In Washington, a new scientific study concludes there is no safe level of drinking alcohol. “The health risks associated with alcohol are massive,” said Dr. Emmanuela Gakidou of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington and the senior author of the study.
“Our findings are consistent with other recent research, which found clear and convincing correlations between drinking and premature death, cancer, and cardiovascular problems. Zero alcohol consumption minimizes the overall risk of health loss,” said Gakidou, a professor of health metrics sciences at the UW School of Medicine, and of global health at the UW School of Public Health.
Alcohol use varies widely by country and sex. Globally, more than 2 billion people were current drinkers in 2016 and 63 percent were male. The study does not distinguish between beer, wine, and liquor due to a lack of evidence when estimating the disease burden.