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In the final days of the Biden Administration we’re seeing a lot of rules and new laws come into effect, like Medicare capping out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs at $2,000/year and the “Click-to-Cancel” rule that requires business make it as easy to cancel subscriptions and services as it was for them to sign up for them. I don’t know how long many of the consumer protection rules from the last four years will survive, but I really, really hope they last.
Last week, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy continued to serve the American people by issuing a new health advisory. Just in time for Dry January, Dr. Murthy warned us about how drinking alcoholic beverages can increase the risk of developing seven (yes – seven!) different types of cancers, including “breast, colorectal, esophagus, liver, mouth, throat, and [larynx].” He also urged Congress to add language about the risk of cancer to the Surgeon General’s warning label on each bottle. Dr. Murthy sat down with NPR’s Steve Inskeep for an interview that broke it all down, sharing that “alcohol is responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer in the United States each year.”
The statistics: “Alcohol is the third leading preventable cause of cancer behind tobacco and obesity. Just to put this in perspective, alcohol is responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer in the United States each year and 20,000 cancer deaths.”
Less than half of Americans know about the alcohol/cancel correlation: “The science has been building for years, creating greater and greater certainty about more and more types of cancer. But what is clear is that while people know, for example, about the link between tobacco and cancer and other health risks and cancer, less than half of people in America know that alcohol is, in fact, connected to cancer risk.”
Moderation matters: “It turns out that more consumption of alcohol increases your risk of cancer. So we see significantly lower risk at lower levels of consumption.”
On adding cancer to the risk list: “[O]n alcohol-containing bottles, there is, in fact, a surgeon general’s warning that mentions these two risks: drinking during pregnancy and drinking while operating a car or heavy machinery. What I have called for in this advisory is that the surgeon general’s warning label be updated by Congress to include a third risk here, which is the risk of cancer. You know, we’ve seen in the first two cases that when people were warned about these risks, they became part of our common knowledge. They sort of just shape our behavior.”
The risk level varies by individual: “What I want people to know here is that, while we don’t have data to give a precise level at which every person can drink and minimize their risk of cancer, the exact level that’s right for each individual does depend on their own risk of cancer based on their genetics, their family history, environmental exposures.
The two critical things that the data does tell us are that, one, there is a significant increase in risk of cancer going from, you know, even at the current levels, that are within the guidelines. So that’s one drink a day for women, two drinks a day for men. But second, that the patterns we see suggest lower consumption is equated with lower risk. So the bottom line is, if you drink regularly, keep in mind that less is better when it comes to reducing your cancer risk.”
He’d be happy to help and support his replacement:“I have not [spoken with Trump’s nominee Fox News contributor and urgent care doctor Dr. Janette Nesheiwat], but I’m looking forward to connecting with her. And, you know, to her or to whomever is confirmed as the next surgeon general. I think something people may not know is that those of us who have served in this role have a strong fellowship. We are friends with each other across Republican and Democratic administrations. We help each other out and support each other. And if she is to serve as the next surgeon general, if she’s confirmed by the Senate, and certainly she’ll be a part of that group as well.”
On whether he thinks people still listen to the SG’s warnings nowadays: “I think people still do listen to the office, but I’m certainly aware that there are many types of pathways to which people get their information these days. Many more than back in 1964 when the tobacco report came out from our office. But back then, when that report did come out, the very next year, Congress passed legislation for a warning label. And we started to see a big national effort come together where parents, community leaders, schools all came together to build campaigns to reduce tobacco use.”
I knew that excessive drinking can lead to a lot of health issues, including liver cancer, but I never considered that it could be a factor in the other six types of cancers listed. What I found particularly interesting to have been brought up was his thoughts on whether or not people still listen to his office’s warnings. It’s a fair question in an era where people are increasingly skeptical of public health staples like vaccines, and when one proclamation from a bad faith actor can create so much chaos that people end up harming themselves. I hope that he’s right that people still listen to the surgeon general’s warnings in the same ways that they have in the past when it comes to alcohol and cigarettes.
Dr. Murthy’s other advisories over the last four years include the negative effects of social media, young people’s mental health, the “loneliness, isolation, and the lack of connection in our country” that expedited during the pandemic, and parental stress. He’s also pushed for more research into gun violence and ways the government can prevent it, calling it a “public health crisis” and an “epidemic.” Basically, this guy rocks and isn’t afraid to ruffle feathers. I’m sure there were a lot of angry rich people after Dr. Murthy’s latest warning caused alcohol stock prices to drop. Dr. Murthy was previously President Obama’s surgeon general and President Biden reappointed him in 2021. It’s a shame he’s only going to be surgeon general for the next two weeks. I hope the next Democratic president nominates him to serve again.
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