2
SciPoll 724: Alcohol and cancer - are warnings helpful?
What do you believe is the main reason many people remain unaware of the connection between alcohol and cancer risk?
Results
(108 Answers)
Answer Explanations
- Other (please specify)user-287804because it is not a major risk for cancer
- Lack of clear warning labels on productsuser-763749Without mandatory cancer risk warnings, consumers remain uninformed about alcohol's potential dangers.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects Lack of clear warning labels on products Social pressure to drinkuser-84005There are several reasons why people are unaware of the direct association between drinking and a higher risk of cancer. The focus of public health campaigns is mainly on the immediate risks, like addiction and accidents, which leaves out the long-term risk of cancer. Alcohol drinking is not required by law to carry warning labels, as are tobacco products. The social acceptance of alcohol consumption in society, together with the conflicting messages in media about its health hazards, makes the public very confused especially most doctors ignore this note. In addition, the alcohol industries usually try to downplay the perception of such health risks, thus making the situation even more worse. This focus is mainly on short-term problems and ignores the well-established link between alcohol consumption and cancer. It requires targeted awareness campaigns, clearer labeling, and consistent messaging from healthcare providers to fill this gap.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Other (please specify)user-809621Lack of motivation to leave the alcohol.
- Limited public health education Social pressure to drinkuser-709065Alcohol is an inhibitor of the anti-aging gene Sirtuin 1. The defective gene in the global chronic disease epidemic has now been linked to the anti-aging gene Sirtuin 1. Sirtuin 1 inactivation leads to cancer such as non alcoholic fatty liver disease and cancers of the body.RELEVANT REFERENCES:A. Single Gene Inactivation with Implications to Diabetes and Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome. J Clin Epigenet. 2017;Vol. 3 No. 3:24.B. Anti-Aging Genes Improve Appetite Regulation and Reverse Cell Senescence and Apoptosis in Global Populations. Advances in Aging Research, 2016, 5, 9-26.C. The Future of Biomarkers Tests and Genomic Medicine in Global Organ Disease. Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. 2017; 1(1): 1-6. 7.D. Early diagnosis of neuron mitochondrial dysfunction may reverse global metabolic and neurodegenerative disease. Global Journal of Medical Research.. 2016;2: 1-8. 10.G. Early Diagnosis and Nutritional Treatment stabilizes Neuropsychiatric Disorders. Global Journal of Medical Research. 2018;1(1):1-7.H. Sirtuin 1, a Diagnostic Protein Marker and its Relevance to Chronic Disease and Therapeutic Drug Interventions. EC Pharmacology and Toxicology 6.4 (2018): 209-215.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-829593People don’t want to think about the risk of cancer with Alcohol.
- Limited public health educationuser-433580Public are not fully aware of the side effects of Alcohol consumption. Inspite of warnings they continue to drink for relaxation and enjoyment
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects Social pressure to drinkuser-753537Unfortunately, I have experienced myself (as nutrition scientist who published on alcohol and health + who was interviewed by popular media about this topic a lot) that the current narrative (or at least until recently) is that 'a few drinks should be fine' and that the media -influenced by what the public wants to hear but also the alcohol lobby!! - prefers to focus on e.g. those studies that imply health benefits (e.g. a higher LDL cholesterol or certain small cardiovascular benefits) without taking into account the totality of evidence and all health outcomes. I do feel that it is finally shifting, that not drinking alcohol becomes more normal. And 'alcohol companies' in turn are investing in e.g. low alcoholic or non-alcoholic versions of beers, wines and mocktails.
- Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects Social pressure to drinkuser-553940There are limited public awareness program as how alcohol consumption can interfere your health conditions and also sometimes social pressure to remain as a modern and progressive due to improper media messages and advertisements
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects Lack of clear warning labels on productsuser-629527I think a combination of factors contributes to people being unaware of the connection between alcohol and cancer risk, but cultural attitudes toward alcohol and mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects are probably the biggest contributors.Also, limited public health education on this specific link means many people simply aren't aware of the cancer risks. Adding to that, the lack of clear warning labels on alcohol products means there's little to no reminder
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Social pressure to drinkuser-770802Drinking seems to be part of the life-style, which is difficult to change. In addition there is a lot of pressure on the politics not to regulate too much in the private area.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Social pressure to drinkuser-1163I believe that absolute prohibition is also detrimental because it encourages unlawful behaviour.
