The impact of alcohol consumption on cancer risk and overall health

[@Focalisesoftware]

Zone 2 drinking for at least 3 hours a week

[@belwynne1386]

Lol

[@kentkentsson6900]

And every Saturday zone 5 to failure 😅

[@MrTommylocks]

😂

[@paulritter582]

Priceless😂😂😂

[@martinparker3539]

Lol

[@davidneal6920]

I went cold turkey 31 Dec 2023. Hopefully my body can recover from previous decades of problem drinking . Best move I ever made was to quit

[@mustafabaris9681]

Good for you mate ! I did the same thing after I watched an eye opening podcast on the pernicious effects of alcohol on our bodies done by Andrew Huberman and went cold turkey and quit in September 2023.. Best decision ever made and life has been so much better without alcohol !

[@patrickkeefe1340]

I’m the same as the both of you. Hardest parts are 1) the social aspect and being around people you now find annoying when they’re drunk and you’re sober and 2) watching friends and loved ones continue the self-destructive alcohol habit.

[@davidneal6920]

@@mustafabaris9681 good stuff mate

[@sapperstang]

I did the same thing June 2023 after a health scare.

[@JohnHarrerHorses]

I'm part of this crew when I stopped in Dec. 2023. The most annoying part for me is telling people I don't drink anymore and having them think I'm in a 12 step program. I did it to improve my health.

[@nwobob]

My favourite topic related quip is, "alcohol is simply a human tissue toxin, with no safe dose". But life is complicated and I choose to accept that risk on occasion when the social benefits meet an appropriate threshold.

[@esgee3829]

"accept that risk" like driving and texting/tiktokking?

[@joemarino4519]

this comment is very human

[@ivanf2782]

Yes it is just strange that "on occasion" is 6 drinks a week

[@JavierCespedes90]

Those "social benefits" are an illusion.

[@mikaelajasonnn3]

For those who care about their health and what goes on behind the scenes, 'Health and Beauty Mastery' is a must-read. Dr. Julian Bannett exposes shocking facts about the industry that everyone should know. I can’t look at health advice the same way again!

[@jasontree33]

I got it, truly a good book

[@Judge247]

Hey, if 4-7 drinks per week are essentially harmless, then 8-14 drinks per week should be TWICE as harmless! I’m in!! (Brought to you by the late Benny Hill…)

[@sheilasweeney1479]

Lol

[@sbkpilot1]

I like your logic 😂

[@tommays56]

Anyone who tracks their health with a Garmin gets immediate feedback from even TWO BEERS the next day

[@neilcaskey3305]

Big orange bars in the body battery chart

[@AnaMSunflower]

Menopause=interrupted sleep and it's awful. I easily fall asleep only to be awakened 2-3 hrs afterwards due to hot flashes. I go back to sleep with no issues after drying up, drinking water and a visit to bathroom. Every night since Dec 2013 Wine drinker on holidays and with autoimmune diseases, sometimes I skip. So not worth feeling crappy!

[@ultimatist]

I've come to the conclusion long ago that the majority of alcohol impact is driven thru sleep quality reduction. There are ways to mitigate that, including having a stiff one at 9am with your morning meetings.

[@robertweinmann9408]

Breakfast of champions

[@K4R3N]

Alcohol is overrated. And don't drink your calories, just empty calories.

[@JohnnStr1]

The concept of health in "The 23 Former Doctor Truths" book completely explains this. I wish I read it sooner.

[@Danielghossein]

Screw off with your instant 100+ likes minutes after posting 😂

[@ivanf2782]

Bot and scam. Let's, make that clear with this kinds of postings.

[@troutjunkie7330]

I had 3 beers in my life. Parents were alcoholics and drank heavily into their 60s. Dad had acute liver failure multiple times. Both very healthy now in late 70s.

[@cccalifornia7206]

Hasn't touched my lips in over 40 years!!!👍💖😉 As I saw people close to me; it destroyed... and an early death for them!!!😞😯👎

[@nickst0ne]

Here"s an idea: if you're socially anxious, then maybe drinking (a couple glasses) in social events is actually beneficial to your overall health and lifespan.

