Biases Inherent in All-Cause Mortality Studies: Implications for Shaping The 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans on Alcohol Consumption

Roughly 178,000 Americans die from excessive alcohol use every year. Leading alcohol and public health researchers are urging caution about how we interpret data, especially in light of the developing updated US dietary guidelines.

In this commentary, published in The Lancet Regional Health – Americas and co-authored by Priscilla Martinez, PhD, scientist at PHI’s Alcohol Research Group, researchers argue that many of the studies and approaches used to inform drinking guidelines, including those cited and employed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), have serious limitations that could lead to misleading conclusions.

Researchers found that much of the evidence cited comes from all-cause mortality studies, which look at how alcohol use is linked to the risk of death from any cause, not just alcohol-related illnesses or injuries. They also emphasized that most all-cause mortality studies are based on cohort data studies, and these studies often rely on narrow samples and may not reflect broader population differences in drinking patterns, underlying health risks or health outcomes.

Why This Matters

Millions of Americans drink alcohol, and many look to the Dietary Guidelines for reassurance about what’s safe. But if those guidelines are based on flawed or incomplete evidence, people may underestimate the real risks, especially when it comes to less well-known harms from alcohol use, such as cancer and heart disease.

Learn more from PHI’s Alcohol Research Group:

How Flawed Science Could Shape U.S. Alcohol Guidelines

Originally published by Science Direct