Originally Posted by
znomit
World Health Organisation says no.
http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/p...ruprofiles.pdf
2.1 ALCOHOL AND HEALTH
The harmful use of alcohol is one of the world’s leading health risks. It is a causal factor in more than 60 major types of diseases and injuries and results in approximately 2.5 million deaths each year. If we take into consideration the beneficial impact of low risk alcohol use on morbidity and mortality in some diseases and in some population groups, the total number of deaths attributable to alcohol consumption was estimated to be 2.25 million in 2004 (WHO, 2009a). This accounts for more deaths than caused by HIV/AIDS or tuberculosis. Thus, 4% of all deaths worldwide are attributable to alcohol. The harmful use of alcohol is especially fatal for younger age groups and alcohol is the world’s leading risk factor for death among males aged 15–59.
Approximately 4.5% of the global burden of disease and injury is attributable to alcohol. Alcohol consumption is estimated to cause from 20% to 50% of cirrhosis of the liver, epilepsy, poisonings, road traffic accidents, violence and several types of cancer. It is the third highest risk for disease and disability, after childhood underweight and unsafe sex. Alcohol contributes to traumatic outcomes that kill or disable people at a relatively young age, resulting in the loss of many years of life to death and disability. This section examines the causal links between alcohol and death, disease and injury.
But I'm still going to go grab a beer now.
ps
Where the heck is four beers considered moderate?
The WHO report is juust that a report, not a study. And their conclusions regarding the net effect of alcohol consumption appear to rather skewed, ignoring substantial evidence of the positive effects of moderate alcohol use:
The World Health Organization (WHO) has released its global status report on alcohol and health for 2011. Forum members largely agree with the discussion in the report of the serious health and societal problems associated with the misuse of alcohol, which contributes to accidents, many diseases, and premature deaths.
On the other hand, Forum members were disturbed that the report was limited almost exclusively to abusive drinking, was based primarily on out-dated information, and suggested bias against alcohol.
The report ignored a massive amount of scientific data indicating that in all developed countries, moderate consumers of alcohol are at much lower risk of essentially all of the diseases of ageing: coronary heart disease, ischemic stroke, diabetes, dementia, and osteoporosis. And conspicuously absent from the WHO report is a description of the decrease in total mortality among middle-aged and elderly people associated with moderate alcohol consumption, a finding that has been found consistently throughout the world.
Epidemiologic studies over many decades have shown that while excessive or irresponsible alcohol use has severe adverse health and societal effects, moderate drinking is associated with lower risk of cardiovascular disease and other diseases of ageing. And a very large number of experimental studies, including results from human trials, have described biological mechanisms for the protective effects of both alcohol and the polyphenolic components of wine.
A number of comprehensive meta-analyses are cited by Forum reviewers which they consider to provide much more accurate, up to date, and scientifically balanced views of the current "status" of the health effects of alcohol consumption. Such documents are better sources of data upon which policy decisions should be based.
Source: Boston University Medical Center
http://www.news-medical.net/news/201...nd-health.aspx
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You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
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