[@richardbreeze7898]

Yes that's what I do. It's better than geeking out in the corner.

It makes no sense. Peter first says "the dose makes the poison" but then he says "poison is a poison" which is nonsensical - if the dose is small enough, the substance is NOT a poison, there is no such thing as absolute poison. The positive adaptations of the body to the small doses of "poison" is called hormesis and its not specific to alcohol. Drinking 1 unit of alcohol per day or 2 cigarettes etc. probably fall in that category. It seems to me that Attia has an irrational stance on alcohol, or maybe this is broscience as the stance seems quite popular in recent months.

[@ivanf2782]

Agree. He has some strange bias with the alcohol topic. Maybe he want's to support the argument of him having 6 drinks a week?

[@3Unique]

“He has some strange bias with the alcohol topic.” As he does with nutrition. I say this as someone who subscribes to The Drive.

[@sbkpilot1]

alcohol via acetaldehyde kills liver cells at any dose which makes it a poison, but at a small enough dose the effects of the poison are mitigated by the restorative abilities of the liver.

[@DK412724]

I am 38 and have never drank alcohol and never will. I am not here to boast, but there is a profound psychological benefit knowing I have eliminated one health risk completely. You can't quantify that either

[@LivingLife365-i8q]

I’m divided on this (if alcohol is good or bad for you)… I have the example of my father, born 1929, he pretty much had 2 drinks per day, every day, since I can remember, and he’s still very much alive and active without any serious illness in his past. Now, age 95, his short term memory is starting to be a problem, but I doubt it’s the effect of alcohol. (He also eats what he wants - I think he eats way too little protein, but obviously that also does not seem to be an issue.) Of course alcohol can be a huge problem if it’s abused, but it seems to me that if your alcohol consumption is low enough to not affect an active lifestyle (like my father who is VERY active still & sleeps like a log every night) then it could be harmless. He is an experiment of n=1 but so far so good 😛

[@ladycolleenheller]

Everyone is unique

[@esgee3829]

if you're trying to understand risk for ALL people or even just for yourself given the example of your father, you really might consider getting a better grasp on the science first, specifically it's methods, including statistics before trying to draw conclusions for yourself and certainly for anyone else.

[@backagain5216]

The same can be said for you esgee. I have a few but am on point with my diet, exercise, sleep, etc.

[@ViraReve]

Def big believer that strong genetics plays a role. My great grandfather died at 96 and had a pack a day and quite a bit of tequila. That side of my family either died young or lived long, really a roulette for what you’d inherit ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@nickst0ne]

Jeanne Calment was the oldest human alive. Yet she smoked a cigarette daily. Should we be divided on smoking? One outlier is an anecdote. It doesn't change the statistical certainty.

[@evalangley3985]

1 drink a day is reducing myocardial infarction significantly, and this is proven in the medical literature for years. The American Cancer Society is refusing to acknowledge sound metadata from longevity coming from Europe and Japan who are some of the biggest alcohol consumers in the world.

[@sheilasweeney1479]

ACS is bs. They promote sugar in ur diet and at H when ur getting treatment. I’d love to know where the $ goes they get from donations. Cancer SUCKS!!!

[@brianwolfe9472]

I would not consider 4-7 drinks weekly a "very low dose". That is drinking alcohol nearly every single day.

[@Mateuszyk]

or just almost sober friday evening

[@esgee3829]

he prolly means 4-7 units, rather than "drinks". average drink is much more than a unit. alcohol units are a modest, and standardized unit of alcohol intake.

[@MAGNUM2F]

​@esgee3829 no, he means drinks. 4 to 7 is probably having 2 glasses of wine 4 or 5 times a week. It's worse drinking coca cola and these energy drinks, eating sugar and refined carbscand seed oils.

