The U.S. Surgeon General released a new advisory report in January focused on the relationship between alcohol and cancer. This report shared that alcohol is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., and contributes to nearly 100,000 cancer cases and 20,000 cancer deaths each year. These cancers can include mouth, throat, liver, and breast cancer. The risk of some cancers can increase with any amount of alcohol use, not just excessive drinking. The surgeon general also noted that public understanding of these risks is low despite clear evidence showing the relationship between alcohol and cancer.
In addition to cancer, other long-term effects of alcohol consumption can include:
High blood pressure
Heart disease
Stroke
Mental health conditions including depression and anxiety
Alcohol use disorder
Unlike cancer, many of the other health effects of alcohol are linked to excessive alcohol use. This includes binge drinking, heavy drinking, underage drinking, and drinking while pregnant. The CDC describes binge drinking as 4+ drinks for women and 5+ drinks for men during an occasion, while heavy drinking is 8+ drinks for women or 15+ drinks for men during a week. You can lower your risk of negative health effects by drinking less or choosing not to drink. Please check out the Rethinking Drinking tools in the links below to evaluate your drinking and help determine if you need to make a change.
February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, a month dedicated to educating the community on stopping dating violence before it begins. The CDC puts teen dating violence into four categories: Physical Violence, Sexual Violence, Psychological Violence, and Stalking. Each category can impact lifelong health, opportunity, and well-being. Dating violence may go unreported, but there are signs you can be watching for in your youth and their friends. These signs include:
Depression or increased anxiety
Substance use
Cutting off other relationships
Antisocial behaviors like bullying, hitting, theft, lying, or truancy
Self-harm or thoughts of suicide
Encouraging healthy relationships and helping youth recognize the signs of violence are important steps to ending the cycle of violence. You can find out more about this problem and how to educate others by visiting the resources listed below. You can also help spread awareness for TDVAM by participating in #WearOrangeDay on February 11th! Share your support on social media and be sure to use the hashtag #respectthat and #TVDAM2025.
Wayne County Coalitions strives to observe the many different awareness events throughout the year that focus on mental health, substance use prevention, and other important topics. Please visit the links below for information and resources.
Black History Month: The month of February promotes African American history and the contributions they have made. This year’s theme is African Americans and Labor. The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), who are the founders of Black History Month, said this year’s theme “focuses on the various and profound ways that work and working of all kinds – free and unfree, skilled, and unskilled, vocational and voluntary – intersect with the collective experiences of Black people.”
Thank you for being a vital part of our community!
Please click on the link below to send this Parent Alert to a family member or friend. They will also have the opportunity to sign up to receive monthly Parent Alerts.
