Cancer Prevention - Recommendation 6

Recommendation 6: 
Limit alcoholic drinks 

If alcoholic drinks are consumed, limit consumption to no more than two drinks a day for men and one drink a day for women.

One 'drink' contains about 10–15 grams of ethanol, or a can of beer. 
  
The evidence on cancer justifies a recommendation not to drink alcoholic drinks. Other evidence shows that modest amounts of alcoholic drinks are likely to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.

The evidence does not show a clear level of consumption of alcoholic drinks below which there is no increase in risk of the cancers it causes. This means that, based solely on the evidence on cancer, even small amounts of alcoholic drinks should be avoided. 

In framing the recommendation here, the Committee has also taken into account the evidence that modest amounts of alcoholic drinks are likely to protect against coronary heart disease .  The evidence hows that all alcoholic drinks have the same effect. Data do not suggest any significant difference depending on the type of drink. This recommendation therefore covers all alcoholic drinks, whether beers, wines, spirits (liquors), or other alcoholic drinks. The important factor is the amount of ethanol consumed. 
The Expert Committee emphasises 
that children and and pregnant women should not consume alcoholic drinks. 
  
Additional Info about the above:

The main alcoholic drinks consumed, in ascending order of alcohol (ethanol) content, are beers and ciders; wines; wines 'fortified' with spirits; and spirits (liquors) and liqueurs. The alcohol content of the many different drinks within each of these categories varies.  Alcoholic drinks induce changes in mood; they also produce physical effects such as loss of coordination. In most countries they are the legal 'intoxicant' of choice, used as a social and professional lubricant; however, certain cultures forbid the drinking of alcohol.   Alcohol relaxes people's social inhibitions, but it is addictive; dependency on alcohol can seriously affect people's personal and professional lives.  

It has been known for a long time that prolonged high consumption of alcohol is a cause of cirrhosis of the liver, though not all people are equally susceptible. Knowledge of its other ill-effects is more recent.  Overall, 
the Panel judges that alcoholic drinks are a cause of cancers of a number of sites and that, in general, the evidence is stronger than it was in the mid-1990s. The evidence does not show any 'safe limit' of intake. The effect is from ethanol, irrespective of the type of drink.  

Ethanol is classified by the International Agency for Cancer Research as a human carcinogen.

The Panel judges as follows: 
The evidence that alcoholic drinks are a cause of cancers of the mouth, pharynx, and larynx, oesophagus, colorectum (men), and breast is convincing. They are probably a cause of liver cancer, and of colorectal cancer in women.