Britons should drink no more than a quarter of a pint of beer a day, scientists have said.
More than 4,500 lives could be saved annually by changing official advice on ‘safe’ levels of alcohol intake, they believe.
It would mean recommended consumption – for men and women – would be cut to half a unit a day, the equivalent of just a couple of gulps of beer or three glasses of wine each week.
Guidance: Experts say 'safe' drinking levels are three to four units a day for men, or two to three
for women
The new advice flies in the face of previous
studies, which have shown that drinking alcohol in moderation reduces the risk
of dying from heart disease.
Cutting consumption could stem the epidemic of alcohol-related chronic diseases set to cause 210,000 deaths during the next 20 years. Currently, the Department of Health says ‘safe’ drinking levels are three to four units a day for men, or two to three for women.
A small glass of wine contains 1.3 units, while a pint of beer contains at least two units.
But the new study says the ideal intake to prevent chronic disease is five grams a day – around half a unit. This is less than half a small glass of wine and just a quarter of a pint of beer.
The findings could influence the first review of drinking advice for 15 years, amid concern the existing limit wrongly implies that daily drinking is healthy.
The review was prompted by a report earlier this year from the Commons Science and Technology Committee, which said advice on safe drinking was confusing. It suggested new guidelines could tell people to observe two teetotal days a week.
For the new study, scientists led by Dr Melanie Nichols, of the British Heart Foundation Health Promotion Research Group at Oxford University, analysed the death toll of 11 conditions known to be linked to long-term alcohol consumption.
They included heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, cirrhosis of the liver, epilepsy and five different cancers.
The team used data from large-scale studies on drinking and chronic disease risk, combined with estimates of weekly alcohol consumption among 15,000 adults in England from the 2006 General Household Survey. Just under a third of the adults were non-drinkers.
Their results, published in online journal BMJ Open, showed that cutting alcohol intake to half a unit a day would avert 4,579 premature deaths in England each year.
This amounts to three in 100 of all deaths from the 11 conditions studied.
Regarding the positive effects of alcohol on protecting against heart disease, the researchers pointed out that cutting consumption would lead to 843 extra deaths per year.
But this would be offset by a reduction of deaths including more than 2,600 from cancers and almost 3,000 from liver cirrhosis.
Dr Nichols said: ‘When all of the chronic disease risks are balanced against each other, the optimal consumption level is much lower than many people believe.
‘More than 4,000 deaths from cancer, heart disease, stroke and liver disease in England could be prevented if drinkers reduced their average level of alcohol consumption to half a unit per person per day – a level much lower than current UK government recommendations.’
Earlier this year alcohol specialists Professor Ian Gilmore and Dr Nick Sheron calculated that drinking would cause 210,000 deaths in the next 20 years through illness, violence and accidents.
Figures show alcohol-related injuries and illness cost the NHS in England £3.3billion a year.
Eric Appleby, of the charity Alcohol Concern, said current guidelines were already confusing – and telling people to drink very small quantities on a daily basis was no less confusing.
He said: ‘We need to make sure [guidelines] are an easy-to-understand way of watching what you drink that’s practical for people to apply to their everyday lives.’
A Department of Health spokesperson said: 'The Chief Medical Officer is reviewing current alcohol consumption guidelines.
'She will review the evidence on alcohol and health risks including whether advice is needed on the maximum amount of alcohol that can be drunk in one session.'
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