It has long been known that alcohol has been associated with TB [33]. The association between heavy drinking and risk of TB incidence is both strong and consistent with a risk ratio of about 3 ([34]; see also Table 3). Heavy drinking in the underlying meta-analysis and most other studies in the TB area was defined as either drinking more than 40g pure alcohol per day or “alcoholism” [34]. Despite its strength, however, the causality of this association had not been established [35].