- Limited public health educationuser-800651Despite growing research, public health campaigns rarely emphasize the carcinogenic risks of alcohol, leading to a widespread lack of awareness among consumers.
- Limited public health educationuser-979199I've never seen any advertising material linking alcohol consumption and cancer. Most people might think of alcohol consumption and liver cancer, but have no idea that there are many other types of cancer associated with alcohol consumption. There needs to be greater education of the public through advertising in the media.
- Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-981678Some experts say that mild to moderate alcohol consumption is good for health.
- Limited public health educationuser-102119The educational level of population related to the impact of lifestyle, of them diet and physical activity are the most impactful ones, in health promotion and disease prevention/treatment is very low.
- Limited public health education Lack of clear warning labels on productsuser-565949Moderate alcohol consumption is seen as harmless in some settings. There has been also some information that some alcohol intake may be better for cardiovascular health than no alcohol intake (a phenomenon known as the French paradox). The evidence has now shown that this is due to bias, and thus not correct, but popular opinion has not changed in part due to lack of information.
- Limited public health education Lack of clear warning labels on productsuser-563888More public awareness programs needed.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects Social pressure to drinkuser-372463In my country (Italy), wine is part of our culture. There are conflicting messages even from official sources both criticizing and promoting alcool. It has become a matter of political debate instead of an healt issue.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Other (please specify)user-593324It may not be established
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-156295The risks of alcohol consumption are well known. Highlighting another will not change the behavior of consumption. A label will have next to no impact on reducing consumption. The response is going to be , oh well everything causes cancer. A more nuanced messaging program is something to think about.
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effects Lack of clear warning labels on products Social pressure to drinkuser-980513It's easy to ignore the harmful effects of something that is pleasurable and usually shows long-term effects. Cancer is a multifactorial disease and there is no shortage of examples of people who don't drink and have had it, and people who drink and haven't had it. Our brains, even though we know about population studies, are addicted to the pleasure that alcohol brings.
- Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-138399Depends on what you read e.g. USDA dietary guidelines
- Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-208334The idea of moderate alcohol consumption being preventive for cardiovascular disease is now obsolete. Time to move on.
- Limited public health education Other (please specify)user-499948Previous studies indicating that the antioxidants in red wine might have positive health effects.
- Limited public health educationuser-794571Limited educations can lead to unsafe usage of alcohol
- Other (please specify)user-327641Other good benefits of alcohol, makes you feel good, etc
- Other (please specify)user-120105See previous explanation I'll paste it in anyway below, but in a nutshell it is not true.
When studies are based on surveys (rather than from direct observation, or other measurement) most people tell white lies, e.g., How many servings of vegetables do you eat in the average week? How many fast food meals do you eat in a week? How much exercise do you do per week? etc. They give an answer closer to what they believe the questioner wants to hear. Therefore, I believe all meta studies which include testimonial/survey type data are heavily flawed. However, if you do well controlled animal studies, using an omnivorous short lived animal you'll get true data for the species in question (and you can infer similar effects in other omnivorous animals, e.g., pigs, humans, primates etc., which would be far more expensive to conduct. Having said that, look at this sample of animal data.https://sciencesources.eurekalert.org/news-releases/802841
Here you'll find the experimental data indicates a longer life span is achieved in the groups consuming moderate amounts of alcohol. This could of course be the result of hormesis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hormesis
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nietzsches-toxicology/
Hormesis is a very real effect that I have personally observed on the growth rate of murine fibroblasts when exposed to very low levels of DNA damaging agents (which one would casually presume would block cellular growth; as they are designed to do). If only short term acute damage was studied in muscles given a single moderately intense weight training session in the untrained athlete, one would conclude that such training was very bad for muscles, however nothing could be further from the truth. Thus I am extremely skeptical of the Surgeon General's report. - Limited public health educationuser-110809They don't know
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-562199Advertisements to drink are very psychologically compelling, and there is not enough information out there to combat the industry's messages
- Cultural attitudes toward alcohol Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-489806Cultural attitudes often outweigh changing science. Abstinence has no basis in science, much like zero tolerance is a failure. Recent messages about abstinence confuse people, and therefore should be ignored.
- Limited public health education Mixed messages in media about alcohol's health effectsuser-904621There is little education about the true risks of alcohol consumption.
Furthermore the media is not chess about the real danger