How much alcohol is actually safe?

The guidance has tightened considerably. The older view that moderate drinking protects the heart has largely not survived better-designed studies, which found the apparent benefit was substantially explained by comparing drinkers against former drinkers who had quit due to illness. Current positions from major bodies are that less is better and there is no clearly established safe threshold, particularly for cancer risk, which rises from low levels. In the context of this category specifically, alcohol raises blood pressure and triglycerides, contributes to fatty liver, worsens sleep and reflux, and interacts with several common medications.