Approximately 4% –10% of breast cancers in the USA are attributable to alcohol consumption accounting for 9000 – 23,000 new invasive breast cancer cases each year.
Alcohol is considered by the International Agency for Research on Cancer to be causally related to breast cancer with a 7% – 10% increase in risk for each 10g of alcohol, (approximately ONE drink ladies) consumed per day. So yeah, that nightly glass of wine IS putting you at great risk.
I know having a nightly glass of wine is very much an accepted thing in our society but just because something is blindly accepted doesn't make it “OK”. Please allow me to scream this from the rooftops: DRINKING EVERY SINGLE DAY IS NOT OK, NOT SMART, AND PUTTING YOUR HEALTH AT GREAT RISK.
Like it or not you simply can't cover your ears and close your eyes to this important information if you value your long-term health.
Compared to other organs in the body, the breasts appear to be more susceptible to the carcinogenic effects of alcohol. So how much alcohol is “safe”? As mentioned above, just ONE drink per day increases your risk of breast cancer by 7% – 10%.
Another study showed the risks for ER+/PR+ and ER+/PR− breast cancer increased by 8% and 12% respectively, per drink consumed per day, (per DRINK) among postmenopausal women. Many studies show this cumulative effect. One reported that for each additional standard drink per day breast cancer risk increased from 2% up to 12%. Another study showed that the risk of breast cancer is significantly increased by 4% –15% for *light* alcohol consumption, (<1 drink per day). UNDER one drink per day ladies!
No matter how you slice or dice it the research is showing us that alcohol and your breasts are worst enemies and if breast cancer prevention is something you aspire to then you need to abstain from drinking on the regular.
SOURCES:
1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0749379713006466#bib21
2. https://academic.oup.com/jnci/article/101/5/296/913713
3. http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/13/12/2106
4. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/187252 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.g
https://tarathornenutrition.com/2019/10/20/your-glass-of-wine-dangererous-to-your-breasts
