DEADLINE TO SUBMIT PUBLIC COMMENTS IS MAY 8, 2015 at Healthcare.gov
The Syracuse founder of an Alcohol watchdog group is raising red flags about some food and drink guidelines that could promote dangerous levels of drinking. The federal Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion is updating its dietary guidelines - the same ones that tell you to eat more fiber and protein, and less fatty foods. Now they’re raising what constitutes ‘moderate’ – and presumably safe – alcohol consumption. Bob Pezzolesi of the New York Alcohol Policy Alliance says the old standard was 1 drink/day for females and 2 drinks/day for males that’s being raised to 3 drinks/day for women and 4 drinks/day for men.
“This daily limit brings people right up to the edge of binge drinking for a particular occasion, which seems pretty problematic, with no real justification for why this change has been made. We can’t see what the rationale is based on what they’re saying.”
He worries that people will take that as license to drink more.
ACCORDING TO THE SCIENTIFIC REPORT Of 2015 DIETARY GUIDELINES ADVISORY COMMITTEE:
Moderate alcohol consumption—Average daily consumption of up to one drink per day for women and up to two drinks per day for men, with no more than three drinks in any single day for women and no more than four drinks in any single day for men. One drink is defined as 12 fl. oz. of regular beer, 5 fl. oz. of wine, or 1.5 fl. oz. of distilled spirits.
Past research and the World Health Organization find that such recommendations are seen not as ceilings on drinking, but more of a safe floor. Pezzolesi says studies show even moderate drinking over time is shown to have dangerous health impacts.
"So there’s been recent research that shows cirrhosis of the liver can be affected by drinking just one or two alcohol drinks a day over a long period of time. And particularly for us, because it’s an issue we’ve been trying to raise awareness about is the issue of cancer. There’s really no safe amount of drinking for cancer risk. Some research has shown light drinking increases the risk of oral, pharyngeal, esophageal and female breast cancer.”
Pezzolesi repeats that he sees no reason to increase the definition of ‘moderate’ drinking in the dietary guidelines. Multiple studies have shown that a 'moderate' alcohol consumption reduces the risk of Cardiovascular disease. Pezzolesi dismisses any minor health benefits associated with small quantities of alcohol consumption as far outweighed by the increased cancer and cirrhosis risks. He’s asking people to tell the federal government not to make this change.
