How risky e dey to drink alcohol?

For many kontris in di world party no dey ever complete witout alcohol.

For some, one glass of wine na di correct way to begin conversation wit strangers as alcohol dey act as social lubricant.

Pipo dey drink sake of many different reasons – to celebrate, to socialise to divert and to even to kill stress.

Bifor bifor, some research bin suggest say moderate consumption of some alcoholic drinks like red wine fit dey good for health.

But now di international health joinbody, World Health Organization don draw ear give pipo say, e no get any level of alcohol consumption wey dey safe for your health.

BBC World Service programme di Food Chain look into di risks and benefits of drinking.

Cancer and deaths

Alcohol consumption dey contribute to 2.6 million deaths worldwide evri year, according to one recent report from WHO.

Alcohol dey cause at least seven types of cancer including bowel and breast cancer.

One detailed study wey WHO bin sponsor, say even di light and moderate consumption of alcohol wey dem bin dey say na less dan 1.5 litres of wine or less dan 3.5 litres of beer or less dan 450 millilitres of spirits dey dangerous.

WHO new guidelines say, e no get any safe amount and di “risk to di drinker health dey start from di first drop of any alcoholic drink.”

Alcohol drinkers dey reduce

WHO data also reveal say, total alcohol per capita consumption across di world dey reduce from 5.7 litres for 2010 to 5.5 litres for 2019.

Men na dem be di majority of drinkers and consume on average 8.2 litres compared to 2.2 litres by women in a year.

Pesin like Anna Tait (44) wey dey live for Berkshire for England dey completely give up alcohol.

“I no go say I dey drink plenty, but very much evri Friday. Looking forward to open some beers, some gins afta work and den quickly move on to share one bottle of wine wit my husband,” Tait tok.

Na di same pattern dem dey repear on on Saturday. Tait also realise say she bin dey drink on Thursdays and Sundays too.

But den, earlier dis year she begin to practice for marathon and her coach encourage her to give up alcohol.

Her husband too bin dey do strength training and di two bin come fit cut dia drinks.

“Na very big change. I feel stronger or better,” Tait tok.

But wen dem dey social gathering Tait friends dey dey slightly disappointed wen dem realise say she and her husband no go follow dem drink.

Amelie Hauenstein from Bavaria for Germany wey dey twenty two use her friends support to stop drinking.

“I realise say I no dey get fun nights if I no drink.” Hauenstein bin no like di hangover.

“I bin wan stop becos e dey dey so bad wen you wake up on Sunday and you no even sabi wetin you do di last day.”

She happy no be small about di progress wey she don make.

Science get am wrong?

Experience of dis two women clearly show say e get more benefits to stopping alcohol.

Dr Tim Stockwell na scientist for Canadian Institute for substance use research and e dey convinced about di koko of WHO warning.

“Alcohol na essentially risky substance and di risk na as soon as e begin drink am.”

E do one meta-analysis of one hundred and seven scientific papers to find di link between low levels of drinking and death.

If e get one in one hundred mortality risk, na di label moderate and one in one thousand risk of mortality dey give am di label low, British Medical Journal tok.

Wetin make up low level of drinking or moderate drinking dey different from kontri to kontri.

UK goment recommend drinking no more dan fourteen units a week, dat na around around six medium glasses of wine or pints of beer.

Stockwell argue say di idea say alcohol in moderation dey good come due to poor methodology of research.

Questions bin no dey sophisticated and researchers no bother to ask about di past drinking. Dem ignore some key factors.

“Di moderate drinkers get higher salary, beta diet, do exercise, beta access to healthcare, dem get beta teeth and slimmer waists,” Stockwell tok.

Benefit harm trade off

But no be evri body tink say risks wey dey related to alcohol na cause for concern.

“I really no understand dis obsession wit trying to understand di risks of drinking one or two drinks a day,” Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter argue.

Im na Emeritus Professor of Statistics for University of Cambridge for UK, im explain how we make sense of di risk.

“E no get any safe level of driving. E no get any safe level of living, but no one dey recommend abstention. We need to look at di benefit harm trade-offs.”

Dr Spiegelhalte dey sceptical about our ability to accurately estimate di risks.

“I tink we gaz just accept say pipo dey drink for a reason, and dat na to enjoy am.”

While insisting say im no follow for alcohol lobby or temperance lobby (one movement against alcohol) Spiegelhalte tell BBC why im dey enjoy moderate drinking.

“Risk mean say e dey reduce di life expectancy by one percent.”

“Over fifty years of drinking, one reasonable drink a day go take six months off your life or fifteen minutes off each day.”

Dr Spiegelhalte quickly point out say even watching TV for one hour a day or eating bacon sandwich twice a week too get health risks.

And im want make adults make dia own decision about wetin dey good for dem.

Dr Tim Stockwell, too dey enjoy im drink and im no dey advocate for abstention.

“If you find alcohol a wonderful, pleasurable tin, you need to balance am against say dem be tiny risks to your health.”