this public health notice is to alert the population. But Dr Vivek Murthy wants to go further. He campaigns for the link between alcohol and the risk of cancer to be indicated on bottle labels. He “recommends updating warning messages for drinks containing alcohol to include warning about cancer risk“, says the report. Currently, labels already mention the danger for pregnant women and motorists. “Scientific evidence has shown that highly visible, pictorial, rotating messages, compared to less visible, text-based, static messages, are more effective in influencing awareness and behavior“, he emphasizes.
20,000 deaths per year linked to alcohol consumption
Around the world, these prevention messages are visible on alcohol bottles in 47 countries, including France. In France, they also target pregnant women more specifically to warn them that “Consumption of alcoholic beverages during pregnancy, even in small quantities, can have serious consequences on the health of the child“.
Each year, these drinks are responsible for 100,000 cancers and 20,000 cancer deaths in the United States. To this are also added “13,500 alcohol-related road accident deathsunderlines Vivek Murthy. And yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk”.
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