A major global study published in The Lancet has found the there is no safe level of alcohol consumption. The research compared levels of alcohol use and its impact on health across 195 countries from 1990 to 2016. In many countries, moderate drinking has been associated with health benefits for years and in places like France, a daily glass of red wine has been viewed as good for the heart.
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The new research claims that the harmful impact of alcohol far outweighs any benefits with even an occasional drink proving harmful. The authors of the report say that governments should recommend people abstain from alcohol consumption entirely. In 2016, 2.8 million deaths were attributed to alcohol and it was the leading risk factor for premature mortality and disability among people in the 15-49 age bracket.
The following infographic focuses on the top-10 countries for alcohol-attributable deaths, as listed in the report. Specifically, it highlights the massive gender gap in mortality. In the United States, alcohol caused 71,00 male deaths and 19,000 female deaths in 2016.
