From this wikipedia article, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-term_effects_of_alcohol

The U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has completed an extensive review of current scientific knowledge about the health effects of moderate alcohol consumption. It found that the lowest death rate from all causes occurs at the level of one to two drinks per day. That is, moderate drinkers have the greatest longevity.

A 23-year prospective study of 12,000 male British physicians aged 48–78, found that overall mortality was significantly lower in the group consuming an average of 2–3 "units" (British unit = 8 g) per day than in the non-alcohol-drinking group (relative risk 0.81, confidence interval 0.76–0.87, P = 0.001). The authors noted that the causes of death that are already known to be augmentable by alcohol accounted for only 5% of the deaths (1% liver disease, 2% cancer of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, or oesophagus, and 2% external causes of death) and were significantly elevated only among men consuming >2 units/day.

In a 1996 American Heart Association scientific statement, Thomas A. Pearson, MD, PhD noted: "A large number of observational studies have consistently demonstrated a U-shaped relation between alcohol consumption and total mortality. This relation appears to hold in men and women who are middle aged or older. The lowest mortality occurs in those who consume one or two drinks per day. In teetotalers or occasional drinkers, the rates are higher than in those consuming one or two drinks per day. In persons who consume three or more drinks per day, total mortality climbs rapidly with increasing numbers of drinks per day.

Please do note the word "men" in the above paragraphs. Women metabolize alcohol differently. The health equivalent of two drinks a day in men is the same as one drink a day in women. One drink a day in men is half a drink in women. So, slash those consumption numbers in half, girls!

We know from other studies that colon cancer is somehow related to fat and fiber consumption, too, and from levels of vitamin D. One of the things we know about beer is that it's quite low in fiber and vitamins, and a source of empty calories. It also borrows some of the same metabolic pathways as fat uses in its metabolism. So, if you're allergic to "rabbit food" and regularly pack down plates of bangers and chips, that daily pint probably does make things significantly worse, colon-cancer-wise, but it's likely due to overall dietary issues as much as anything. Worse, there's a problem specific to beers using malts roasted at high temperature, specifically acrylamides. Nitrosamines (another class of known carcinogens) are associated with some kilning (drying oven, for beer ingredients) parameters, too. The latter show up in most whiskeys, as well.

A French wine-consumption study, now famous, found that different quantities of red and white wines had similar effects on longevity, it taking twice as much red wine to achieve the same deleterious effects as white, and lesser quantities of both proving beneficial.

When I googled >alcohol beneficial<, I tripped over an article head suggesting that alcohol in moderate quantity might be more beneficial in people of a certain genetic makeup than in others.

So, obviously there's bags more to learn about alcohol, diet, socializing and overall health. One thing we know for certain, though. Stress can be bad for you, so choose your worries wisely. And, overall health might be related to overall diet and lifestyle, so eat your veggies, take your vities and watch those waistlines, too!