Healthy Drinking

I don't know, but this thread has been rehashed a thousand times, and it will be shut down because BA is not a medical advice forum.

 

At my age I firmly limit myself to one at a time.

 

This.

But there is one thing we can neutrally state without giving any medical advice:

- WHO's recommendations used to be much higher until the late 90s/early 2000s. Back then, they claimed that 1g Ethanol/kg bodyweight/day is fine for adults. For my weight, that would mean a weekly consumption of more than what's nowadays considered as "definitely leading to liver problems".

- The 25-30g / day limit which is now independent of the body weight seems to be reasonable, but can still have bad effects on one's health. Maybe they'll adjust it even tighter at some point or recommend that people do not drink at all. But in every case, it's your own responsibility.

- These health statements are mainly about physical health. Drinking the full equivalent of 30g of ethanol every day can definitely make you addicted without harming your body per se, which brings us to the psychological aspect:

- Psychologists and other researchers who focus not on the body health, but on aspects of addiction usually agree it is crucial that one does not drink on a regular basis, that one does not start drinking early in the day (because it automatically leads to high dosage), that one does not reach high dosage levels, and, most importantly: NEVER drink when you're not feeling good, and NEVER even think of using alcohol as a "medicine" against any kind of personal problems.

I hope this does not lead to anybody concluding behavioral guidelines from what I've stated.

But beware: Statistics don't say anything about an individual - I'm pretty sure there exist heavy drinkers who have lived without complications for a long time and that there exist moderate drinkers or abstinent people who still got a health problems which are linked to alcohol (maybe for another reason). That said, the moment you start drinking alcohol, you go into a higher-risk category. Just like with eating sausage

 

Buzz kill......hahaha. Cheers!

 

And sausage is delicious!

 

Oh good Lord, people do so like to make rules for others. For years our family internist was a teetotaler who often dissed my regular intake of alcohol. I've outlived him.

 

I don't normally exceed 1-2 a day and rarely have a drink every day of the week. It is not so much for health reasons, but alcoholism runs in my family, so I don't want to ruin a good thing.

 

Makes me think of the logo on Irving Gas Station pumps, "clean gasoline".

On a more serious note, moderation in everything, even bacon. If the pursuit and drinking ( in moderation ) of craft beer relaxes one, there are health benefits to that versus being bored and over stressed.

kāmau kī`aha!

 

The advice is flawed simply because nobody actually knows how much each individual consumes or what drinking pattern they have.People simply don't know their own data!
As for what's healthy , remember that everybody is different.

 

If that's the case, I need to step up my game. #UnintendedConsequences

 

I've pretty much given up fretting about the latest article on the health effects of food and drink because
A) journalists aren't very good at interpreting medical research and tend to go for the superficial and/or sensational;
2) the recommendations constantly bounce back and forth:
"Don't eat butter---use margarine instead!" "No---wait---margarine's worse than butter!"
"Eat oatmeal, it reduces cholesterol!" "Actually, oatmeal may not reduce cholesterol."
"Coffee's bad for you! Cut down!" "Wait---coffee has health benefits!"
Etc etc yadayadayada...

 

Use common sense. It's not that hard.

 

Not trying to start a political argument (I swear 'm not!) but government subsidized / socialized / single party payer medicine inherently has massive risk management attached to it. In order to reduce cost they have to reduce risk by changing habits. That's why you see massive taxes or tax recommendation on sodas, sugary foods, alcohol, fast food, etc.,. It's partly to recoup cost for treating ailments caused by these items but also to economically dissuade people from making purchases of said items. The other part of their risk management campaign is to create some scare or trepidation in the public's eye from partaking of the particular foods and drink. Remember a few months ago when the WHO (Not Roger Daltrey and company...) came out with that "processed meats will kill you dead!" campaign? Same same.

So it's my belief that number crunchers got together and figured out that by compelling like, 13% of adults to drink 67% less, they'll save 21% over 7 years.....or some equally boring number.

Will it effect the drinking habits of folks who don't care? No, but it may curb the habits of fringe drinkers or yet to start drinkers who happen across the article.

 

Drink what and when you want. Why standardize yourself to a certain limit. If you feel like having a 3rd beer that day, then go ahead. If you don't feel like drinking that day, then don't.

In the end, we're going to the same place and beer may not be a factor to that.

 

Beer = better for you than heroin, but less better for you than broccoli.

 

Everyone knows you're not supposed to drink too much. The sodas, sugary foods, fast food, processed meat, etc. are all bad for you, that's why we are being persuaded off of it. Unfortunately most people don't like what's good for them and we suffer health problems because of it. I honestly think they should just eliminate companies that produce these horrible health damaging foods, or at least make them get rid of the ingredients that cause the health problems. Unfortunately corporations and their lobbyists care more about making money than helping out the people. Before our healthcare system used to incentivize doctors for more pills and more treatments, now they get incentivized for the quality of treatment. Is there really something wrong with control if it ends up helping us in the long run while still retaining our freedom of choice? I'd like to see more natural soda, and cereals, and fast foods, and organic grass fed meats on the market instead of the typical chemical laden ingredients that make americans known for having health problems and being obese.