Beer : Health and Nutrition

150 Chapter Six
We might compare these observations with those of Gasbarrini et al. (1998) that a
beer-containing diet (as opposed to an ethanol-containing one) reduced the prevalence
of oxidative markers in rats.
One of the rst reports of a link between alcohol and cancer was the observation in
France nearly a century ago that 80% of the cancers of the oesophagus and stomach
occurred in absinthe-drinking alcoholics (Lamy 1910). There is, however, no evidence
that ethanol itself is carcinogenic, although its oxidation product acetaldehyde may be
(Prival 2003).
Beer, being produced from cereals, is at risk from contamination with ochratoxins,
which are teratogenic, immunotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic (Creppy
1999). However, the vast majority of beers, which are produced from sound, uncontaminated
grain, are devoid of signi cant levels of ochratoxin (Long 1999; and see
Chapter 5).
Most widely publicised of the potential carcinogens in beer are the nitrosamines, but a
concerted effort by maltsters and brewers ever since the problem was rst mooted in 1978
(Spiegelhalder et al. 1979) means that levels of nitrosamines these days are extremely
low, at one- fteenth the level of 20 years ago (Sen et al. 1996). When considering
nitrates and nitrites as potential carcinogens, the levels originating from beer are vastly
lower than those in vegetables and cured meat products (Dich et al. 1996). For moderate
beer drinkers the levels of nitrosamines are unlikely to constitute a hazard (Tricker &
Preussmann 1991). A more recently highlighted concern has been the possible presence
of chloropropanols in some of the more intensely heated grist materials used for brewing,
yet it seems that these substances do not carry forward into beer (Long 1999).
Acrylamide, another material recently highlighted as a concern for many products,
perhaps least of all beer (http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/scf/out131_en.pdf)
has been shown not to correlate with cancer of the large bowel, kidney or bladder at
current rates of consumption (Mucci et al. 2003).
It is claimed that heavy drinkers have a greatly increased risk of oropharyngeal and
lower oesophageal cancer compared to light drinkers or abstainers (Day et al. 1993;
Kabat et al. 1993; Kune et al. 1993). Ishii et al. (2001) observe that the risks are greater
with ‘stronger’ alcoholic beverages and heavy smoking, but also for those people with
an atypical alcohol dehydrogenase phenotype (ADH2). Seemingly this enzyme protects
by preventing heavy drinking.
Remarkably, it has been concluded that non-drinkers are at increased risk of lung
cancer (Woodson et al. 1999). However, although the authors claim that the study is
inconclusive, Bandera et al. (2001) suggest that beer increases the risk of lung cancer.
In reviewing the literature they observe that of 11 prior studies on beer in relation to
lung cancer, ve suggested a positive association, two indicated possibly weak support,
but four found no association.