‘Most People Underreport Drinking’: India's Leading Diabetologist Calls Out A Common Lie | Exclusive

If you drink, your doctor probably already knows you are not telling the full truth. It’s something leading diabetologist Dr V Mohan says is almost universal. “If they have three pegs, they will say one or two. If they drink four times a week, they will say ‘occasionally’,” he says in an exclusive conversation. It’s not even surprising anymore, just expected by doctors. Much like smokers, people who drink tend to underreport. And yet, the bigger shock is not the lying but what many still believe about alcohol.For years, drinking was wrapped around comforting myths. A peg of scotch is good to unwind, beer does not really count or that a glass of red wine is good for heart health. But science has quietly and very firmly moved on. Study after study

now shows that no amount of alcohol is actually safe. Not a little, not even socially or 'just on weekends'. Alcohol doesn’t just affect the liver, it eats into your overall health. And if you already have lifestyle conditions like diabetes or hypertension, it becomes significantly more harmful. What feels like a harmless indulgence is, in reality, compounding metabolic stress.One of the most persistent myths that of red wine being 'good for the heart' comes from observations in regions like Bordeaux in France. But as Dr Mohan explains, that narrative is incomplete. "People there don’t just drink red wine. They follow a Mediterranean-style lifestyle which is rich in olive oil, fruits especially berries, vegetables, nuts and whole foods. Obesity levels are lower and physical activity is higher. In short, it’s not the wine doing the heavy lifting, it’s everything else."

“Everybody thought it is due to the red wine,” he says. “It actually may not be the red wine itself but the healthy habits that they follow.”Closer home, Indian studies including his own paint a far less romantic picture. Even small amounts of alcohol have been shown to be harmful and naturally the risks rise with quantity.One area where this becomes particularly dangerous is liver health. Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), previously known as fatty liver, is already widespread even among people who don’t drink. Add alcohol to the mix and the damage accelerates. You are no longer dealing with just one pathway to liver disease, but two - metabolic and alcoholic. The result is a much faster progression towards cirrhosis.In fact, Dr Mohan notes that MASLD is now the most common cause of liver disease in his practice. A large reason is simple: many women don’t drink, yet still develop fatty liver due to metabolic factors. Among men too, a significant proportion of liver disease is unrelated to alcohol. But that doesn’t make alcohol harmless, it just means it’s adding fuel to an already burning fire. And those 'only on weekends' drinks count too.The uncomfortable truth is this: your doctor isn’t relying only on what you say. Your reports, your patterns, your body they all tell a story. And if you think you are getting away with downplaying your drinking, you are not fooling anyone who matters.