Youngsters shouldn't drink: Lancet research

Aditi Tandon

New Delhi, July 16

A new research suggests there is nothing like low health-risk drinking for youngsters though small amounts may be beneficial for some older adults.

In a first, authors of the study published in the Lancet, challenge existing knowledge on the amount of alcohol youngsters can consume without inviting health risks and say recommendations for how much one can drink should be based on age and local disease rates rather than sex as today.

Vital to communicate

While it may not be realistic to think young adults will abstain from drinking, it is important to communicate the latest evidence so that everyone can make informed decisions about their health. Emmanuela Gakido, Senior author

“We provide clear evidence that the level of alcohol consumption that minimises health loss remains zero or very close to zero for several population groups, particularly young adults aged 15 to 39 years. Small amounts of alcohol consumption are associated with improved health outcomes in some populations, who predominantly face a high burden of cardiovascular diseases, particularly older adults in many world regions. We recommend a modification of existing policy guidelines to focus on emphasising differential consumption levels by age, rather than the current practice of recommending different consumption levels by sex,” say authors, who used estimates of alcohol use in 204 countries.

Importantly, no study to date has examined the variation in the theoretical minimum risk exposure level (TMREL) of alcohol consumption by geography, age, sex, and time, conditioned on background rates of disease.

TMREL represents the level of consumption that minimises health loss from alcohol for a population while non-drinker equivalence (NDE) level measures the level of alcohol consumption at which the risk of health loss for a drinker is equivalent to that of a non-drinker.

They found that the population-level health risks associated with low levels of alcohol consumption were far greater for younger populations than for older ones. “These findings highlight the need for tailored guidelines that discourage alcohol consumption among young people,” authors say.

76% males consumed harmful amounts

• 1.03 billion males and 312 million females drank harmful amounts in excess of the non-drinker equivalence in 2020
• Among those consuming harmful amounts in 2020, 59.1% were aged 15 to 39 years and 76.9% were male

Standard quantity

• 10 grams of pure alcohol, which equals 100 ml of red wine at 13% alcohol by volume
• A can or beer bottle of 375 ml at 3.5% alcohol by volume
• A whiskey shot 30 ml at 40% alcohol by volume