ALCOHOL AND PROSTATE CANCER : one pint of beer per day increases the risk of Prostate Cancer.

Scientists have raised the alarm about the impact of drinking, saying that drinking just one pint of beer every day raises the risk of contracting prostate cancer by 23 per cent. This is the finding of a new study published in the online journal ‘BMC Cancer’.

Prostate cancer, also known as carcinoma of the prostate, is the development of cancer in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. The new study found that men who drank two to three units each day – equivalent to one pint of five per cent strength beer or two 175ml glasses of wine – raised their risk of prostate cancer by 23 per cent compared to people who had never drunk alcohol.

Similarly, it shows that even as little as half a pint a week increased the likelihood of contracting the cancer. Before this research, only binge-drinking was thought to raise the risk of contracting prostate cancer.

However, with this new development, the researchers warned: “It means that when it comes to cancer, there is no safe threshold for drinking.” Prostate cancer is the most common cancer afflicting men in Africa, including Nigeria.

The way in which alcohol triggers the growth of tumours in the prostate is not fully understood The way in which alcohol triggers the growth of tumours in the prostate is not fully understood.

Alcoholic drinks contain carcinogens including acetaldehyde – nicknamed ‘the hangover chemical’ – which is formed when alcohol is broken down in the liver, and can damage cell DNA.

The ‘mailonline’ reported that the new analysis shows this misconception was based on flawed studies that gave men a false sense of security. The researchers from the University of Victoria in Australia analysed 26 previous scientific studies that linked the consumption of alcohol to prostate cancer.

The research is likely to alarm men who considered themselves moderate drinkers and therefore not in danger. Reacting to the study, lead researcher, Tim Stockwell said: ‘For cancer risk, the causal processes appear to be operating whenever we drink, and to a degree directly relate to how much we consume and with no safe threshold.’