Why a new study suggests 7 weekly drinks may be the new limit for alcohol risk

For decades, research on alcohol focused primarily on the dangers associated with heavy drinking . More recently, however, scientists have begun evaluating whether even low or moderate levels of alcohol consumption may affect long-term health.

A new study suggests that alcohol-related health risks increase steadily as consumption rises and that alcohol does not appear to provide an overall health benefit at any level of drinking. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration survey , alcohol is the most commonly consumed substance in the U.S., and in 2024, 134.3 million people ages 12 and older reported drinking over the past month.

The previous dietary guidelines for Americans recommended that adults who consume alcohol should do so in moderation, which was up to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men. The current dietary guidelines state that drinking less is better for health, but they do not provide any specifics for what amount of alcohol is considered low-risk.

Recent research suggests that no amount of alcohol is completely risk-free.