Alcohol Consumption During Teenage, Early Adulthood increases Risk of Breast Cancer in Women

Alcohol consumption can increase the risk of breast cancer in women, a new study says.

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death among American women. According to a latest estimate from the American Cancer Society, nearly 232,340 women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and 64,640 with non-invasive breast cancer. About 39,620 women will die from the cancer in 2013, across the country.

The study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, found that the amount of alcohol consumed by women between their menarche (first menstrual bleeding) and first pregnancy, accurately predicted if they would develop breast cancer later in life.

In the current study, researchers from Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis looked at 91,005 mothers. All the participants were part of the Nurses' Health Study II, conducted between 1989 and 2009.

Taking even a drink per day between the first period and before motherhood was associated with 13 percent increased risk of breast cancer.

"More and more heavy drinking is occurring on college campuses and during adolescence, and not enough people are considering future risk. But, according to our research, the lesson is clear: If a female averages a drink per day between her first period and her first full-term pregnancy, she increases her risk of breast cancer by 13 percent," co-author Graham Colditz, said in a news release.

Consumption of a single bottle of beer, a shot of liquor or glass of wine per day increased women's risk of developing benign breast disease (BBD) by 15 percent.

Women's breasts develop during three different stages- just before birth, puberty and the childbearing years.  Breast tissue cells undergo rapid proliferation during the teenage years, so continuous exposure to alcohol during this period can make them more vulnerable to cancer- causing elements. The length between a woman's first period and first pregnancy thus increases the risk, researchers explained.

Concerned with the findings, the authors urged women to control the amount of alcohol they take daily. "Reducing drinking to less than one drink per day, especially during this time period, is a key strategy to reducing lifetime risk of breast cancer," Colditz said.