It was immediate headline news: The Surgeon General kicked off Dry January by releasing a new report about the linkages between cancer and alcohol and recommended that alcohol should carry a black box warning about cancer risk.
There are understandably very mixed feelings about this announcement—some people are shocked; others are relieved and wondering why it’s taken so long for this to happen. And both sides have a valid point.
Woven Into Our Culture
It’s fair for many to find this report surprising. Alcohol has been woven into our culture for generations. Despite potential health risks associated with alcohol consumption, we actively celebrate when someone comes of age to drink, “happy hour” is a regularly practiced social activity, sporting events rake in billions in profits on alcohol purchases alone, and our biggest milestone moments—weddings, engagement parties, birthdays, buying a house—all feature celebratory champagne, an open bar, or both. There’s even been research published in recent years that suggests that drinking small amounts regularly is actively healthy for us (e.g., red wine having heart health benefits), almost akin to taking a baby aspirin. Drinking alcohol has been wholly embraced and normalized in our culture.
That said, once not long ago, smoking was also normalized and embraced within everyday culture. Ashtrays were commonplace on tables in restaurants, and there were smoking sections in hospitals and airports, and smoking lounges in workplaces, including faculty lounges in elementary schools.
What changed? Health risk information was shared with the public. Warning labels were added. And people were able to make their own informed choices about tobacco use. As a result, many people quit smoking when they became aware of the risks to their health. And many policies changed to help reduce the impact of second- and third-hand smoke.
The fact is, while nine out of 10 of Americans now understand the link between tobacco and cancer, a recent study found that fewer than half of Americans realize that alcohol is also a carcinogen. Alcohol is actually the third leading preventable cause of cancer, just behind tobacco and obesity.
Regular alcohol use (even as little as a drink per day on average) has been found to be profoundly hazardous to health. This research has been replicated, confirmed, and supported nationally and globally. And, in many other countries, alcohol is consumed with much greater caution than it is in the United States. Canada made news in 2023 by recommending its citizens consume no more than one to two standard drinks per week to reduce the risk of negative health impacts. And, as of 2024, 47 countries worldwide require health and safety warning labels on alcoholic beverages.
The Alcohol Industry
How can we explain this discrepancy between how the United States handles alcohol compared to other countries sharing the same data? For decades, American alcohol companies have tried to suppress and obfuscate information about the negative health implications of drinking, actively sowing misinformation and confusion. The alcohol industry has also systematically misled the public about alcohol-related health risks, and particularly about cancer, through sophisticated misinformation campaigns. An analysis of nearly 30 alcohol industry organizations revealed that more than 90 percent of their websites misrepresented evidence about alcohol-related cancer risks. The industry also has a documented history of partnering with organizations masquerading as independent charities to avoid accountability and dampen perceptions of broad public health risks.
Additionally, there is a documented history of the alcohol industry attempting to influence government-funded research and policy. A prime example was the Moderate Alcohol and Cardiovascular Health Trial, a $100-million study that was discontinued in 2018 when National Institutes of Health officials were found to have improperly solicited funding from the alcohol industry, as well as biased the design to produce more favorable results.
Encouraging Trends
If you’re feeling disheartened reading this, here’s a bit of good news: Their efforts have not worked as well as they may have hoped. A recent Gallup poll found that young adults aged 18 to 34 years increasingly view alcohol consumption as unhealthy—an incredible trend that demonstrates that the public is educating themselves, noting evidence, and making health-positive choices. And encouraging data suggest that January 2025 is anticipated to be the largest “Dry January” (when people abstain from alcohol consumption through the month of January) on record, with 75 million adults expected to participate this year.
So—if alcohol trends are heading in the right direction, why do we need warning labels? Because, despite optimistic trends in alcohol consumption, alcohol-related deaths are still sharply rising. Information about the health risks of alcohol should be available to everyone who uses alcohol, not just the individuals who seek out current research and information. Misinformation campaigns prey upon ignorance, and alcohol remains strongly integrated into the fabric of our society, making all of us easier targets.
Warning labels are a significant, health-positive step toward changing these trends. Everyone deserves the opportunity to make informed choices about their relationship with alcohol—emphasis here on the word “informed.” It’s insufficient to just have warning information “out there” for people to find; we have a responsibility to make it easily visible. There’s no better place to do this than on the product itself.
Contrary to what some may fear, warning labels will not make alcohol less accessible or more expensive. Warning labels will not lead to prohibition, systematic oppression, or government overreach.
Instead, warning labels will bring necessary transparency, provide better information, and promote educated decision-making. It’s a step toward health we should welcome, and a change our new Congress should enact.