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Aims: The aims of this study were to identify alcohol‐related population surveys administered in the Americas, determine which alcohol‐related measures are examined and identify coverage gaps regarding alcohol‐related measures. Methods: As part of the Global Information System on Alcohol and Health study, a systematic search was performed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses criteria to identify regionally or nationally representative survey reports of the general population from 1 January 2010 to 6 August 2019. Alcohol‐related measures extracted from surveys were categorized into 10 domains: alcohol consumption status; alcohol consumption; unrecorded alcohol consumption; drinking patterns; symptoms of dependence and/or harmful use; drinking during pregnancy; treatment coverage; second‐hand harms; economic; and other. Results: The systematic search identified 7417 survey reports, 94 of which were new and included in this study, with an additional 11 studies included from a previous systematic study of alcohol surveys. In total, 94 unique surveys and 161 unique survey waves were located, representing 105 unique survey questionnaires covering 30 countries. No population surveys were found for five member states; namely, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Haiti, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint Kitts and Nevis. All countries with population‐based alcohol surveys had had a population survey probing alcohol use in the past year/month. Questions regarding heavy episodic drinking, alcohol use disorders, treatment‐seeking for alcohol use, drinking during pregnancy, harms to others and the amounts spent on alcohol were asked in 26, 25, 10, 6, 22 and 11 countries, respectively. Conclusions: The heterogeneity in alcohol‐related population surveys in the Americas from 2010 to 2019 limits their comparability throughout countries and over time. Future surveys should implement a standardized set of core questions to provide consistency in the monitoring of alcohol consumption and alcohol‐related harms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alcohol consumption is an established cause of female breast cancer. This systematic review examines in detail the association between alcohol and female breast cancer overall and among the described subgroups, using all of the evidence to date. A systematic review of PubMed and Embase was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses guidelines. The search included articles published up to November 15, 2023. Meta‐analyses and regressions were performed for alcohol consumption of less than 1 standard drink (10 g of ethanol) per day and for a range of alcohol consumption categories in relation to breast cancer. Analyses by menopausal status, hormone receptor status, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 status, and molecular subtype were performed. The search yielded 5645 publications, of which 23 publications of individual and pooled studies examined the association between overall alcohol consumption and breast cancer incidence. The meta‐regression showed a positive association; relative risks (RR) of breast cancer were 1.05 (95% CI: 1.04, 1.06), 1.10 (95% CI: 1.08, 1.12), 1.18 (95% CI: 1.15, 1.21), and 1.22 (95% CI: 1.19, 1.25) for 0.5, 1, 2, and 3 standard drinks per day compared with nondrinking, respectively. A meta‐analysis of nine studies indicated that for consumption of less than one standard drink per day, the RR estimate of breast cancer was 1.04 (95% CI: 1.01, 1.07) compared with nondrinking. Consumption of an additional 1 standard drink per day was associated with a higher risk of premenopausal (RR: 1.03 (95% CI: 1.01, 1.06)) and postmenopausal (RR: 1.10 (95% CI: 1.08, 1.12)) breast cancer. Alcohol consumption increases female breast cancer risk, even for women who consume one drink per day. Furthermore, alcohol consumption is associated with both pre‐ and postmenopausal breast cancer risk. These findings support evidence‐based cancer prevention guidelines to reduce alcohol‐related risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article updates a 2017 review on the effectiveness of digital interventions for reducing alcohol use in the general population. An updated systematic search of the MEDLINE database was performed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses criteria to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published from January 2017 to June 2022 that evaluated the effectiveness of digital interventions compared with no interventions, minimal interventions, and face‐to‐face interventions aimed at reducing alcohol use in the general population and, that also reported changes in alcohol use (quantity, frequency, quantity per drinking day, heavy episodic drinking (HED), or alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT) scores). A secondary analysis was performed that analyzed data from RCTs conducted in students. The review was not preregistered. The search produced 2224 articles. A total of 80 studies were included in the review, 35 of which were published after the last systematic review. A total of 66, 20, 18, 26, and 9 studies assessed the impact of digital interventions on alcohol quantity, frequency, quantity per drinking day, HED, and AUDIT scores, respectively. Individuals randomized to the digital interventions drank 4.12 (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.88, 5.36) fewer grams of alcohol per day, had 0.17 (95% CI 0.06, 0.29) fewer drinking days per week, drank approximately 3.89 (95% CI: 0.40, 7.38) fewer grams of alcohol per drinking day, had 1.11 (95% CI: 0.32, 1.91) fewer HED occasions per month, and had an AUDIT score 3.04 points lower (95% CI: 2.23, 3.85) than individuals randomized to the control condition. Significant reductions in alcohol quantity, frequency, and HED, but not quantity per drinking day, were observed among students. Digital interventions show potential for reducing alcohol use in general populations and could be used widely at the population level to reduce alcohol‐attributable harms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alcohol use is causally linked to the development of and mortality from numerous diseases. The aim of this study is to provide an update to a previous systematic review of meta‐analyses that quantify the sex‐specific dose–response risk relationships between chronic alcohol use and disease occurrence and/or mortality. An updated systematic search of multiple databases was performed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses criteria to identify meta‐analyses published from January 1, 2017, to March 8, 2021, which quantified the risk relationships between chronic alcohol use and the risk of disease occurrence and/or mortality. This systematic review was not preregistered. The comparator was people who have never consumed at least one standard drink of alcohol. Measurements included relative risks, odds ratios, and hazard ratios of disease occurrence and/or mortality based on long‐term alcohol intake measured in grams per day. The systematic search yielded 5953 articles, of which 14 were included in the narrative review. All diseases showed an increased risk of occurrence as alcohol use increased. At all doses examined, alcohol had a significant detrimental effect on tuberculosis, lower respiratory infections, oral cavity and pharyngeal cancers, esophageal cancer, colorectal cancer, liver cancer, laryngeal cancer, epilepsy, hypertension, liver cirrhosis, and pancreatitis (among men). For ischemic heart disease, ischemic stroke, and intracerebral hemorrhage, protective effects from low‐dose chronic alcohol use among both men and women were observed. Low‐dose alcohol consumption also had a protective effect for diabetes mellitus and pancreatitis among women (approximately to 50 g/day and 30 g/day, respectively). Alcohol use increases the risk of numerous infectious and noncommunicable diseases in a dose–response manner. Higher levels of alcohol use have a clear detrimental impact on health; however, at lower levels of use, alcohol can have both disease‐specific protective and detrimental effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]