Gone bad: Drinking can cause up to 7 cancers

When we think about the problems caused by excessive alcohol consumption, especially in relation to the onset of some cancers, it is normal to believe that alcohol is related to the development of cirrhosis and liver cancer, right? Yes, but it can be much worse.

The New Scientist has published the result of a recent survey that found something frightening: Excessive drinking is related to the development of at least seven cancers. Jennie Connor of the University of Otago, New Zealand says alcohol accounted for 500, 000 cancer deaths in 2012, accounting for 5.8 percent of cancer deaths worldwide.

World Cancer Research Fund coordinator Susannah Brown reveals that the types of cancer that are related to excessive alcohol consumption are mouth and throat, larynx, esophagus, liver, colon, intestine and breast cancer. "We realize that the risk increases as the amount of alcohol consumed increases, " said the researcher, who also explained that there is still no solid evidence to prove the relationship between one thing and another.

Better not drink anything

It is worth noting that while the greatest risks are among those who drink excessively, those who drink moderately can also develop some of these diseases. For Connor, when we talk about cancer, there are no safe amounts to drink alcohol.

It may seem radical, but many researchers believe that alcohol should be completely eliminated. In the United Kingdom, for example, in January this year a group of doctors made a statement on the subject: they claim that even in small amounts alcohol consumption is bad for your health.

Regarding the relationship between alcohol consumption and the development of some cancers, it is not yet known how this happens, but the suspicion is that alcohol changes characteristics of our DNA, causing maladjusted mutations, which basically is what gives beginning to cancer.