Critique 118: Clustering of alcohol consumption with socioeconomic and biologic risk factors for cancer — 30 July 2013

Forum Comments
As described by Forum reviewer Skovenborg: ‘The present study highlighted the clustering of alcohol consumption with other demographic, lifestyle and dietary cancer risk factors, such as excess body weight (in men), tobacco use, and poor compliance with cancer-preventive dietary recommendations. The study managed to collect a very large number of men and women with moderate alcohol consumption and a sufficient number of non-drinkers as well. The study is essentially a study of confounding and of clustering of lifestyle habits. The difficult question is how to separate the drink from the drinker [Day NL. Alcohol and mortality: Separating the drink from the drinker (thesis). Ann Arbor: University Microfilms International, 1978.] The positive association of alcohol consumption and tobacco use is well known and found in most studies. And the association of beverage preference and diet is an example of the influence of regional culture and lifestyle habits.”  > > > >  Read More