Here’s how your drinking habits could be affecting you.
Reviewed by Dietitian Jessica Ball, M.S., RD
Key Points
- Heavier drinking is linked to a higher risk of death from cancer, heart disease and more.
- Drinking less alcohol is better for long-term health, regardless of the type of beverage consumed.
- Consider offering mocktails when hosting or trying nonalcoholic options more often.
Habits like a drink after work or a glass of wine with dinner can become very comfortable parts of our daily routine. And for years, the advice around alcohol has been difficult to track—some studies warn you off completely, while others claim that drinking small amounts of alcohol can have benefits. As a result, many of us don’t know what to believe about the effect alcohol can have on our health.
A large new study presented at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session adds fresh detail to that picture. And while it doesn’t settle every debate, it does sharpen one question worth asking: Does the type of drink matter as much as the amount?
How Was the Study Conducted?
Researchers drew on data from the UK Biobank, a long-running project that has tracked the health of hundreds of thousands of British adults. For this analysis, they followed 340,924 people for more than 13 years on average, linking their drinking habits to how and when they died.
When participants joined, they completed a dietary questionnaire. Researchers then sorted them into four groups based on how much pure alcohol they drank each day and week. For reference, a 12-ounce beer, a 5-ounce glass of wine and a 1.5-ounce shot of spirits each contain roughly 14 grams of pure alcohol.
People who drank less than 20 grams a week, or fewer than 1.5 standard drinks, counted as never or occasional drinkers. Low consumption covered men drinking between 20 grams a week and 20 grams a day, and women between 20 grams a week and 10 grams a day. Moderate meant 20 to 40 grams a day for men and 10 to 20 grams for women. High consumption was more than 40 grams a day for men and more than 20 grams for women.
What Did the Study Find?
The clearest signal came from the heaviest drinkers. Compared with people who never or rarely drank, those in the high-consumption group were 24% more likely to die from any cause. They were also 36% more likely to die from cancer and 14% more likely to die from heart disease.
At lower and moderate levels, the findings varied by beverage. Beer, cider and spirits were tied to a higher risk of death, while similar amounts of wine were tied to a lower risk. Even low levels of spirits, beer or cider came with a 9% higher risk of cardiovascular death.
These findings echo a larger body of peer-reviewed research on heavier drinking. A 2026 Cancer study, which drew on 88,092 subjects, found that people with the highest lifetime alcohol intake had a 25% higher risk of colorectal cancer, and consistent heavy drinkers across adulthood faced a 91% higher risk.
The concerns extend to the brain as well. A 2025 study in Neurology linked heavy alcohol use to damage in the brain’s small blood vessels, as well as brain changes associated with dementia. Former heavy drinkers also had lower brain mass and worse cognitive scores.
Limitations
A few caveats matter here. This new study was presented at a scientific meeting and has not yet been peer-reviewed, so its results should be read as preliminary.
It’s also observational. That means it can show links between drinking and death, but it can’t prove that one caused the other. Alcohol intake was self-reported and measured only once, at the start, so it missed any changes over the following years. UK Biobank participants also tend to be healthier than the general population, which can limit how broadly the findings apply.
How Does This Apply to Real Life?
The most grounded takeaway is a familiar one: less alcohol is generally better for your health, and heavier drinking carries the clearest risks. That holds true no matter what’s in your glass. And if you don’t drink at all, nothing here suggests you should start. If you drink regularly, you may need support from friends, family or even healthcare professionals to help you stop.
Need Support?
If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol misuse or addiction, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 800-662-4357 for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.
But if you just need some ideas to help limit the amount you drink, there are plenty of small ways to start. Consider offering friends a mocktail instead of a hard drink or a glass of wine when they come over for dinner. You could even dive into functional beverages or nonalcoholic wine and beer and try to find one that suits your taste.
As for mocktails, we have more than a few recipes to help you get inspired. Here are a few of our favorites:
Our Expert Take
A recent study presented at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session evaluated people’s drinking habits and found that heavier drinking raises the risk of dying from several causes. Such negative effects of drinking alcohol also show up across recent cancer and brain research.
Taken together, the findings reinforce a message that has become harder to ignore—namely that alcohol is not a neutral part of the diet, and the risks rise as intake climbs. For most people, the takeaway is simple: Drinking less is likely better for long-term health.