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Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

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Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#61

Post by mrtron »

Zazezizozuzy wrote: post #51
jotm wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Now do a dry month. I am very easily addicted to alcohol, I hate the goddamn thing, I can hold out a week, but a month is much harder and shows exactly how far into it I am...

Did this though April. I have high blood pressure and my doctor is going through a list of substances that I should remove from my diet to see its effects. I cut out alcohol through April and my blood pressure went up significantly. After the first week I was showing a consistent 160/100. My doctor then recommended that I have a single drink at least every couple days.

What is your exercise regiment? Try 30+ minutes of moderate exercise daily.

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#62

Post by mrtron »

kvcc01 wrote: post #27
DanBC wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There was a recent large study, mentioned in the article, that said that drinking up to 6 drinks a day was healthier than being teetotal. It got a lot of publicity. And it's probably not true, so it's good that articles like this one are appearing.

Do these studies ever control for the socialization factor that may relate to alcohol consumption? It seems having good social connectedness is good for you psychically, maybe even physically, so if you socialize with your friends, family, colleagues over drinks regularly, that may be helping more than drinking itself. Conversely, if you are a recluse, perhaps taking up drinking on your own won't be too beneficial, i…

For me this is the biggest thing I enjoy about alcohol - it is primarily consumed at social occasions. Convincing some old colleagues to grab a beer on a patio is much easier than convincing them to meet up otherwise. Not everyone drinks at the meetups, but most do.

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#63

Post by stephengillie »

jotm wrote: post #57
stephengillie wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the downside of addiction, again? This is starting to sound like the Melange-Spice from Dune.

Lowered intelligence, lowered reflexes, the need to spend money on alcohol (unless you can drink the bottom end shit), feeling down, depressed or anxious during withdrawal if you miraculously quit (several weeks at least).

Oh, you're talking about alcohol addiction. I meant addiction in general.

You're mostly listing negative side effects of excess consumption. What if you could mitigate those side effects, or if the addictive substance had no negative side effects?

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#64

Post by mastre_ »

The effects on mental health should also be considered, don't see it addressed/considered. It cuts both ways, but since we're talking about moderation, it could well be there's measurable positive impact for the classic "one glass of wine a day" case under certain conditions. Something the French, Italians and Spaniards are naturally clued in about, à la Mediterranean diet.

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#65

Post by jrk_ »

Personally, I prefer to get wasted every now and then, instead of getting into the habit of consuming a tiny amount of alcohol every day. But to each their own.. I also strongly believe in this: Everything in moderation, even moderation. :) (Bonus points if you know who said it)

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#66

Post by DanBC »

jotm wrote: post #56
DanBC wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alcoholism is not "a drink a day". http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg115 > Alcohol dependence is characterised by craving, tolerance, a preoccupation with alcohol and continued drinking in spite of harmful consequences (for example, liver disease or depression caused by drinking). [...] > Alcohol dependence affects 4% of people aged between 16 and 65 in England (6% of men and 2% of women), and over 24% of the English…

Yeah, the Russians define alcoholism as 0.5L of vodka a day. How convenient. Doesn't change the fact that habitual drinking is alcoholism and can easily lead to dangerous drinking (1 glass of wine a day may not be dangerous, but it makes it very easy to drink "a bit" more, especially when you're stressed or depressed).

Habitual drinking is not alcoholism. It trivialises a serious illness when you mistakenly describe one glass of wine per day as alcoholism. No one is dependant on one glass of wine a day.

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#67

Post by senorito »

hartator wrote: post #17

In France, we have a strong belief that one glass of wine per day is something sane and you should actually do it. There is no scientific study behind it and every other tests seem in fact to tend to show that alcohol is harmful for the body. But because it makes everyone happy to believe so (myself included!), we root for it.

How could a Bordeaux be bad ... ?

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#68

Post by coldtea »

jotm wrote: post #56
DanBC wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alcoholism is not "a drink a day". http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg115 > Alcohol dependence is characterised by craving, tolerance, a preoccupation with alcohol and continued drinking in spite of harmful consequences (for example, liver disease or depression caused by drinking). [...] > Alcohol dependence affects 4% of people aged between 16 and 65 in England (6% of men and 2% of women), and over 24% of the English…

Yeah, the Russians define alcoholism as 0.5L of vodka a day. How convenient. Doesn't change the fact that habitual drinking is alcoholism and can easily lead to dangerous drinking (1 glass of wine a day may not be dangerous, but it makes it very easy to drink "a bit" more, especially when you're stressed or depressed).

>Doesn't change the fact that habitual drinking is alcoholism

Alcoholism is a specific thing. Can't be defined however we want it. If it doesn't have the withdrawal symptoms and negative health effects it's not alcoholim, even if people are drinking each day.

It's not very effective to jugde habitual drinking in a different cultures (e.g. continental Europe, a french farmer drinking a glass or two a day in a family dinner / fiest of friends / coffee shop context) with experiences from your own cultural environment (some suburban housewive etc drinking everyday on the border of alcoholism).

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#69

Post by jotm »

stephengillie wrote: post #63
jotm wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lowered intelligence, lowered reflexes, the need to spend money on alcohol (unless you can drink the bottom end shit), feeling down, depressed or anxious during withdrawal if you miraculously quit (several weeks at least).

Oh, you're talking about alcohol addiction. I meant addiction in general. You're mostly listing negative side effects of excess consumption. What if you could mitigate those side effects, or if the addictive substance had no negative side effects?

Then it would be a good addiction, like caffeine.

I am very biased against alcohol due to some very bad experience with it.

I do see the positive effects from low dosage consumption - relaxation, better sleep, a clearer mind. All of which can be achieved with meditation or some other meds like Phenibut or even Xanax.

Re: Are the benefits of moderate drinking a myth?

#70

Post by jotm »

mrtron wrote: post #58
jotm wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Now do a dry month. I am very easily addicted to alcohol, I hate the goddamn thing, I can hold out a week, but a month is much harder and shows exactly how far into it I am...

I am a moderate drinker, and currently doing a dry month. It is trivial for me to do, and I could do a dry year or decade. I will likely resume drinking alcohol after this month (or months) as I enjoy it and don't see any strong negative impacts from it.

That is great, you can get all the positive effects without the negative ones. Myself, I'll always slip into addiction, just can't control it.
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