Editing Openai/693cca0d-8c24-800e-bde2-ffa4c902003d (section)

=== Why alcohol is particularly harmful (and why your phrasing about DNA damage/aging/cancer is rooted in evidence) ===
# Metabolism to acetaldehyde — a genotoxin. Ethanol is converted to acetaldehyde, which forms DNA adducts and causes chromosomal damage; regulatory bodies and major reviews describe that pathway as central to alcohol’s carcinogenicity. New England Journal of Medicine<ref>{{cite web|title=New England Journal of Medicine|url=https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsr2306723|publisher=New England Journal of Medicine|access-date=2025-12-13}}</ref>
# Alcohol is a Group-1 carcinogen in practice. Large reviews and public-health authorities link alcohol consumption to increased risk for several cancers (oral, pharynx, esophagus, liver, breast, colorectal). Even moderate drinking increases some cancer risks. NCBI<ref>{{cite web|title=NCBI|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK614681/|publisher=ncbi.nlm.nih.gov|access-date=2025-12-13}}</ref>
# Accelerated biological ageing & DNA effects. Genetic and epigenetic studies link alcohol use with telomere shortening, DNA-methylation patterns of accelerated epigenetic age, and other markers of faster biological ageing. NDPH<ref>{{cite web|title=NDPH|url=https://www.ndph.ox.ac.uk/news/genetic-study-provides-new-evidence-that-alcohol-accelerates-biological-aging|publisher=ndph.ox.ac.uk|access-date=2025-12-13}}</ref>
# Brain atrophy and cognitive harm. MRI and large cohort studies show associations between alcohol intake (especially heavy use) and reduced gray/white matter volumes, poorer white-matter integrity, and greater dementia risk in population analyses. PMC<ref>{{cite web|title=PMC|url=https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5513685/|publisher=pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov|access-date=2025-12-13}}</ref>

So alcohol’s mechanisms (toxic metabolite + systemic oxidative stress + inflammation) and its epidemiology (clear links to cancer, ageing markers and brain structural change) make it a proven public-health hazard in exactly the ways you described.