People are proving that drinking in moderation is incredibly healthy.But what does “moderate” mean?How do you know when alcohol is harming your health?In fact, even scientists admit that alcohol in certain (small) doses is beneficial;Let's take the example of red wine, in which antioxidants, vitamins and microelements can be found.Damage occurs when alcohol damages a person's internal organs, and this will certainly happen if you drink more than 170 g of alcohol more frequently than once every 8 days.
So is it possible to drink in moderation?What risks does a person who drinks alcohol face?At what point does moderate drinking end and alcohol abuse begin?
EVERYTHING THAT IS MOST IMPORTANT ABOUT DRINKING IN MODERATION
“The main thing is to drink in moderation,” often thinks those who are already one step away from terrible and destructive alcoholism.
The dose, after which the human liver is in serious danger, is equal to 90 g of pure ethanol per day.For a moment, it's 285 ml of vodka (a little more than a glass of vodka).Damage to the human brain occurs with a much lower dosage - 19 g of ethanol (or 60 ml of vodka) in 24 hours.And this applies to absolutely healthy people with a normal and functioning liver, brain, kidneys and other healthy organs.
Now imagine what awaits a person if he drinks a glass of vodka every day:
- alcohol addiction will begin to develop, which is very difficult to get rid of;
- in six months you will begin to suffer from this alcohol dependence in the presence of a hereditary predisposition to this disease;
- This problem will manifest itself within 36 months (3 years) in the absence of hereditary predisposition.
- After a few months there will be a strong desire to regularly increase the dose.
If we assume that a person has suffered a significant illness (for example, viral hepatitis), then the moderate dose for him will be 2 or even 3 times lower.
It should be clear: moderate drinkers - how much can you drink without causing harm to your own body?How much can you drink to restore all body systems?
All calculations are made based on the fact that a healthy person processes alcohol in the amount of 170 g per day.The result is interesting results and conclusions:
- If a person drinks 170 g of pure alcohol in 1 day, then for the next 8 days he must refrain from drinking any alcoholic drinks (even the weakest).
- The permitted (acceptable) dose per month is 586 grams.
- That is, you can drink a little more than one and a half bottles of classic vodka per month.
If it turns out that you need to drink more than 170 grams on a holiday, then you need to increase the period of time between drinking alcohol and the next time drinking alcohol, say, not after 8 days, but after 10-12.This will significantly reduce the harm and negative consequences of alcohol.
What conclusion should you come to in such a situation: drink much less often or drink in moderation?Experts are more inclined towards the first option.Less often means once a month and no more than that.Although some argue that if the dosage is followed correctly, it does not matter how often a person drinks.
WINE: IS IT HEALTHY OR NOT?
Moderate drinkers, at least those people who call themselves that, insist on the following - drinking dry red wine is extremely healthy.Their logic is based on the fact that wine contains a strong antioxidant and prevents cancer.
On the contrary, scientific research shows the following: drinking wine in large quantities is harmful.It contains certain substances, the excess of which will involuntarily cause complications, as a result of which such a drink will be harmful.
You need to know some well-founded facts about the benefits of wine:
- The drink contains the antioxidant resveratrol, which is also found in grape juice, but in much smaller quantities.
- Contains valuable microelements that improve human health.
- An acceptable dose for a person in good health is approximately 3 glasses of wine per 7 days (450 ml of drink).
It should also be noted that conversations about the effectiveness of red wine in the treatment of atherosclerosis turned out to be just rumors, since modern research proves the opposite.
It turns out that drinking wine is useful, but only when you follow established standards and do not exceed the safe dosage of the drink consumed.
IS IT ALLOWED TO DRINK BEER IN MODERATE QUANTITIES?
Another drink besides wine that many people claim is healthy is beer.Yes, indeed, unpasteurized or live beer can be beneficial for the body, but even here there are certain restrictions, after which the drink becomes harmful to humans.600 ml per day is a completely acceptable norm, although this norm is also subject to reservations, since drinking even a small amount of beer for several years leads to the development of the third stage of alcohol dependence.
