Foreword
This book brings together a collection of papers, specially written for this volume, on the major health risks known or suspected to be associated with drinking. The approach is mainly epidemiological, that is, based on studies of human populations, rather than, for example, laboratory studies of animals. Where appropriate, the authors evaluate the strength of the evidence to date relating alcohol to the medical conditions considered, in terms of quality of study design, control of other variables and consistency of findings across studies. For the most part, the papers are quite technically sophisticated, using currently available statistical methods to compare studies in more detail than previously. The source materials used comprise the major research studies in each field available at the time of editing ( September 1991), and hence the book also serves as a useful reference source. What it does not do, however, is present opinions as definitive conclusions. Where controversy exists regarding the causal role of alcohol in the illnesses considered, the evidence is presented, and in some cases an opinion expressed, but without any claim of finally resolving the issues.