What citygirl doesn’t enjoy a cocktail now and then? Meeting friends for drinks is the way many of us socialize. While consuming alcohol in moderation can actually be good for your heart, drinking alcohol in excess, especially in the form of binge drinking, can increase your risk of breast cancer.

What is binge drinking?
The generally accepted definition of binge drinking in the United States is the consumption of five or more drinks in a row by men — or four or more drinks in a row by women — at least once in the previous 2 weeks. Heavy binge drinking includes three or more such episodes in 2 weeks. 

-The frequency of binge drinking is up on college campuses across America, especially among women. Roughly 40 percent of college women who were surveyed binge drank at least once a month compared with roughly 50 percent of men, according to the Harvard School of Public Health’s College Alcohol Study which was set up to examine drinking behavior among men and women in college.  

-And more disturbing is that high school kids also have a high rate of binge drinking. One study showed that 28.8% of high school students reported binge drinking in the past 30 days.

- I haven’t come across any data on binge drinking in adult women. However from my personal experience of listening to what people eat and drink, I can say that binge drinking is still fairly common, even in adults. Binge drinking doesn’t have to mean getting sloppy drunk. A martini (this equals 2 drinks - or more) before dinner and 1/2 bottle of wine with dinner could count as a “binge” for a woman. I must admit that my friends and I have had nights where we have consumed more than 4 drinks…of course not on a regular basis!

Study shows connection between binge drinking and breast cancer
Researchers at the Center for Alcohol Research in Denmark tracked 17,647 women for 8 years. Those women who reported having 1-3 drinks a week versus non-drinkers had a small increase in breast cancer risk - about 2% per additional drink each week. Women who had 4- 5 drinks at a time once a week had increased their breast cancer risk by 55% relative to the women having one drink per occasion. Lina Morch from the Center for Alcohol Research says alcohol raises blood levels of estrogen, which is associated with breast cancer. Blood alcohol levels peak when binge drinking occurs. This may lead to a greater buildup of cancer-causing toxins than repeated low level exposure.

Bottom line, while alcohol in moderation (moderation = one drink a day for women and two for men) can fit into a healthy lifestyle, binge drinking is risky for many reasons, not the least being an increased risk of breast cancer. I would caution women to be especially careful with their alcohol intake if they have a family history of breast cancer.

 FYI - Check out these pics to see the difference in the brain activity of someone who drinks versus someone who doesn’t  (scroll down the page)

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