[@ryanmccarter9859]

​@@MAGNUM2F2 glasses of wine 4 to 5 times a week would be at minimum 8 to 10 standard drinks worth of alcohol, so no, that is definitely NOT what he means. They are using the parlance used in the research literature, where the dose of alcohol (I think 14 grams if I recall correctly) is standardized. 1 beer at 5%, 5 oz of wine at 12%, 1.5 oz of distilled spirits at 40% all have the same amount of alcohol and all are considered 1 drink in the literature. So a person might have a pint of beer and say they had one drink, but they actually had about 1.3 standard drinks, and that number goes up if it's higher than 5% ABV.

[@jammydodgerthefirst]

@@MAGNUM2F fucking lol

[@BillyBoy66]

What, exactly, is the French paradox? I know they drink wine (mostly reds) and have much less heart disease than we do here in the US. Is that what you mean?

[@lars6317]

They also have more olive oil and way less transformed foods in their diet. French didn't had the US fastfood culture and it's still is normal to spend 2hrs a day on eating. The real question is are the french that healthy or are Americans just so terribly unhealthy?

[@stevemc2626]

It’s only a paradox if your ideologies are misplaced. There is no paradox if you believe that high fat is good for you and red wine in moderation is also good.

[@BillyBoy66]

@@stevemc2626 Not quite sure what you are saying. Can you explain more, please?

[@evalangley3985]

Dr Martin Juneau did an interview when this whole polemic started in 2023, and he literally said that we drink too much, but 1 drink a day is reducing myocardial infarction significantly. This man is a Cardiologist and confirmed that the literature and the concensus within his peers are sound: "En maladies cardiovasculaires, en particulier, nous, on persiste à voir la littérature comme démontrant bien que l’alcool en petite quantité protège contre l’infarctus du myocarde, donc de la crise cardiaque, qui est une des causes les plus importantes de mortalité prématurée" - Dr Martin Juneau

[@hellobaby133]

What if you drink seven drinks one day a week?

[@evalangley3985]

What if you were taking your weekly medecine in one shot? Obviously 1 per day for 7 days is better than 7 for 1 day.

[@Robdawgx]

Hangover time

[@brocklastname6682]

HIIT drinking.

[@kyungshim6483]

zip lining and bungee jumping also present risks. But they are heck of a lot of fun. We live to have experiences. Not to live to be 110.

[@evalangley3985]

Not to mention that The Lancet Oncology, is not making any links between their data with obesity, Tabaco and alcohol, meaning you can't weight the impact of any of those.

[@marka.1058]

the WHO study said no dose of alcohol was safe. what about non alcoholic beer with .03 to .05 percent per drink?

[@stevemc2626]

If the WHO says none that’s a green light for me.

[@marka.1058]

@stevemc2626 what do you mean?

[@andrewlee5853]

What about non alcoholic beer? is that OK?

[@ryancouture2508]

No. Tastes like shit. That’s never good.

[@mrs.snuffleupagus5735]

Better than okay. It is considered a fermented beverage and beneficial for gut health when there is no alcohol!

[@mrs.snuffleupagus5735]

Better than okay. It is considered a fermented beverage and beneficial for gut health when there is no alcohol!

[@evalangley3985]

Better than pop or energy drinks or sugary juices.

[@marksekelsky]

When I was growing up (US) even parents of my friends (non smoking parents) had little boxes of cigarettes on the coffee table for guests. That is shocking to people today. In 50 years people will say “So guests came over and you gave them poison?”

[@evalangley3985]

In the meantime, the Europeans are drinking alcohol daily and their life expectancy are outliving everyone beside the Japanese, which are also big drinkers. The movement to stop alcohol consumption is more related to religious believes than anything else... which ironically the catholic church doesn't even follow since they use wine during the offerings...

[@Carlos.Rivera]

Damn... I just drink 1 beer after I mow my lawn every 21 days. Is that too much?

