5 ms·

> To identify a “safe” level of alcohol consumption, valid scientific evidence would need to demonstrate that at and below a certain level, there is no risk of

by gizmo 4y ago

> To identify a “safe” level of alcohol consumption, valid scientific evidence would need to demonstrate that at and below a certain level, there is no risk of illness or injury associated with alcohol consumption. The new WHO statement clarifies: currently available evidence cannot indicate the existence of a threshold at which the carcinogenic effects of alcohol “switch on” and start to manifest in the human body. The headline is not accurate it looks like. The article states that we don’t know if occasional drinking is harmful. And it makes sense we don’t know, because you can’t do an effective longitudinal study where you compare very light drinking to no drinking because the expected effect size is small and all the confounders will muddy the water. Toasted bread and cinnamon are carcinogenic but I can’t imagine a WHO headline asserting that “no amount of cinnamon is safe for your health”.

zabzonk 4y ago
you don't need the cinnamon, just the toast [studies say]
- TedDoesntTalk 4y ago
  Link? I thought cinnamon was good for blood pressure?
  - zabzonk 4y ago
    cinnamon may be - don't know. i was talking about browned/burnt toast, in which several carcinogens have been identified, as they are in just about everything, if you look hard enough.
    - Penyngton 4y ago
      Apparently, this is a myth: https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/cancer-myths/can-eating-burnt-foods-cause-cancer https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-canc...
      - zabzonk 4y ago
        not entirely, just not too well researched; https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/diet/acrylamide-fact-sheet https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/d...
        Penyngton 4y ago
        Your own link says: > However, a large number of epidemiologic studies (both case-control and cohort studies) in humans have found no consistent evidence that dietary acrylamide exposure is associated with the risk of any type of cancer (9, 14).
        zabzonk 4y ago
        not "no evidence" though. my general point over all of my comments on this question is that many "studies" are of doubtful significance - including burnt toast.
  - yucky 4y ago
    Interestingly enough, moderate alcohol consumption can lower blood pressure too.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
hilbert42 4y ago
""no amount of cinnamon is safe for your health"". This is the point I was making when I posted my earlier facetious point about life being fatal. If we'd studied the effects of many other common day-to-day chemicals or foodstuffs that we take for granted in our lives to the extent we'd studied ethanol then we'd likely find them equally or even more dangerous. Keep in mind we all produce small amounts of ethanol as the result of digestion, similarly so methanol which is far more dangerous than ethanol. These are a part of the life cycle whether we like it or not. It would be much more helpful if WHO would accept the fact that all humans process small amounts of alcohol and likely always will and instead concentrate on minimizing the harmful consumption thereof. PS: spare a thought for those comparatively rare but unfortunate individuals who fail breathalyzer tests when they've not been drinking because their gut microbes produce sufficient ethanol to trigger tests. Phrases like 'no amount' aren't helpful.
- woolion 4y ago
  For anyone else wondering about this DIY ethanol production, it is aptly named "Auto-brewery Syndrome". The production of endogenous ethanol occurs in minute quantities as part of normal digestion, but when fermenting yeast or bacteria become pathogenic, extreme blood alcohol levels may result. Auto-brewery syndrome is more prevalent in patients with co-morbidities such as diabetes, obesity, and Crohn disease [2][3] but can occur in otherwise healthy individuals.[4] [...] While auto-brewery syndrome is rarely diagnosed, it is probably underdiagnosed. Reference: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513346/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513346/ Imagine your physician snitching on you to the state for illegal alcohol brewing and you might pay taxes on it.

by gizmo 4y ago

zabzonk 4y ago

you don't need the cinnamon, just the toast [studies say]

TedDoesntTalk 4y ago
Link? I thought cinnamon was good for blood pressure?
- zabzonk 4y ago
  cinnamon may be - don't know. i was talking about browned/burnt toast, in which several carcinogens have been identified, as they are in just about everything, if you look hard enough.
  - Penyngton 4y ago
    Apparently, this is a myth: https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/cancer-myths/can-eating-burnt-foods-cause-cancer https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-canc...
    - zabzonk 4y ago
      not entirely, just not too well researched; https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/diet/acrylamide-fact-sheet https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/d...
      - Penyngton 4y ago
        Your own link says: > However, a large number of epidemiologic studies (both case-control and cohort studies) in humans have found no consistent evidence that dietary acrylamide exposure is associated with the risk of any type of cancer (9, 14).
        zabzonk 4y ago
        not "no evidence" though. my general point over all of my comments on this question is that many "studies" are of doubtful significance - including burnt toast.
- yucky 4y ago
  Interestingly enough, moderate alcohol consumption can lower blood pressure too.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

hilbert42 4y ago

""no amount of cinnamon is safe for your health"". This is the point I was making when I posted my earlier facetious point about life being fatal. If we'd studied the effects of many other common day-to-day chemicals or foodstuffs that we take for granted in our lives to the extent we'd studied ethanol then we'd likely find them equally or even more dangerous. Keep in mind we all produce small amounts of ethanol as the result of digestion, similarly so methanol which is far more dangerous than ethanol. These are a part of the life cycle whether we like it or not. It would be much more helpful if WHO would accept the fact that all humans process small amounts of alcohol and likely always will and instead concentrate on minimizing the harmful consumption thereof. PS: spare a thought for those comparatively rare but unfortunate individuals who fail breathalyzer tests when they've not been drinking because their gut microbes produce sufficient ethanol to trigger tests. Phrases like 'no amount' aren't helpful.

woolion 4y ago
For anyone else wondering about this DIY ethanol production, it is aptly named "Auto-brewery Syndrome". The production of endogenous ethanol occurs in minute quantities as part of normal digestion, but when fermenting yeast or bacteria become pathogenic, extreme blood alcohol levels may result. Auto-brewery syndrome is more prevalent in patients with co-morbidities such as diabetes, obesity, and Crohn disease [2][3] but can occur in otherwise healthy individuals.[4] [...] While auto-brewery syndrome is rarely diagnosed, it is probably underdiagnosed. Reference: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513346/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513346/ Imagine your physician snitching on you to the state for illegal alcohol brewing and you might pay taxes on it.