51–60 of 134 posts
I've never drank before, so I'm a terrible person to comment about this: but what exactly is the supposed benefit of drinking? I go to dinner parties, clubs, etc. and it seems that alcohol is everywhere. People mention that its social lubricant, but I just don't get it. I've had great times with groups that don't drink any alcohol: sometimes we just eat great food, play games, etc. I've had similar experiences with m…
I've never drank before, so I'm a terrible person to comment about this: but what exactly is the supposed benefit of drinking? I go to dinner parties, clubs, etc. and it seems that alcohol is everywhere. People mention that its social lubricant, but I just don't get it. I've had great times with groups that don't drink any alcohol: sometimes we just eat great food, play games, etc. I've had similar experiences with m…
As a non drinker you probably don't like the taste of any or most alcoholic beverages. Whether it is conditioning or not, I do enjoy the taste of a good beer. There is not more 'benefit' to it than eating good food.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not sure what your point is here. You've never tried it, so you don't know why people enjoy it? So why don't you try it and find out? There's a reason drinking is a popular activity all over the world. It's a lot of fun.
>>It's a lot of fun. I quit drinking about 6 months ago and I couldn't feel better. I have a lot of fun with my drinking and non-drinking friends.
There is no doubt that you can have fun without drinking. The problem with never trying it is that you close yourself off to a massive part of the Western human experience. It is baked into the culture and is also a huge part of business relations. Being a lifelong teetotaller is in some ways tantamount to being a virgin.
I've never drank before, so I'm a terrible person to comment about this: but what exactly is the supposed benefit of drinking? I go to dinner parties, clubs, etc. and it seems that alcohol is everywhere. People mention that its social lubricant, but I just don't get it. I've had great times with groups that don't drink any alcohol: sometimes we just eat great food, play games, etc. I've had similar experiences with m…
A lot of research has shown supposed health benefits of alcohol, but it all has something in common: it's based entirely on observational data, with no intervention performed. Observational studies have an extremely poor track record in health and especially in nutrition, and are not experiments, but they get reported as though they were science. So we get reversals like this one. (Which was entirely expected.)
Moderate-dose Regular Lifelong Alcohol Intake Changes the Intestinal Flora, Protects against Aging, and Keeps Spatial Memory in the Senescence-accelerated Mouse Prone 8 (SAMP8) Model.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
If you are predisposed to some genetic condition (say cancer), healthy living (excersize, eating right) can help delay the onset and improve outcomes. (s.o. is nurse and sees that stuff all the time, fwiw)
Isn't this a given though...? Exercise and eating right will improve outcomes no matter what genetics you have.
I've never drank before, so I'm a terrible person to comment about this: but what exactly is the supposed benefit of drinking? I go to dinner parties, clubs, etc. and it seems that alcohol is everywhere. People mention that its social lubricant, but I just don't get it. I've had great times with groups that don't drink any alcohol: sometimes we just eat great food, play games, etc. I've had similar experiences with m…
Honestly, as a tea lover it baffles me how people can prefer alcohol at parties. A high quality sencha can make you "tea drunk" which is what I prefer over being ordinary drunk. The magical combination of caffeine and l-theanin (and maybe some unknown stuff) can put you in a relaxed, slightly euphoric state with a thirst for action. Oddly enough, at times it can even reduce the power negative feelings have on me. Alcohol, otoh, makes me feel rather ... numb.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I find that they drink them at clubs but not at home parties. Should've been more clear. And anyway it probably has more to do with age than geography. People don't get as smashed in their late 20's as they do in high school and college when drinking is more like a competition on who can get the most drunk the fastest. Or maybe I'm just going to the wrong parties. You're right, geography is prob a correlation.
Next time you go to a party at a friend's home, offer to bring some spirits and mixers. Most people stick to beer/wine at self-hosted parties because anything else is a PITA, not because they don't like spirits.
I've never drank before, so I'm a terrible person to comment about this: but what exactly is the supposed benefit of drinking? I go to dinner parties, clubs, etc. and it seems that alcohol is everywhere. People mention that its social lubricant, but I just don't get it. I've had great times with groups that don't drink any alcohol: sometimes we just eat great food, play games, etc. I've had similar experiences with m…
Most people experience some form of anxiety when socializing.
Other things can help, like familiarity (groups that know each other well) and structure (e.g. playing a game together).
On balance, there does not seem to be any direct health benefit to drinking. Or the upsides are nullified by the downsides, but there may be indirect benefits depending on who you are. Just a course example: if not drinking leads to social isolation, there are well known health risks associated with isolation.
Honestly, with all this stuff about whether drinking or whatever is or isn't good for you, part of me wonders why I should even care any more. I mean, it's pretty clear that genetics have a huge impact in how long you live regardless of what your lifestyle is like, and it's also clear that the advice seems to change every few years anyway. May as well just live how you like and deal with things as they come. And if t…
The issue is to be able to indulge in a bit of self experimentation. You eat and drink what you enjoy, and do regular checks.
If you change what you eat and drink, the checks will tell you if it is good or not for you.