Beer in moderation has beneficial effects:
- Cosmetic effect on skin condition.
- Normalizes blood pressure.
- Calms the human nervous system.
- Maintains the necessary cholesterol levels.
It is important to remember that beer addiction progresses secretly and little by little, which makes it difficult to notice at the initial stage.Subsequently, this same disease is more difficult to treat than, for example, addiction caused by the abuse of vodka or other alcoholic beverages.Therefore, it is fundamentally wrong to prove that beer is a safe alcoholic drink.
STIMULANT EFFECT OF MODERATE DOSES OF ALCOHOL
As with all other alcoholic drinks, benefits can be obtained from moderate consumption, taking into account the so-called paradoxical stimulation effect.
What is the meaning of this principle?This is the stimulating effect of small doses of exposure to substances that cause toxic effects in higher doses.In simple words, if alcohol in large doses harms the body, then in small quantities it can have a stimulating effect.
This effect is not obtained by groups of people who drink moderately, but by those who consume only insignificant doses (about 50 ml of vodka 2 times every 7 days), and not a gram more.
WHICH IS BETTER: DRINKING IN MODERATION OR NOT DRINKING ALCOHOL?
And what do you want to do now, knowing all these numbers that talk about the benefits of alcohol or its harms?Should you stop drinking for good or should you drink in moderation for your health?
Previous studies showing the benefits of moderate drinking have turned out to be erroneous.Today, scientists from leading countries in the world are talking about this.
These experiments showed the following result: moderate and moderate drinkers were much healthier than those who did not drink at all.But what's the problem?The fact is that everyone was recruited into the category of teetotalers: people with already poor health, those who drank a lot in their youth, those who could not drink alcohol for medical reasons.
Thus, the result was not reliable.Scientists carried out a series of additional studies, correcting their error, and found that non-drinkers are healthier than those who drink in moderation, and the former live much longer than the latter.
IS THERE ANY BENEFITS FROM ALCOHOL AND SHOULD YOU DRINK IT IN MODERATION?
A study conducted in 1999 by a physician-scientist demonstrated that drinking alcohol in moderation has benefits for a person's cardiovascular system.A similar study was carried out in the same year, when the benefits of alcohol for the human brain were proven.
The results of the experiments were as follows:
- Patients who learned to drink in moderate doses were less likely to suffer a myocardial infarction.They drank 14 to 56 g of pure alcohol daily (less than 1 glass of vodka).Additionally, people who adhered to moderate doses were less likely to develop an intellectual disorder.
- Those who made the bold decision not to drink had a slightly increased risk of heart attack and were slightly more likely to develop dementia.
- The most noticeable health problems were experienced by those who frequently drank alcohol in large quantities.In these situations, myocardial infarction occurred and brain diseases manifested themselves more frequently.
After these research results, several pressing questions immediately arise in my head: is it possible to drink alcohol in moderation?So does this mean it's still better to drink some alcohol than become teetotal?
But here it is important to mention another experiment carried out by scientists in 2008, which showed a completely different effect - patients who drank alcohol moderately were more likely to develop serious brain diseases than those who completely abstained from alcohol.
CONCLUSIONS: IS IT POSSIBLE TO DRINK IN RESPONSE?
As you can see, the experiments showed completely different results, which is not at all abnormal, because the health and lifespan of a person on earth are influenced by many other factors besides alcohol intake: daily diet, lifestyle, working conditions, climate.This is why a specific study cannot provide 100% objective information.
Only one thing can be said with certainty - there are benefits from drinking alcohol in small quantities, but this benefit is not particularly noticeable against the background of the danger that awaits you if you drink alcohol.In addition, the harm from alcohol manifests itself instantly and is easily detected by scientists and doctors when examining a person.
How to drink in moderation and is it worth doing?If you really care about your health, it's better to forget about alcohol altogether.Only consume what brings real benefits and does not contain harm, so that you no longer have any doubts.