[@JonathanLoganPDX]

I think you probably fine provided you're not drinking a 64 oz beer! 😅

[@Sheeshening]

Hope you’ve got a good life insurance

[@stevecoutts4605]

1 glass of pino noir twice week. For mental health

[@joshspinks9792]

4:20 so what he's saying is that I need to day drink instead, yes I think I can do that

[@kmoconnor80]

Dr Attia, I notice that you highlight the confounders for alcohol-longevity relationship (e.g. gravely ill would be non drinkers), but you do not mention the same confounding with anything else that has health benefits. Wouldn’t gravely ill people also have lower V Max or lower grip strength so that would confound those benefits as well?

[@lars6317]

Totally. It's only possible to have a high Vo2 max if you are healthy enough to train for it.

[@kostar500]

Alcohol is totally a social thing for me… at most also 2 beers thats it or some brandy. Any overzealous attempts in upping the dosage will result in me saying good night and i just go back home.

[@wheatcandle]

Singling alcohol out while there are so many other tremendous risks in the environment is extremely hard to quantify in my non-scientific opinion. Cancer and health risks are a full measurement of all risk and environmental factors, not just a single lone factor (alcohol). But I could see how drinking alcohol leads to other additional risk factors (bad sleep, overeating etc)

[@robs1714]

How much driving is safe?

[@StanDupp6371]

BB King was on the road his entire life, millions and millions of miles traveled was 89 and still giving concerts around the world while being a type 2 diabetic for over 40 years and overweight but eating good food.

[@Blackandwhitecat-u9v]

Alcohol is literally one of the most dangerous, overrated, nasty tasting, drug. It’s glorified on tv commercials when sports are on. It makes people act stupid.

[@danielleschilk9845]

I’m French and I won’t stop drinking wine 🍷

[@mwflanagan1]

I’m French, and I won’t stop whining.

[@stevemc2626]

I’m an Aussie and I’m with the french. 🍷

[@evalangley3985]

I am a Quebequer and I cook with a drink everyday.

[@evalangley3985]

@@mwflanagan1 Seems to me that you are American and entitled...

[@JonathanLoganPDX]

Thank you! This was an excellent overview. I teach people how to sleep and you're 100% right that alcohol disrupts healthy sleep patterns. Three hacks as it were, first don't have more than two drinks, second don't have anything to eat or drink at least 3 hours before bed except for maybe some sips of water, and third always take Zbiotics before drinking. I'm not sure if Peter has an affiliate link for Zbiotics but maybe he can post it here if he does.

[@mikelicious33]

Excellent info

[@HeatherQ333]

I really do not understand why these things still exist. We tried them. They destroyed people. Sayonara! I do have a lot of experience with these things though, and I will say that it's easy and natural for a person to be self absorbed when other people, or the rest of the world scares them. 🤷‍♀️

[@adamloepker8057]

Alcohol is disgusting, having a parent who was a bartender showed me every side of this evil growing up. Glad to see professionals preaching appropriate warnings.

[@MAGNUM2F]

You sound a bundle of joy.

[@Jomartproducts]

My mom just passed away at 90 years old. Literally I cannot remember one day she was ever sick in her life. Every single day she had more than a good amount of white wine.

[@adamloepker8057]

Impressive, now imagine how old she would have lived without it.

[@Jomartproducts]

​@@adamloepker8057 there may be some merit to what you say but the fact of how you said it tells me that whatever you're doing in your life has absolutely led to very very serious non-medical heart problems.

[@strategicsage7694]

As the saying goes, exceptions prove the rule. Anecdotes are not good evidence. Large scale studies are.

[@Jomartproducts]

@@strategicsage7694 I will offer a little wisdom to you and the other dumbass that replied to me so far. My very amateur opinion would be stress causes so much illness and if my mother's way of dealing with that stress was a little bit of wine every night and that prevented many other illnesses more power to her. And more power to others who used wisdom and common Sense to arrive at conclusions rather than the opinions of simpletons.

[@JoeAverage2006]

Very sorry for your loss.

