Alcohol consumption increased the risk of uterine leiomyoma progression in young women
A strong association of heavy alcohol consumption at one time and continued alcohol consumption for two years with an increased risk of developing new uterine leiomyoma nodules in women of early reproductive age has been confirmed. Giving up alcohol can help reduce the likelihood of new nodules.Researchers from the Seoul University Graduate School of Medicine studied the association of alcohol consumption with the risk of new uterine leiomyoma nodules in Korean women of early reproductive age. The results of the study are published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
They analyzed six years of data on 2,512,384 asymptomatic Korean women aged 20 to 39 years who underwent a national health examination. They assessed the association of alcohol consumption, the amount of alcohol drunk at one time, and prolonged alcohol use over two years with the risk of new leiomyomatous nodules in the uterus.
Approximately 6% of women were diagnosed with uterine leiomyoma an average of four years after their first evaluation. Alcohol consumption was associated with a 12% increase in the incidence of new nodules with moderate alcohol consumption and a 16% increase with alcohol abuse. Alcohol consumption with a frequency of more than 1 day per week increased the risk of new nodules by 11% and with a frequency of ≥3 days per week by 15%.
The authors noted that this association increased in proportion to the amount of alcohol drunk at one time. The risk of disease progression increased by 17% when ≥7 drinks were consumed at a single occasion.
Among women who indicated continued alcohol consumption in a questionnaire administered two years later, the risk of new cases of uterine leiomyoma was increased by 20% compared with nondrinking women. Among participants who stopped drinking, the risk was only 3% higher. Meanwhile, women who started drinking had a 14% increase in this risk.
Researchers concluded that drinking habits, significant amounts of alcohol consumed at one time, and prolonged alcohol use over two years strongly increased the risk of new uterine leiomyoma nodules in women of early reproductive age. Thus, avoiding or stopping alcohol consumption will help reduce this risk.