Overview
- The peer-reviewed analysis published Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs recommends adults limit intake to no more than one standard drink per day based on modeled lifetime risks.
- Researchers reviewed more than 7,200 studies and applied risk estimates to large U.S. health datasets to produce statistical models linking drinking levels to long-term death, disability and disease.
- The team calculated specific risk thresholds: men who drink more than 6.5 drinks a week and women who drink more than seven a week exceed a 1-in-1,000 lifetime risk of alcohol-related death, risks rise above 1-in-100 at about 8.5 drinks a week, and reach about 1-in-25 at 14 drinks a week.
- The study finds even low-to-moderate drinking raises risks for cancers, liver disease and injury, while any modest lower risk for ischemic heart disease or stroke is outweighed when all outcomes are considered and is erased by occasional binge drinking.
- The work was commissioned to inform the U.S. Dietary Guidelines and was released independently after its findings were not reflected in the current federal guidance; the paper is scientific guidance not government policy and individual risk varies by genetics, family history and drinking patterns.