Women in the United States are dying of alcohol-related causes at a growing rate, the U.S. government says.  

Studies find that alcohol affects women differently than men. Research shows that women start to have alcohol-related problems sooner and at lower drinking levels than men.

In addition, research shows that alcohol can hurt normal brain development during the years before adulthood. And “there may be differences in the impact of alcohol on the brains of teenage girls and boys who drink.”

Some studies have suggested that some alcohol drinking can be healthy. However, experts at the American Heart Association say no research has proved a cause-and-effect link between drinking alcohol and better heart health. They add that drinking too much alcohol increases the risk for many health problems. These can include high blood pressure, stroke, liver disease, depression, suicide and alcoholism.

Studies show that alcohol also has been found to increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer, say experts at the U.S. National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Its website says that women who drink about one drink a day have a five to nine percent greater chance of developing breast cancer than women who do not drink at all. 

Alcohol use disorders are more common in high-income countries. The WHO report said that as societies become wealthier, there is a “strong tendency” for the level of alcohol use to increase.