Health News
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom
The health risks and benefits of alcohol continue to get more complicated. We all know ? and science agrees - that excessive consumption is health damaging. Yet plenty of scientific data support the health benefits of a modest amount of alcohol (beer, wine, or spirits) daily on heart health: for women, one drink and men, two drinks.
Now a new study based on the Harvard Women?s Health Study, suggests that women who routinely consume even small amounts of alcohol, regularly ? as few as 3 drinks each week ? elevate their risk of breast cancer. How should you interpret this information?
It?s important to understand that the risk rose by 15% in a group of roughly 100,000 women, with risk rising with increasing alcohol intake. This sounds scary, until you look at the risk of the average woman. A typical woman, at age 50, has a breast cancer risk of about 3% over 5 years, so the added risk from this small amount of alcohol would only raise this risk to 3.45%. But you need to know your overall risk factors, including family history and other lifestyle habits, to see how ?typical? you are.
Population data like these are not always reflective of the individual. The risks and benefits of modest alcohol consumption remain an ongoing debate in the scientific and medical community.
The bottom line? If you don?t already consume alcohol, don?t add it to your diet as a health promoter. If you choose to drink alcoholic beverages, talk with your doctor or another health professional about your personal health issues, to better determine your own health profile relative to the pros and cons of alcohol intake.
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Health News
Alcohol and Breast Cancer Risk
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom
Now a new study based on the Harvard Women?s Health Study, suggests that women who routinely consume even small amounts of alcohol, regularly ? as few as 3 drinks each week ? elevate their risk of breast cancer. How should you interpret this information?
It?s important to understand that the risk rose by 15% in a group of roughly 100,000 women, with risk rising with increasing alcohol intake. This sounds scary, until you look at the risk of the average woman. A typical woman, at age 50, has a breast cancer risk of about 3% over 5 years, so the added risk from this small amount of alcohol would only raise this risk to 3.45%. But you need to know your overall risk factors, including family history and other lifestyle habits, to see how ?typical? you are.
Population data like these are not always reflective of the individual. The risks and benefits of modest alcohol consumption remain an ongoing debate in the scientific and medical community.
The bottom line? If you don?t already consume alcohol, don?t add it to your diet as a health promoter. If you choose to drink alcoholic beverages, talk with your doctor or another health professional about your personal health issues, to better determine your own health profile relative to the pros and cons of alcohol intake.
- Lifestyle Changes And Screening Will Decrease Risk Of Cancer, Which Is Especially Deadly In Kentucky
This Kentucky Cancer Consortium graph shows the deaths from cancers with evidence-based prevention or early detection methods in Kentucky in 2005-09.By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Kentucky has the nation's highest rates of newly diagnosed...
- Breast Cancer Awareness: Testing Urged, Guidelines Explained, Misconceptions Explored
Women with BRCA1 and BRCA2, the genes most commonly involved in breast cancer, have up to an 80 percent chance of getting the disease.October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Although Kentucky's breast cancer rate is slightly lower than the nationwide...
- Is Breast Cancer Preventable?
By Dr. Madelyn FernstromOctober is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. While there are no specific instructions for breast cancer prevention, there are many things you can do to reduce your risk. Here are six lifestyle steps that research shows contribute...
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By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Nearly 10% of the US population has type 2 diabetes. But you don?t have to be part of this group! The good news is that even making one key lifestyle change can reduce your risk by about one-third. An NIH study showed how 5 specific...
- April 7 Is National Alcohol Screening Day
Every year thousands of people fall victim to alcohol-related injuries. The scary fact is that many of these injuries are caused by alcoholics who took their first drink when they were underage. The Screening for Mental Health website says ?Approximately...