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This is generally true for most of these studies. They rarely look at low alcohol consumption, and then extrapolate to it being true for all levels. They also t

This is generally true for most of these studies. They rarely look at low alcohol consumption, and then extrapolate to it being true for all levels. They also tend to quite heavily correct for morbidity among those who drink no alcohol. It’s a good idea, but often not made clear to the end reader. My general perception is that maybe small amounts of alcohol aren’t necessarily good for you (which was previously thought) and may just be neutral. Moderate drinking certainly doesn’t seem as significant for morbidity/mortality as smoking or obesity from the current evidence. Plus at the end of the day, everything carries risk. It is about deciding what is worth a slight risk. I don’t get the focus on demonising small amounts of alcohol. Even if it increases risk slightly, it provides joy to many people and encourages socialisation- important to improving both quality of life and health. There are much bigger fish to fry than moderate alcohol consumption.

DanBC 8y ago
We know that women over 50 may get some small benefit from drinking low amounts of alcohol regularly - about 2 small glasses of wine a week. We know those advantages don't happen for anyone else. The evidence is unclear to the general public because a multi-million dollar industry (especially in the UK) keeps pushing inaccurate information to print media who suck at science and health reporting. > There are much bigger fish to fry than moderate alcohol consumption. When we ask people how much they drink they all say "not much", and then when we check what they actually drink it's often far more. Here's a guy who thought he was drinking moderately when he was drinking far more than the recommended maximum. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45262469 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45262469
eggy 8y ago
I call the category of low alcohol consumption into question as being substantial enough of a number to create an argument against the ill-effects of worldwide alcohol consumption. Is it the yearly total, factoring in several days of binge drinking? I am 54, and have lived and traveled the world, and I have rarely met people who only have one drink every few days or so, or if they did, are now mid-to-high alcohol consumers. Like a cancer it grows. I have given up drinking several times in my life, and I currently do not drink. Alcohol culture and marketing seems the same everywhere except when I spent a year living in Indonesia, or traveling to less developed areas in the world. No signs and billboards, no print or TV ads, or conversations with people mentioning how hungover they were, or looking forward to drinking over the weekend, or drinking and driving and making it home somehow, all created a stark and telling context when returning to the US after 8 years overseas. At my current workplace, alcohol is talked about by my young colleagues in a large percentage of their conversation and with passion. The romance and addiction associated with alcohol probably fogs the eyes of those trying to be objective when studying it.

DanBC 8y ago

We know that women over 50 may get some small benefit from drinking low amounts of alcohol regularly - about 2 small glasses of wine a week. We know those advantages don't happen for anyone else. The evidence is unclear to the general public because a multi-million dollar industry (especially in the UK) keeps pushing inaccurate information to print media who suck at science and health reporting. > There are much bigger fish to fry than moderate alcohol consumption. When we ask people how much they drink they all say "not much", and then when we check what they actually drink it's often far more. Here's a guy who thought he was drinking moderately when he was drinking far more than the recommended maximum. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45262469 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45262469

eggy 8y ago

I call the category of low alcohol consumption into question as being substantial enough of a number to create an argument against the ill-effects of worldwide alcohol consumption. Is it the yearly total, factoring in several days of binge drinking? I am 54, and have lived and traveled the world, and I have rarely met people who only have one drink every few days or so, or if they did, are now mid-to-high alcohol consumers. Like a cancer it grows. I have given up drinking several times in my life, and I currently do not drink. Alcohol culture and marketing seems the same everywhere except when I spent a year living in Indonesia, or traveling to less developed areas in the world. No signs and billboards, no print or TV ads, or conversations with people mentioning how hungover they were, or looking forward to drinking over the weekend, or drinking and driving and making it home somehow, all created a stark and telling context when returning to the US after 8 years overseas. At my current workplace, alcohol is talked about by my young colleagues in a large percentage of their conversation and with passion. The romance and addiction associated with alcohol probably fogs the eyes of those trying to be objective when studying it.