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“Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

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Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's your favourite beer?

For me, the answer is it depends . What I buy depends on the context. If it's the middle of summer and I'm at a baseball game, I'll always get a hot dog and Budweiser. Tonight I'm going to grill something and I'll have a Shiner Bock with it. Right now in my fridge I have two cans of Guinness (the doo hickey in the can always impresses me).

Guiness is too thick for me. I'm Molson or Sam Adams or Miller Lite, on a hot day.

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#82

Well, I know that drinking any alcohol is bad for me personally. Of course this does not apply in general, but even after a single drink I feel a little depressed and anxious the next day. The more I drink the worse I feel and the longer I need to recover. Stop drinking was the single best thing I did to recover from depression and anxiety.

I tend not to put too much inportance on these generic health statements because of this. I could care less if alcohol has health benefits if i personally experience ill results from drinking.

the same can be said of statements like "coffee has health benefits" when it can cause acid reflux for me and others who are susceptible.

everyone needs to evaluate general health suggestions against their personal health history. personally i find them marginally useless.

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#83

Or maybe moderate alcohol makes you wealthy, thereby making you healthier ;)

It's interesting that the drugs society accepts (caffeine, alcohol, tobacco) all help you cope with excessive work whereas the ones we ban all have a negative impact on work.

I hear LSD boosts productivity.

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#84
post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sorry to hear that you're depressed. If you don't mind sharing, what else have you tried? Isn't alcohol a depressant? I'm no psychiatrist but it seems paradoxical that alcohol would help with depression

Isn't depressant just the opposite of stimulant? I don't think it has anything to do with depression the syndrome.

It doesn't, but there is a connection: for people who have a predisposition, alcohol is risky in that it can trigger a depressive episode. Typically one of the first things a psychiatrist or therapist will tell you to do in such a situation is to stop drinking. The GP's experience (that alcohol helps their depression) is not typical, but everyone is different.

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#85
post #19

OK, so moderate drinking is not good for you, it's just that being wealthier and better educated makes people more likely to be moderate drinkers. So, hopefully the causal explanation is that drinking moderately makes you smarter and richer, and eventually healthier.

Given that wealth is correlated with your ability to network and connect to other people, sounds there might be some truth to it

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#86
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't Mendelian Randomization prone to pleiotropy? I've never understood how people can control for that without a complete understanding of the genome.

Do you know any good overviews of Mendelian randomization?

I'm afraid not, my knowledge is all 2nd hand (wife is scientist) :)

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#87
post #63
post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Beer has good health benefits. It doesn't have sugar in it, so it's something you can drink without damaging your teeth. It doesn't have caffeine, so it's not going to stop you sleeping (hence why people meet for a coffee during the day and a 'drink' in the evening). Apparently it helps your cholesterol. It also kills germs/bacteria - when I was in India I tried to drink beer every day and I never got sick. In terms…

Beer is about as caloric as sugar-sweetened soda and has comparable carbohydrates. It's not health food. :)

But as long as you realise that and monitor your intake/diet accordingly, why is that problem? Are carbohydrates necessarily bad?

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#89
"Moderate drinking" is working class phenomena in the first place, especially in cold climates - cheap, easily available almost instant gratification (of being happy with oneself) and better than church socialization with fellow men for those who have very little spare time and money. And, of course, there are negative "health benefits" in the long run.

Re: “Health benefits” of moderate drinking disappear when controlling for wealth

#90
post #89

"Moderate drinking" is working class phenomena in the first place, especially in cold climates - cheap, easily available almost instant gratification (of being happy with oneself) and better than church socialization with fellow men for those who have very little spare time and money. And, of course, there are negative "health benefits" in the long run.

I don't understand what you saying. That the rich and the poor don't drink moderately? That it's related to climate? The study was done near where I live. Church going is relatively low by world standards and it isn't a cold climate. Women and men had outcomes measured and this is discussed. Can you further explain your point?
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