It’s time we faced the truth: alcohol is one of the most harmful substances we consume, and its impact on health and society is devastating. If we still think that alcohol is ‘not that bad’, or if we have forgotten about its dangers, maybe it’s time for us to revisit what its devastating impacts are on our bodies and minds. South Africans know that when Dezemba hits, the mood shifts.
The music gets louder, year-end parties multiply, and for many, a drink becomes an almost automatic part of celebration. We laugh about the babalaas, stack up cooler boxes and treat alcohol as if it is inseparable from joy. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), alcohol contributes to2.6 milliondeaths globally each year.
South Africa ranks among thetop fivecountries in the world for alcohol consumption, with an estimated62,300premature deaths annually linked to drinking. The National Treasury reported that in 2022, South Africans consumed4.5 billionlitres of liquor. In 2023, the WHO boldly affirmed in aLancet studythat “no safe amount of alcohol consumption for cancers and health can be established”.
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Inother words, there is no level of drinking that does not harm health. Alcohol harmsnearly everymajor organ in our system, yet we often reduce its dangers to jokes about hangovers or vague worries about “the liver”. In reality, alcohol contributes toliver cirrhosis, a condition in which healthy liver tissue is replaced by scar tissue until the organ can no longer function.
Its consumptionelevates the risk ofcardiovascular disease, weakens the immune system, worsens injuries and fuels chronic illness. Among these risks, cancer deserves particular attention. Alcohol has been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a Group 1 Carcinogensince 1987, meaning there is conclusive evidence that it causes cancer in humans.
The evidence is overwhelming. Drinkingincreases the riskof cancers of the mouth, throat, oesophagus, liver and breast. Even light drinkers face elevated risks: mouth and throat cancers are nearlytwiceas likely with them, while heavy drinkers face up tofive timesthe risk.
AsFanfarillo et al.explained in a 2024 study that looked at alcohol being a modifiable risk factor for breast and ovarian cancer: “When ethanol is metabolised, it is converted primarily to acetaldehyde by the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), a potent carcinogen that can form DNA adducts, leading to mutations.” In simple terms this means that when your body breaks down alcohol, it turns it into a chemical called acetaldehyde. This chemical is highly toxic and can damage DNA, which increases the risk of cancer. Alcohol starts affecting the brain from the veryfirst drink.
Itslows downthe messages the brain is trying to send to the body, which is why one’s reaction time gets worse, judgment slips, and things like walking, talking and even seeing clearly become harder. When someone drinks a lot (more than two drinks) in one sitting, alcohol decreases inhibitions and eventually canshut downthe part of the brain that stores memories; this is why blackouts happen. The person is awake, but the brain isn’t recording.
Over time, regular drinking causes real, physical damage. It kills brain cells, increases the risk ofstroke, and speeds upmemory loss and cognitive decline, things we normally only expect with older age.
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