Teenage drinking raises breast disease risk

Young women who drink alcohol are put at greater risk of developing breast disease is a known risk factor for cancer.

Women with benign breast disease have hard lumps in the breast, which can sometimes turn cancerous. The wide range of conditions including irregular cysts, breast discomfort, sensitive nipples, and itching. Previous reports have linked drinking adolescents with benign breast disease based on recollections of the woman many years later, but participants were not followed into adulthood.

To explore the relationship between alcohol consumption during adolescence and risk of benign breast disease (BBD), researchers followed 6899 American women. Participants were made to complete annual questionnaires from 1996 to 2001, when he was 9 to 15 years of age. They were followed by the questionnaires in 2003, 2005 and 2007. In the 2003 survey, participants (who was then 16 to 23 years) provided information on their drinking habits during the previous year. In 2005 and 2007 surveys, a total of 6899 women (18 to 27 years) reported whether a doctor had ever diagnosed the BBD and if confirmed by biopsy.

When the women were interviewed at age 18 to 27 years, 67 - about 1 percent - said they were diagnosed with benign breast disease, and had the diagnosis confirmed by biopsy. After adjusting for factors such as body mass index, found that those who drank more were also more likely to suffer from the disease, with each drink daily average risk. The girls who drank 6 or 7 days a week had a five percent more likely to have benign breast disease than those who never drank or who drank less than once per week.

It is not clear why alcohol may have an effect on the condition, but researchers speculate that the estrogen effect of alcohol on the female hormone - could promote the growth of breast tissue.