"Alcohol-caused harms are spread across populations and can be experienced both by people who use alcohol and by those who do not.
"In the case of people who use alcohol, recent evidence indicates that, for both health and social harms, there is a risk even at low consumption levels (19–22). For example, in the European Union (EU), alcohol consumption is estimated to be the cause of 17% of the seven alcohol-related cancer types. Light to moderate alcohol consumption (less than 20 g of pure alcohol per day) was associated with 13.3% of these cases, equivalent to nearly 23 000 new cancer cases in 2017 (19,23). Concerning social harms, the literature is more sparse, but even so, studies to date have shown that the heaviest 10% of drinkers by volume are responsible for less than half of alcohol-related problems such as alcohol-related work absenteeism (24) and alcohol-related quarrels and fights (25). Hence, the social harms associated with drinking are attributable, to different degrees, to both heavy and non-heavy (ordinary) drinkers (26).
"Apart from those who use alcohol, other people, including children, families and communities, can experience alcohol-caused harms. While the decision to drink may often be a personal one, those affected by alcohol’s harm to others (AHTO) are generally not given a choice or option (27,28). In one Australian study conducted in 2021, approximately one third of all adults were harmed by the alcohol use of other people; women, younger people and heavier drinkers were at greater risk, and the source of the harm was more likely to be people they knew rather than strangers (29). The most recent European data (from 2021), covering 39 629 respondents from 32 European countries, demonstrate that AHTO disproportionately affects women and people with low incomes (30). Overall, AHTO makes up a substantial proportion of the alcohol-attributable burden of disease (31).
"In broad terms, no amount of alcohol is risk-free. Research shows that the majority of drinkers face some level of risk of experiencing alcohol-related harm (19,26,32)."
Empowering public health advocates to navigate alcohol policy challenges: alcohol policy playbook. Copenhagen: WHO Regional Office for Europe; 2024. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.
