Many women don't know that:

• A woman's body has more body fat than that of a man of the same weight. This means that it contains less water and therefore when she drinks it results in a higher alcohol concentration.
• The concentration of the enzyme that breaks down alcohol, appears to be lower and less active in women than in men. Again resulting in higher blood alcohol concentrations.
• In addition to the two reasons above, weight differentials between women and men exacerbate the problem.

All this adds up to the fact it takes that smaller amounts of alcohol to do damage to women’s bodies than to men’s.

In the UK a study was performed which looked at the incidence of cancer in women drinkers - the Million Women Study. These women were followed for more than 7 years. Here’s what they found.

• 25% said they didn’t drink at all
• 98% of those who did drink consumed fewer than 21 drinks per week and consumed an average of 10g of alcohol (1 drink) per day.
• During a follow-up period, 68,775 invasive cancers occurred.
• Increasing alcohol consumption was associated with increased risks of cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx, oesophagus, larynx, rectum, liver, breast and total cancer.
• There was no difference between those who drank wine and those who drank other forms of alcohol.
• The study reported that “For cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract, the alcohol-associated risk was confined to current smokers”, the good news being that there was little or no effect of alcohol on these cancers for women who had never smoked or who had quit.

The researchers concluded that “Low to moderate alcohol consumption in women increases the risk of certain cancers. For every additional drink regularly consumed per day, the increase in incidence up to age 75 years per 1000 for women in developed countries is estimated to be about 11 for breast cancer, 1 for cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx, 1 for cancer of the rectum, and 0.7 each for cancers of the oesophagus, larynx and liver, giving a total excess of about 15 cancers per 1000 women up to age 75.”

Fertility
We all know you shouldn’t drink while you’re pregnant, or trying to get pregnant, but did you know that excessive drinking can upset your menstrual cycle and increase your risk of infertility?

Sexually transmitted diseases
There seems to be a trend towards binge drinking. Apart from its physiological dangers it removes inhibitions with binge drinkers more likely to have unprotected sex with multiple partners thus increasing the risks of unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted disease.

Liver Disease
Women have a higher risk than men of cirrhosis of the liver as well as other alcohol-related liver diseases.

Brain damage
Women who drink to excess increase their likelihood of memory loss and brain shrinkage.

Cardiovascular problems
Studies have shown that excessive drinking puts women at increased risk of heart muscle damage.

Sexual Assault
Binge drinking has been shown to be a risk factor for sexual assault. This is especially true for younger women.

To learn more check out this fact sheet.

Written by guest contributor, dietitian-nutritionist Catherine Saxelby, and reproduced here with permission from www.foodwatch.com.au.