The US Surgeon General’s call for warning labels on alcohol to highlight its link to cancer has sparked debate in Australia. While many support the move, others feel it will be ineffective and could even be harmful.
A new call from the United States to place warning labels on alcohol products highlighting their link to increased cancer risk has received mixed reactions in Australia . US surgeon general Vivek Murthy made the call earlier this week, saying that while alcohol consumption increases the risk of at least seven types of cancer, most American consumers were unaware.
While alcoholic drinks in the US carry labels warning that consuming alcohol while pregnant can cause birth defects and impair judgement when operating machinery, they do not mention increased cancer risk. It's a similar situation in Australia, where 80 per cent of the country's adults consume alcohol at some level throughout the year, and 36 per cent drink weekly. However, a 2024 survey of 2,000 adult Australian respondents by the organisation Alcohol Change Australia found fewer than half (46 per cent) knew that alcohol can cause cancer. According to Cancer Australia, 5.6 per cent of cancer cases in Australia are linked to long-term alcohol use. Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council already provides guidelines to minimise risks. It advises healthy adults to consume no more than 10 standard drinks per week and no more than four on any given day. For pregnant or breastfeeding women and individuals under 18, the recommendation is to avoid alcohol completely. With an Australian standard drink containing 10 grams of pure alcohol, even moderate consumption can contribute to long-term health risks. SBS News spoke to multiple people at The Rocks in Sydney about their thoughts on the proposal in the US. 'Alcohol is poison, we keep poisoning ourselves, and we enjoy it,' one man said, highlighting the strong social norm of alcohol consumption despite known health risks. A woman expressed her concern about the specific risks to women, saying: 'I had heard that breast cancer, there is a risk with drinking alcohol'
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