ST. LOUIS - With New Year’s celebrations behind us and the promise of the new year ahead, it can be a great time to talk about the relationship between alcohol and our health. While the dangers of regular heavy drinking and binge drinking (drinking a lot in a short period) are fairly well known, less understood by many are the health risks from regularly drinking more modest amounts of alcohol. This may be in part because of the dominant message of the possible “heart health” benefits of moderate drinking, which have appeared for decades in media and in many health guidelines. We know now more than ever that when it comes to drinking there are many other conditions that need to be considered beyond just heart disease. “Alcohol is associated with increased risks of developing cancer - specifically, cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, colorectum, liver and breast,” said Yin Cao, ScD, an associate professor of surgery and medicine at
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