Health · Medical Research · 1 hr ago
UK study links high alcohol intake to higher mortality
Researchers tracked alcohol use among 340,924 UK adults in a study of drinking patterns and mortality.
Participants were about 56 years old on average, and the researchers followed them for a mean of 13.4 years.
During follow-up, 22,381 participants died.
Compared with people who drank little or none, those with high total alcohol intake had higher mortality from all causes, cancer, cardiovascular disease and other causes.
The study also examined beer, cider, wine, spirits and drinking with meals, but the available findings do not give results for those comparisons.
The findings add to debate about alcohol’s health risks, as some national guidelines set lower-risk limits while the World Health Organization says no amount is safe.
A UK Biobank study of 340,924 adults linked high total alcohol intake with higher mortality from all causes, cancer, cardiovascular disease and other causes.
Participants were followed for a mean of 13.4 years, during which 22,381 deaths occurred.
The study compared alcohol intake at mid-life with later mortality and examined different beverage types and drinking patterns.
Researchers excluded former drinkers and participants with baseline cardiovascular disease or cancer, as well as those with incomplete alcohol data.
The article says evidence on the effects of low or moderate alcohol intake remains inconsistent.
- Who
- Researchers studied 340,924 UK Biobank participants, with a mean age of about 56.
- What
- The study found high total alcohol intake was linked to higher mortality from all causes, cancer, cardiovascular disease and other causes.
- When
- The study followed participants for a mean of 13.4 years. It was published on 26 October 2026.
- Where
- United Kingdom Biobank cohort.
- Why
- Researchers examined how total and beverage-specific alcohol consumption related to mortality.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Participants completed questionnaires on alcohol intake and sociodemographic and lifestyle factors.
Researchers recorded 22,381 deaths among participants.
News-Medical published its report on the study.
- Participants
- 340,924 UK Biobank adults
- Mean age
- Approximately 56 years
- Follow-up
- Mean 13.4 years
- Deaths
- 22,381
- High total alcohol intake
- Linked to higher all-cause, cancer, cardiovascular and other-cause mortality
- Publication date
- 26 October 2026
What people are saying
no amount of alcohol intake is safe