Can RFK Jr Make America Healthy Again?

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     Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been chosen by President Trump to oversee the Department of Health and Human Services. Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. or RFK Jr. as he’s affectionately nicknamed, hails from the very promininent and politically involved Kennedy family. He has a great legacy to uphold as the Kennedy family has so strongly and positively impacted the historical and political landscape of the United States. That family has experienced so much tragedy amongst its members but they’ve managed to overcome. The matriarch and patriarch of the Kennedy family, Joseph and Rose must be smiling down with joy about the impact that their entire lineage has made on society. RFK Jr. is an environmentalist that has been a leading figure in the mission to protect the planet and could be considered a Godfather of environmentalism due to all of his environmentally focused work and generous efforts to create change within the field. He founded the Pace University Environmental Li...
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6 million Cancer Cases were due to Alcohol Consumption in 2020!

 Various factors can be a contributor to cancer in humans.  Smoking is widely recognized as a cause of cancer.  If smoking and alcohol were multiple choice questions for a poll asking adults, “what is a primary cause of cancer?” most would probably select smoking.  Smoking is not the only culprit when deciphering causes of cancer.  It turns out that alcohol is another huge culprit!

 


 

 

A population-based study recently published in the Lancet Oncology discovered that alcohol use is linked to multiple forms of cancer (Rumgay et al., 2021).  Alcohol consumption can lead to a myriad of cancers.  These cancers include liver, esophageal, colon, mouth, breast, pancreatic, stomach and larynx.  Last year, 741,300 people had cancers that were appeared due to alcohol consumption.  Alcohol related cancer appeared more so in men than women.  However, of the alcohol related cases seen in women, the primary cancer was breast cancer. Approximately 6 million cases of cancer were due to drinking in 2020.  Of that number, 3.3 million resulted in death.

 

One begs the questions: How much alcohol consumption will lead to cancer? Do low levels of drinking still contribute to cancer? The answer would seem to be yes as the study took into account risks associated with various levels of alcohol consumption.  The more individuals drink, the more at risk they are for receiving cancer. Moderate levels of drinking (2 or fewer per day) accounted for 14% of alcohol related cancer cases.  Heavy or excessive drinking accounted for the most cases.  The highest cases of alcohol related cancers appeared in European countries such as Moldova and Romania with the lowest found in Middle Eastern countries such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and even Africa.

 

The study analyzed a few ways that alcohol consumption brings about cancer with the first being that:

 

1.)  The main carcinogen that alcohol turns into is acetaldehyde.  Acetaldehyde can wreak havoc on DNA and the ability for the body to repair damaged DNA.

2.)  Alcohol may act as a solvent when combined with other carcinogens such as tobacco and reduces the body’s ability to absorb cancer fighting nutrients and vitamins.

3.)  Drinking alcohol increases hormones such as estrogen causes excessive cell division which can lead to the onset of cancer.

 

With the knowledge produced from the study, it’s apparent that initiatives to decrease the amount of drinking in various populations are necessary.  Labeling alcohol containers and bottles in the same manner as cigarette packages could be one step towards lessening the risks associated with alcohol consumption.  Some governments have already introduced public policies such as taxes on alcohol as a way to decrease the sales of alcohol however, this is not effective if individuals have drinking problems.

 

Helping individuals understand the health related risks associated with drinking in educational forums or school would be most effective. A who child learns that alcohol consumption can lead to cancer in their middle school health class will be able to use the historical information learned to make wiser choices as an adult. It all begins and ends with education. 

 

 

Reference

Rumgay, H., Shield, K., Charvat, H., Ferrari, P., Sornpaisarn, B., Obot, I., . . . Soerjomataram, I. (2021). Global burden of cancer in 2020 attributable to alcohol consumption: A population-based study. Lancet Oncology, 1-10. Retrieved July 17, 2021, from https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(21)00279-5/fulltext#seccestitle70.

Mechelle Eleene

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