Study on 340,000 people: which type of alcohol increases the risk of death the most

A new study conducted on over 340,000 people suggests that the type of alcohol consumed may influence the risk of premature death. Researchers found significant differences between beer, wine, and spirits, including in terms of deaths caused by cancer and cardiovascular disease, according to News Medical.

The results show that even moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a higher risk of death from cancer. The study was published in the journal Nutrition Journal and examined the link between the quantity and type of alcohol consumed and long-term mortality.

Researchers used data on 340,924 participants from UK Biobank, a large biomedical database in the United Kingdom. The average age of participants was approximately 56 years, and they were followed for an average of 13.4 years. During this period, 22,381 deaths were recorded. Specialists analysed both overall mortality and deaths caused by cancer, cardiovascular disease, and other conditions.

Beer and spirits associated with higher risks

People who consumed large amounts of alcohol, regardless of type, showed a higher risk of death from all causes compared to those who did not drink or drank very rarely. However, important differences emerged depending on the type of drink.

High consumption of beer and cider was linked to greater mortality, both overall and from cancer and cardiovascular disease. Moreover, even low consumption of beer or cider was associated with an increase in cancer mortality.

In the case of spirits, researchers identified associations with an increased risk of death even at low levels of consumption. In general, increasing alcohol intake was linked to higher overall, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality, and this relationship was driven primarily by beer, cider, and spirits.

Red wine associated with a lower risk of death under certain conditions

The picture was different for wine. People who consumed small amounts of wine had, in some analyses, lower mortality than those who drank very little or not at all.

More specifically, low to moderate consumption of red wine was associated with a lower risk of death from all causes, including cardiovascular disease and other conditions. However, this association did not hold at high consumption levels: people who drank large amounts of red wine had a higher risk of overall and cancer mortality.

For white wine, high consumption was associated with increased mortality from all causes, including cancer. Similarly, high consumption of fortified wine was linked to a greater risk of death.

Researchers caution that these results do not demonstrate that red wine protects the body. The observed differences could also be explained by other factors, such as diet, physical activity, or other characteristics of the individuals studied.

Even moderate alcohol consumption was associated with an increased risk of cancer

One of the most significant findings concerns the link between alcohol and cancer. People with moderate alcohol consumption showed a higher risk of cancer mortality, even where no significant increase in overall mortality was identified for this group.

Researchers analysed 20 categories of cancer-related deaths according to the location of the disease. For 15 of these, they identified associations between total alcohol consumption or specific types of drinks and increased mortality, after applying statistical corrections. The conditions identified include cancers of the head and neck, respiratory system, digestive tract, liver and gallbladder, as well as certain haematological, breast, and genital cancers.

These findings confirm concerns regarding the effects of alcohol on cancer risk, even when the quantities consumed are not particularly large.

Does it matter whether alcohol is consumed with meals?

The study also examined whether the timing of alcohol consumption influences mortality. People who usually or sometimes drank alcohol with meals had lower mortality, whilst drinking alcohol outside of mealtimes was associated with more pronounced negative effects, particularly at high levels of consumption.

However, researchers emphasise that they did not demonstrate that pairing alcohol with meals directly reduces its harmful effects. People who drink with meals may have different dietary habits or lifestyles that influence the results.

What quantity of alcohol was considered "moderate" in the study

Participants were divided into categories based on the amount of pure alcohol consumed. The reference group included people who did not consume alcohol or drank occasionally, with at most 20 grams of pure alcohol per week.

Low consumption was defined as follows: for men, more than 20 grams per week but no more than 20 grams per day; for women, more than 20 grams per week but no more than 10 grams per day.

Moderate consumption was set at between over 20 and 40 grams per day for men, and between over 10 and 20 grams per day for women. High consumption exceeded these thresholds.

For comparison, 20 grams of pure alcohol represents approximately the amount found in a 500-millilitre beer with a 5% alcohol content, equivalent to a 200-millilitre glass of wine. Researchers specify that these categories were used solely for statistical analysis and do not represent recommendations regarding safe quantities of alcohol.

Researchers warn that the results do not demonstrate that wine is healthier

The study's authors highlighted several limitations of the research. First and foremost, it is an observational study, which can identify associations between alcohol consumption and mortality but cannot demonstrate a direct causal relationship.

Furthermore, data on alcohol consumption were self-reported by participants and collected primarily at the beginning of the monitoring period. Researchers accounted for factors such as age, sex, smoking, physical activity, diet, body mass index, and medical history, but the influence of other unmeasured factors cannot be ruled out.

Another limitation is that 96.3% of participants were white, which may reduce the applicability of the results to other populations.

Although low to moderate wine consumption was associated with lower mortality in certain situations, researchers emphasise that this result does not prove a protective effect. The study's main conclusion is that high alcohol consumption, regardless of type, is associated with an increased risk of death, and even moderate consumption is linked to higher cancer mortality.

The authors note that the World Health Organisation warns that there is no level of alcohol consumption that can be considered free of health risks.