First off, if you try telling someone you’re quitting drinking, you’ll get a very different reaction to what you’ll get if you tell the same person you’re quitting smoking.
But that’s not what we mean here.
Remember the transformation smoking went through, from when it was everywhere, even on planes, to being heavily taxed and sold only when properly labeled as dangerous to your health?
Well, drinking may be in for some similar long overdue regulation.
The Consumer Federation of America is lobbying for the following label to be applied to alcoholic beverages: “Government Warning: According to the Surgeon General, consumption of alcoholic beverages can cause cancer, including breast and colon cancers.”
Their claim is backed up by the Surgeon General’s 2016 report and by the CDC’s assessment, so it may actually happen, although the alcohol industry pushed back hard against similar Canadian and Irish efforts (the latter backed by the World Cancer Research Fund).
So we’re now looking at a world where maybe, just maybe, we won’t prohibit alcohol (that didn’t work out so well for us as a society, if you recall your history), but we’ll have some sensible education so people know the risks.
Speaking of risks, we have an entire exercise in Drinker’s Helper talking about the long-term health risks of heavy drinking. If you are looking to cut back or quit, we’d love to help. Try the Drinker’s Helper app free today!