[@jasonjackson4527]

If it was so bad we would all be dead who drank. These people are over the top enjoy your life,

[@Lcmsguru]

I was having terrible brain fog and fatigue and I couldn't figure out what was going on. One day I stopped at drinking. (I was drinking wine daily). And immediately the brain fog went away. It has been a month now and I don't think I will drink again.

[@brocklastname6682]

Here in the US, members of the LDS church live several years longer then the average American. Probably just a co-incidence. /s

[@MrsRobinson398]

Anything more than a beer affects my sleep terribly

[@marakima]

4-7 drinks per week seems like a large amount of alcohol.

[@ivanf2782]

That is what i thougt

[@stevemc2626]

You have to be joking.

[@evalangley3985]

1 drink a day is a lot? Your coffee, your pop or your energy drink is probably more harmful than your beer.

[@torstenheling3830]

There is NO intake of ANYTHING that is safe

[@jordanxfile]

Sure thing, although no one smokes 1 cigarette a week That is the point of smoking and drinking, you want to or are compelled to do more of it.

[@TheGerm24]

I can definitely drink only 1 a week. It seems easier to drink occasionally than smoke occasionally.

[@ddcrocky3831]

I entirely disagree because your only looking at the body aspect and not the mental part like the effects of relaxing the brain which is huge and am not talking about getting drunk so I believe it can help you live longer

[@torstenheling3830]

LIVING IS A RISK OF CANCER WITHOUT ALCOHOL OR TOBACCO.

[@KevinAmyOtt]

Tobacco is bad, what about nicotine vs tobacco? Vape vs Marlboro?

[@ViraReve]

Nicotine is in tobacco. The chemical is a part of the plant. It is also found in other plants from the same family but if you use tobacco you are getting nicotine.

[@KevinAmyOtt]

@ yes both vapes and cigarettes contain nicotine. Of the two which is more toxic? Curious if anyone knew. TIA

[@aj-uo3uh]

Your save when your Wodka has a bio label.

[@ivanf2782]

I am fan, but this is the topic where Attia is the weirdest by far. No amount of alcohol is good, but "low dose" 4 to 7 per week is no harm. What? Man I have his book but he makes me laugh with Alcohol thing. This proves we are all human and everyone has a Bias

[@evalangley3985]

1 drink a day cannot be proven to be harmful by the literature. Deny it all you wants, numbers are numbers.

[@ivanf2782]

@@evalangley3985 Tell me you are a drinker without telling me you are a drinker:

[@healthyminimalist]

4 to 7 drinks a week! That's alot. I guess if you do 1 a day but what's the point in that lol

[@sanfransimo]

But beer is fine, right?

[@piotrwereda3412]

I think it's been established by professionals that beer is not alcohol

[@sanfransimo]

@@piotrwereda3412 Phew😮‍💨

[@MrsRobinson398]

Who wrote a memo that every KZbinr was going to start saying “yeah, yeah, yeah”… so annoying

[@LoamReaper]

Doing a podcast with Peter is just setting yourself up to look like an amateur!

[@paulmarshall9189]

By far, the greatest negative impact to my sleep is stress. And alcohol greatly reduces stress. Without going into detail, my unscientific opinion is that the health positives of alcohol can definitely outweigh the negatives for people with favorable genetics and reasonable use.

[@ivanf2782]

Yes. Probably, as you mentioned ,depends on the perso. That's why it's so important to know yourself. In my case just one beer disrupts my sleep much more than anything, and I wake up after an 8 hour sleep feeling as if it was a 3 hour one.

[@blahblah4129]

Americans simply need to learn to live instead of trying to have a formula for/to quantify e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g. Quality of life in the States is so bad in comparison to, for example, Italy, Spain, and Greece.

[@ChristopherBergs-kt8hb]

I had seen a big meta analysis chart showing 1 drink per WEEK did have a little reduction for cancer - like hormesis I assume. I often split one drink over two days once a week.

[@torstenheling3830]

Take Xanax to live a long life.

