The Chief Medical Officer, Sally Davies said that drinking any level of alcohol regularly carries a health risk for anyone who partakes.
The guidelines are getting a lot of press attention on both sides of the Channel because they are the first released on alcohol in twenty years.
The report added that there is no 'safe level' of drinking and that people should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol a week to reduce the risk of illnesses such as cancer or liver disease.
Speaking on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme about drink-related cancer risks, Davies said: "There is no doubt that the more we drink, the bigger our risks.
"Every year, over 20,000 of people in the UK have a diagnosis of cancer made consequent on drinking alcohol.”
She added: “"I would argue that we have to be very careful in making sure that the public know the risks of drink just as they need to know the risk of obesity and other lifestyle issues so they can take their choice and live their lives.
"The reason we've done this is that the science had progressed and advice needed updating."
The previous recommendation in 1995 was for a maximum of 21 units for men and 14 units for women and stated that it was safe for pregnant women to drink a small amount of alcohol.
The new report advocates that pregnant women abstain from drinking alcohol completely as there is no evidence for a "safe" drinking level.
These findings, based on new scientific evidence, also recommend that we each have several drink-free days a week and not "save up" their 14 units for a binge.
Davies also said that the idea that drinking a glass of red wine a day is good for you is an "old wives' tale".
However not everyone agrees with the new guidelines: Rob Lyons, campaigns manager for Action on Consumer Choice, said: "The claim that there is no safe level of drinking flies in the face of the weight of studies showing that those who drink moderately have better or similar health outcomes to tee-totallers.
"The new guidelines seem devoid of common sense. They will be widely ignored by most drinkers but will cause unnecessary alarm for some.
"The real danger is they will be used to justify more nanny state policies, from higher prices and alarmist health warnings to further restrictions on the sale of alcohol."
For every 1,000 women who do not drink, 109 will develop breast cancer. This rises to 126 women for those who drink 14 units or less per week, and 153 women for those who drink 14 to 35 units a week.
Among non-drinking men, 64 in every 1,000 will develop bowel cancer and this stays the same for those drinking 14 units or less per week, but rises to 85 for those drinking 14 to 35 units per week.
