White Wine with A Side of Skin Cancer
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White Wine with A Side of Skin Cancer

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white-wine-with-a-side-of-cancerPinot Grigioh-no. Researchers at Brown University recently had bad news for folks who love to slug back a couple bottles of the white stuff: a new study shows that drinking white wine increases the risk of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Crazily, the research revealed that white wine had a bigger impact on melanoma risk than red wine or beer (no, this doesn’t mean run out and grab some Amstel Lights and Napa Valley Cabernet but nice try!)

Cancer Uncorked

Alcohol has a long, long history with cancer. Considering the fact that it’s linked to everything from head and neck cancer to esophageal cancer and liver cancer, it’s safe to say that booze puts nearly every one of the internal organs it touches at risk. But when it comes to skin cancer, researchers are scratching their heads to find the connection. “For some, like cancers of the digestive tract, the alcohol actually comes in contact with the tissue, so it’s easier to understand,” says study co-author Eunyoung Cho, ScD. “For others, like breast cancer, we don’t really have a great explanation at this point why alcohol would be related.” Cho says a popular theory is that acetaldehyde, a compound found in alcohol, can damage DNA and even prevent DNA repair throughout the body. “It’s a well known carcinogen, so that could be a very general mechanism as to how alcohol relates to cancer at other sites,” she told CNN.

Cho and her team collected data from three massive studies involving over 200,000 participants, all of whom provided details about their drinking and health habits, including information on sunburns and tanning. The results showed that with each glass of white wine per day came a whopping 13% increased risk of melanoma. What’s even weirder: no other type of alcoholic beverage came close to statistically affecting the study in the same way.

I’m Not Drinking, I’m Just Drinking White Wine!

For me, white wine was my “everything’s under control and classy” beverage.

Sure, on the daily I was a tequila drinker but white wine was something I drank to appear, you know, like your everyday, chardonnay-sipping-out-of-a-giant-glass-and-finishing-the-bottle drinker. My logic was that people who drink white wine can’t be crazy alcoholics with cocaine problems who drunkenly wander around dangerous LA neighborhoods. Actually, as it turns out, lots of alcoholics drink white wine and even admit that it’s the beverage that makes them the craziest.

So here’s my pitch to anyone else who may be in that camp: perhaps this new study could provide a solid motivation to keep that other white witch at bay?

Shedding the Old Skin

More good news for sober folks: not only does your skin get better but Cho and her team found that folks who didn’t drink alcohol at all had a much lower overall risk of skin cancer. Plus, there’s all kinds of things we sober people like to act out with—I’m talking to you, dark chocolate, tea and coffee—that have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer.

While more evidence is needed to find out why white wine and skin cancer are linked, Cho says just knowing that they are is a good thing. “There are many risk factors for melanoma that you cannot change, like family history, hair color, and susceptibility to sunburn,” Cho says. “But drinking alcohol is something you can change.”

Here’s to white wine- and cancer-free in 2017.

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About Author

Sean Paul Mahoney is a writer, playwright, blogger, tweeter, critic, podcaster and smartass for hire. He lives in Portland, Oregon with two ridiculous cats and one amazing husband. His book of essays Now That You’ve Stopped Dying will be published by Zephyr Bookshelf in fall 2018.