[@mtwata]

Moderation. That's all, folks

[@BEACHDUDE71]

I don't worry, I eat and drink what I want and don't exercise

[@derekjolly3680]

Wine is a part of life and dinner for me. Frankly I think people like this who advocate abstinence for health reasons are extremists like the women from the turn of the century who advocated against any drinking over immorality, indecency, wife abuse, health, etc. It was called "The Temperance Movement". Trouble is that the abstinence propagandists of whatever flavor or time, never seem to get that it's a part of the greater balance in health, like with having deserts once in a while, or having potato chips with a sandwich. Also that very good fitness and habits don't suddenly disappear if a man drinks in moderation, nor weight maintenance, nor robust health in every measure. Nor in fact does it keep you whatsoever from reobtaining it in all ways. I also think that people who advocate along these lines, probably have their own hangups and peculiarities that motivate them to be tea tootlers and missionaries, like being prone to excess, or wild mood swings, or whatever bad habits, that don't necessarily apply to others, exactly like people who gave up cigarettes and now feel it gives them license to preach about the ills of it, not to mention passing laws to make the current cigarette smokers 2nd class citizens being treated with contempt by the morality or health advocates.

[@evalangley3985]

100%, I don't upvote many comments, barely any if ever, but your is spot on. There is more behind this than it meet the eyes. Seems to me like a WOKE take on health. In the meantime, Japanese and Europeans have the longest life expectancy and they are heavy drinkers.

[@pqsevant]

probably better at life 4-7 drinks a week. actual performance wise zero drinks. more than moderation 50/50

[@PMO438]

attia's a drug mule 100%

[@markrose53]

What about the risks of happiness and alcohol consumption?

[@Robdawgx]

It messes with your dopamine, GABA, seratonin.. if it's for social connection then there are better ways to get your fix without ingesting poison in order to engage with others

[@spgtenor]

I'm comfortable saying that abstaining from all alcohol for health benefits alone (not addiction) is a life not worth living. I will go ahead and take my risk with my 3-5 drinks a night, as I have been doing for the past 40 years.

[@Robdawgx]

Curious to know if you've tried a sober trial run and compared your life with and without alcohol?

[@spgtenor]

@ I have, but it’s not enjoyable.I drink wine as a complement to my dinner, usually pasta. I can’t imagine Italian cuisine without wine. Last year I was drinking 1, sometimes 2 bottles of wine a night and waking up hungover. Now I’m back to 2 or 3 glasses of white wine, and I feel my best with 2 drinks. It relaxes me, makes me happy and I sleep great. I can’t stand vodka or whiskey, red wine makes me flushed. Beer with Mexican food and pizza, otherwise wine.

[@devdroid9606]

Why would anyone want to reduce their mortality from alcohol to zero? You can die from other things, so drink moderation, if you enjoy it, and enjoy your life. If you die from a car accident or complications of diabetes or Alzheimer's, what difference does it make that you didn't drink when you could have enjoyed it?

[@faceious2006]

Drinking is fun and adds value to my life. I’ll take the risk

[@redfisher5378]

10 years from now, they'll tell us alcohol is fine to drink.

[@joesacco9832]

Nope. Not the direction we’re headed.

[@siitan83]

how to be alive at 78 and get to be the president of USA? No drinks no alcohol, never! I will never get to have that. ive been off from alcohol for years and never returning, but im pretty far from having had no alcohol ever. (Im referring to Trump never having any alcohol)

[@evalangley3985]

And he almost got shot... just imagine... living your life without alcohol and dying before the life expectancy of your country...

[@BobSmith-u9l]

Such nonsense. Entire family has drank 3-4 beers every day since the age of 15 and they all live > 90 years. Please people. Drink whatever just do it in moderation.

[@jammydodgerthefirst]

my granddad never wore a seatbelt and he didn't even get into a single car crash! seat belts are obviously pointless. 3-4 beers a day is nowhere near moderate lmao

[@BobSmith-u9l]

@@jammydodgerthefirst please.