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A warning label could deter some people from having a second — or first — glass of wine, says Richard A. Daynard, a Northeastern Distinguished Professor of Law and president of the Public Health Advocacy Institute.
Calling alcohol the third-leading preventable cause of cancer, the U.S. surgeon general Friday recommended that alcoholic beverages come with the same type of warning label currently used on packs of cigarettes.
Northeastern University marketing and health experts say warning labels could stir conversation about alcohol consumption but might also be ignored by people grown blase about health messaging.
A warning label could deter some people from having a second — or first — glass of wine, says Richard A. Daynard, Northeastern University Distinguished Professor of Law and president of the Public Health Advocacy Institute.
“The introduction of the label would cause a lot of public discussion,” he says. “There could be a contagion effect, change in social norms, if enough people took it seriously.”
Young people who don’t drink when their friends are consuming alcohol currently may feel uncomfortable or “uncool,” Daynard says. “But if the norm changes — and other beverages or activities become the thing to do — then it could have a big impact.”
Susan Mello, an associate professor of communication studies, says the timing of the surgeon general’s advisory couldn’t be better.
As people get busy making New Year’s resolutions to improve health and well-being, we’re “more receptive to this type of information that we would be otherwise,” Mello says.
“Dry January is also popular right now,” she says.
Some experts warn against going “cold turkey” for moderate to heavy drinkers, Mello says. “But for casual consumers of alcohol, I can imagine the introduction of these warning labels serving to reinforce their decision to abstain from alcohol long term.”
A change likely won’t come from a label alone, says Chad O’Connor, a marketing expert and lecturer at Northeastern’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business.
“I think you are unlikely to see a significant decline in consumption without some jarring images and warnings,” O’Connor says.
“For instance, packs of cigarettes that have photos of black lungs from years of smoking are more effective than saying smoking causes cancer,” he says.
The other issue is that marketers have always found a way to work around these kinds of warnings, O’Connor says.
“If they are obligated to put a warning on, they will try to do it in a way that calls the least amount of attention and stands out the least unless there is clear regulation on how to do it.”
“For instance, drug company ads that legally have to list off tons of side effects that may happen, but they do it in a way that changes to a droll voiceover and with smaller print,” O’Connor says.
There is “also a problem of dilution,” Daynard says. “One wonders, for example, whether side effects warnings on drug ads lead some people to think, ‘Well, everything is dangerous, so why not just forget about it and live a little.’”
“Campaigning about one risk tends to distract attention from other risks,” Daynard says.
“Humans are not natural statisticians as in, ‘tobacco risks are X, alcohol risks are 10% of X, but still serious,’ but rather storytellers, as in, ‘I used to think cigarettes cause cancer, but now I learned that it’s alcohol that causes cancer,’” he says.
In his Friday advisory, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said alcohol consumption is the third-leading preventable cause of cancer in the United States, after tobacco and obesity, increasing risk for at least seven types of cancer.
The American Cancer Society says smoking is linked to about 30% of all cancer deaths in the U.S., while excess weight is linked with about 7% of cancer deaths and alcohol consumption is associated with 4% of all cancer deaths.
Less than half of Americans currently recognize alcohol consumption as a risk factor for cancer, despite growing scientific evidence for the connection, according to the U.S. surgeon general’s office.
“One of the striking data point highlighted in the surgeon general’s report is he elevated risk associated with breast cancer,” says Neil Maniar, director of Northeastern’s Master of Public Health Program.
“As we see rates of certain types of cancer increase among young and middle-aged adults, it’s important that we highlight how lifestyle factors and health behaviors can contribute to the risk over one’s lifetime,” he says.
The younger generation is already consuming less alcohol than older friends and relatives, says Ashleigh Shields, assistant teaching professor in the department of public health and health science and the department of communication studies.
While she believes it’s time for a warning label, Shields also believes various factors need to be taken into effect when considering individual cancer risks including food consumption, social and physical activities, genetics, environmental conditions and other factors.
Whether moderate alcohol consumption is beneficial or detrimental to overall longevity has been the subject of scientific debate for years.
“There will always be debates about health issues that require people to change their behaviors because change is hard,” says Elizabeth Glowacki, a Northeastern expert in health communication and message design.
“There will be debates about moderation versus excessive consumption, debates resulting from misinformation, etc.,” she says.
“Marketing plays a huge role in the perception of substance abuse,” Glowacki says.
“It is also important that messages or campaigns do more than merely tell people to stop drinking altogether, because according to reactance theory, people do not like to be told what to do or have their freedoms restricted,” she says.
“They may end up doing the opposite and in some cases, engaging in even more extreme or dangerous forms of that behavior,” Glowacki says.
She says she also would like to see any labeling combined with social media campaigns advising people on how to get help in reducing or eliminating alcohol consumption.
Daynard says he doubts the advisory will turn all moderate drinkers into teetotalers.
But, he says, “if people are on the fence about whether to drink at all or on a particular occasion, the warning even by itself could make a substantial difference.”
“The report itself has catalyzed an important discussion about the need for better education and communication regarding alcohol consumption,” Maniar says.