After the US Surgeon General’s new advisory warning about alcohol being linked to multiple cancers, a Florida neurosurgeon said, “It’s about time.”
Dr. Brett Osborn, who also runs a longevity practice, welcomed the new guidance, stating that alcohol is a toxin.
“We’ve known this for centuries — this is nothing new,” Osborn told Fox News Digital in an on-camera interview.
Dr. Vivek Murthy issued the advisory on Friday after research linked alcohol to at least seven types of cancer.
In particular, Murthy warned that alcohol can increase the risk of throat, liver, esophagus, mouth, larynx (voice box), colon and rectal cancer.
“I know the old saying that you can have one or two drinks a day and it’s good for your heart — no, it’s not,” Osborn said.
“It’s not good for your heart. It’s not good for your brain. It’s not good for your waistline.”
Alcohol can contribute to obesity, the doctor noted, which is a “gateway disease” for a host of cancers and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
“Anything that alcohol touches — the throat, the larynx, the esophagus, the stomach, the intestines, the rectum — they’re all exposed to a toxin,” Osborn said.
Alcohol causes oxidative damage, the doctor warned, when “free radicals” damage cells, tissues and DNA and lead to cancer formation.
In Osborne’s neurosurgery practice, he has seen firsthand the effects of alcohol on the brain.
“We know that people who drink have bad brains,” he said. “I actually operated on one two days ago.”
In that case, a patient with alcoholism came to the hospital after suffering a severe fall. The man had a large blood clot on the surface of his brain, which required emergency surgery.
“Because of the fact that he’s an alcoholic… he’s going to be bad,” Osborn shared.
“These patients, just in general, their organ systems in general, they’re dysfunctional, they’re malfunctioning. And ultimately, it brings a bad result.”
For patients who currently drink alcohol, Osborn said they shouldn’t stop “cold turkey.”
“I understand. I respect the fact that this is part of your culture and social life,” he said.
“But in the next year or so, can we knock that down by 50%? And then at the year mark, I tell them, okay, now another 50%, and gradually it just tapers off.”
According to Osborn, someone who consistently drinks more than one drink a day qualifies as an alcoholic.
“You are, to some extent, addicted to it,” he said.
“I don’t want it in my practice. I don’t want it for my patients. I don’t use it myself. It’s bad. Take him away.”
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