Cheers To Your Health: How Alcohol Can Place Young Women At Risk for Breast Problems

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By Mia Bolaris-Forget

Work harder, party harder!!! That's the way many young adults are living their lives, with the focus predominantly on the latter.

Yet, while many young men and women may think they are invincible, the fact remains that not only are they not....but what they do today IS affecting how they will live and age tomorrow. And, that tomorrow may not be too far away or too far in the future.

According to recent research party girls may pay a price they never expected for having "a good time", including putting themselves in dire danger for some deadly diseases as early as their early 20s.

Studies suggest that frequent use of alcohol by teenage girls may actually increase their chances for non-cancerous breast diseases in early adulthood (starting in their 20s) and a higher risk for the possibility of breast cancer later in life.
Results published via the Internet in the journal of Pediatrics notes that young ladies who consumed the most alcohol in their teenage years had five times the risk for benign breast disease in early adulthood compared to teens who only indulged sporadically, having one to only a few drinks per week.

They explain that benign breast disease (BBD) includes a variety of non-malignant conditions such as Fibroadenoma, a noncancerous tumor, which is the most common BBD among young women 30 and younger. And, the study goes on to suggest that BBD is considered a key factor/predictor of how "at risk" a woman is for eventually developing breast cancer. In fact, the study suggest that the more young women drink that higher their risk for breast cancer, though more research "is" needed.
However the study "did" confirm that link between alcohol consumption and BBD verifying that many "heavy" drinkers admitted to having had BBD, confirmed by biopsy. The research further revealed that the risk of BBD increased with the frequency of alcohol consumption. Those who drank one or two times per weeks averaged about a 1.5 percent increase in risk while those who drank tree to five times per week had three times the risk and those who drank daily upped their risk to 5.5 percent.
Experts note that even occasional drinkers may not be totally risk free especially since teen years are crucial for development of mammary glands and a critical time for possible cancer-producing exposures. Alcohol can raise estrogen levels and that may be the culprit...for women of all ages.

Long Island Health, Fitness & Beauty Articles > Cheers To Your Health: How Alcohol Can Place Young Women At Risk for Breast Problems