So it’s so common to get together with friends, we should go out for a drink. And so we have built it into our culture and social connectivity. And the easy button is interesting because we also know that at least anxiety increases self-confidence in these kinds of uncomfortable social situations. And one of the things that’s challenging is this concept of responsible drinking, which is a catchphrase that’s used all the time in advertising around the alcohol products. Well, there’s no definition of what responsible drinking is. And the issue is there’s just this fine line, right, between I’ve imbibed enough where I’m safe to drive home and I over-imbibed.
Can You Reverse Any Detrimental Effects of Alcohol Consumption?
It’s important to note that the risk assessed in this study pertains to the first-time diagnosis of a heart-related issue. “The risk from alcohol may be even greater for people who already have cardiovascular disease, although this study doesn’t address that question,” says Dr. Aragam. Moreover, there’s compelling scientific evidence that for people with atrial fibrillation, cutting back on alcohol clearly reduces episodes of the rapid, irregular heart rate that characterizes the disorder. And so that, of course, got publicized and spun, and I think everybody has their different takes on which one is best for the heart. And then there were some studies that came out that maybe conflicted with that, that were quieter. But there is this level of like, well, I never have a hard drink, but I stick to wine so that feels safe.
Contrary to popular belief, even modest amounts of alcohol may raise heart disease risk.
I think what we’re really lacking, certainly as a primary care doctor, I feel I’m really lacking that huge prospective randomized control trial that is correctly powered and looking at this in the right way. I know that those are in the works, but we don’t have a really good one yet to guide us, especially in the area of moderate drinking. And just looking at retail sales, because it’s a heavily regulated industry, sales went up 3%, which is the highest-ever measured increase in a single year.
International Patients
And I think that’s a very important discussion to have really, you have to set those standards and those expectations as you go into a structured review like this. And I think that as I talk to patients, that’s one question they have, why do we get different signals? It depends on how you sort through the data and what criteria it is just strictly looking at these two groups of people…
- Regular kombucha has some health benefits, including reducing blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and aiding in digestion.
- On the one hand, moderate amounts have been linked to health benefits.
- They found that compared to people who abstained, daily drinkers had a 5%, 30%, and 17% higher risk of breast cancer, oral cavity and pharynx cancers, and esophageal cancer, respectively.
- Once you do that, it’s not difficult to understand why a surgeon general might want to say if it’s a carcinogen, there’s not a safe amount.
- And we’ll talk a little bit about that work he did later in the show.
Yet even official guidelines can’t capture the nuance and individual factors that might shift the outcomes of drinking for any one person at any one time. If, perhaps, you know you’re at high risk of developing cancer, then cutting out alcohol entirely might make sense. If, on the other hand, you’re more worried about a heart attack, then maybe that’s not a reason to become a teetotaler, says Marcus.
But in the U.S. and Canada it’s defined as 0.6 fluid ounces or about 14 grams of pure alcohol, which is equivalent to 12 oz of a 5% beer, 5 oz of a 12% wine, or 1.5 oz of a 40% distilled spirit. There’s statistical biases and confounding factors that muddy the data, the financial interests and outside influence, and a lack of consensus on how to define terms such as risk and moderate. Researchers sometimes disagree with each other about how to interpret the available evidence, and what guidance is best why is alcohol good for you for boosting health. Here’s what’s clear and what remains murky, when it comes to alcohol and health. Yet as 2025 begins, what hasn’t changed is the muddled messaging over the health effects of moderate drinking. If your body can’t manage and balance your blood sugar levels, you may experience greater complications and side effects related to diabetes.
Risks of moderate alcohol use
There are several possible reasons for what is alcoholism the beneficial effects of drinking moderately. Ethanol reduces communication between brain cells — a short-term effect responsible for many of the symptoms of being drunk. Fatty liver gradually develops in 90% of those who drink more than a 1/2 ounce (15 ml) of alcohol per day (4, 5). By reducing self-consciousness and shyness, alcohol may encourage people to act without inhibition. At the same time, it impairs judgment and may promote behavior people may end up regretting (1, 2). In the United States, people younger than age 21 are not legally able to drink alcohol.
Why every campus should have a student director of public health
- From this, the study’s authors concluded that while light drinking might have a modest protective effect for certain conditions among certain people, “Our results show that the safest level of drinking is none.”
- Clearly there are good reasons to discourage excessive alcohol consumption, driving drunk, and other avoidable alcohol-related trouble.
- To add flavor without sugar and calories, club soda, diet soda, or lemon or lime juice are smart choices.
- And alcohol is up in the highest quadrant, up with cocaine and heroin.
- Observational studies dating back to the early 1990s linked light to moderate drinking (one to two drinks per day) to a lower risk of heart disease.
But the health risks were low, and quite similar at levels between zero to one drink per day. That suggests that zero consumption may not necessarily be best, or any better than several drinks per week. In addition, this study (and others like it) is based on a large number of people, which is helpful to detect trends but can overlook important individual factors. In other words, some people may be harmed or helped more by alcohol consumption than others. The second study, also published in The Lancet, was even bigger.
- When older adults exceed these limits, the study found, their risk of losing years of their life to disease and disability begins to rise.
- To better reflect short-term and habitual alcohol consumption and its effects, future studies need to use more reliable measurements of alcohol exposure rather than self-reported intake.
- Many people drink alcohol as a personal preference, during social activities, or as a part of cultural and religious practices.
- Let’s explore how moderate drinking can contribute to health.
- Too much beer can cause a drop in blood glucose levels because alcohol prevents the liver from producing glucose.
The most obvious is the amount of alcohol consumed; a heavy drinker will be exposed to more acetaldehyde than a light drinker, leading to more damage. But even two people who drink the same amount may be affected differently, depending on their genes and other risk factors. Moderate drinking is defined as at most one standard drink per day for women and at most two for men, while heavy drinking is defined as more than three drinks per day for women and four for men (80). While alcohol intoxication is only temporary, chronic alcohol abuse can impair brain function permanently. However, moderate drinking may have benefits for brain health — especially among older adults. Similarly, in randomized trials, alcohol consumption lowers average blood sugar levels.
