Studies have found that even a small amount of alcohol in Japan increases the risk of cancer

study conducted in Japan, even mild to moderate alcohol consumption was associated with an increased risk of cancer. In an earlier study published online in the American Cancer Society's peer-reviewed journal Cancer, the overall cancer risk appeared to be the lowest at zero alcohol consumption.
Although some studies have linked limited alcohol consumption to a lower risk of certain types of cancer, even moderate to moderate alcohol consumption has been associated with a higher risk of overall cancer. To study the issue in Japan, Dr. Jiang Zhengfang, M.D., of the University of Tokyo and the Harvard School of Public Health, and his colleagues studied information from 33 general hospitals in Japan from 2005 to 2016. The team examined clinical data from 63,232 cancer patients and 63,232 controls, who matched their gender, age, date of hospitalization and date of hospitalization. All participants reported their average daily standardized alcohol units and drinking time. (A standard drink containing 23 grams of ethanol is equivalent to a 180 ml (6 oz) Japanese rice wine, a 500 ml (17 oz) beer, 180 ml (6 oz) wine or 60 ml (2 oz) whisky.)
The overall cancer risk appears to be the lowest at zero alcohol consumption, with an almost linear relationship between cancer risk and alcohol consumption. The association recommends that drinking light alcohol once every 10 years (for example, once a day for 10 years or twice a day for five years) increases the overall risk of cancer by 5 per cent. Those who drank two or fewer drinks a day, no matter how long they drank, had a higher risk of cancer. In addition, analyses disaggregated by sex, alcohol/smoking behaviour and occupational groups mostly showed the same pattern.
This high risk appears to be explained by alcohol-related cancer risk in relatively common areas, including the colorectal, stomach, breast, prostate and esophal.
“ In Japan, the main cause of death is cancer," Dr. Zazu said. ”（cyy123.com）