5 ms·
I like to have an occasional drink. I suspect that mild drinking on the order of 1 glass of wine per day is not likely to cause harm and would probably be somet
by S_A_P 6y ago
I like to have an occasional drink. I suspect that mild drinking on the order of 1 glass of wine per day is not likely to cause harm and would probably be something that a doctor wouldnt feel bad recommending as being generally safe to possible stress reduction health benefits.
That said, there is plenty of research suggesting not drinking is healthier for you and non drinkers are much less apt to diseases like cancer et al. I also think there are plenty of folks who either dont want to or cant stop drinking that would include some doctors that would not want to suggest not drinking at all.
I definitely notice anxiety increases either the day after or the night of drinking. In some ways I could see it causing a feedback loop, but I also somewhat enjoy what I would consider a jolt of reflection during those times. Am I treating people with kindness? Am I too focused on the wrong thing? That said, as Ive gotten older, I think curbing to completely stopping drinking is the trend for me.
- gameswithgo 6y agoDon't forget you will get some reduction in sleep quality even from just 1 glass. You may fall asleep more easily but it is not as restorative. I really struggle with that as I get older.
- S_A_P 6y agoDefinitely agree and this is one reason for my reduction in drinking.
- dageshi 6y agoSometimes getting drunk mid day seems just the tonic for me. Drink too much too late and your sleep is nuked, drink mid day and most of the effects seem out of my system by the time I go to bed. For me it's a good way to reset myself back to some baseline. Probably not healthy I'm sure, but I don't think life is a competition to see who can live the most perfectly, so I don't worry about it too much.
- thih9 6y ago> a doctor wouldnt feel bad recommending as being generally safe Some doctors would say a different thing. “This might not be the answer people want to hear, but there is no safe level for drinking alcohol.” https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/disease-prevention/alcohol-use/data-and-statistics/q-and-a-how-can-i-drink-alcohol-safely https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/disease-prevention...
- nostromo 6y agoIt's funny that the only research he mentions is about the positive effects of drinking: > Research has shown a lower risk of ischaemic events (heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes) among middle-aged and older, light-to-moderate drinkers. But the detrimental effects of alcohol far outweigh any potential protective benefits. An older person will get much greater health benefits from being physically active and eating healthy food than from alcohol. ... what? Someone should tell this guy that you can both have a drink and exercise. To paint it as a choice between the two is silly. > alcohol doesn’t just harm the drinker; it’s related to violence on the street and in the family. Having a glass of wine does not lead to "violence on the street and in the family" -- this is "War on Drugs" levels of disinformation.
- treeman79 6y agoFun fact. My blood clots super easy. Genetic issue. (Factor 5) This is important. Also most of family going back at least 3 generations are alcoholics. For many years I had this weird sense that alcohol cleared up my head. But didn’t last long, and felt like crap later, so I almost never drink. Plus, watching family die young is good motivation to stay away. Eventually ended up on Blood thinners, wow. Brain fog gone in days. So I have a pet theory that the reason a lot of my extended family fell into alcoholism is because it was a way to manage the disease even though they didn’t know they had it.
- boringg 6y agoI feel like this is the kind of thing that medicine just misses completely. I like that kind of theory and I'm glad you've found relief.
- mircea 6y agoThere's an interesting discussion around alcohol and hormetic stress. I can't provide a good summary of it in a comment but the wikipedia page is a good starting point: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hormesis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hormesis.
- bnralt 6y agoWhat's interesting is that alcohol will probably kill far more people this decade than Covid or opioids, yet very little attention gets paid to this. It's an enormous negative influence on our society, yet there's a lot of social pressure pushing for alcohol use, and we allow advertisements that encourage it. I wonder if in the future we'll look back on this the way we now look back at how ubiquitous smoking was a few decades ago.
- ericmay 6y agoI doubt it. We've been using alcohol for thousands of years. COVID-19 for example has 0 societal benefits. And although opioids do, they were abused and that's what people are upset about.
- bnralt 6y agoPeople have been smoking (in various ways) for thousands of years, yet there has been a substantial shift over the past few decades as to how prevalent it should be in our society. Smoking inside restaurants was common just a few decades ago, and now people will often look at you askew if you smoke outside.
- webkike 6y agoI think this view is fairly American centric. Go to any bar in Tokyo and you will be given an ashtray to smoke cigarettes with your drink. In China they have museums dedicated to tobacco cultivation and use. And even here in America, we mostly just switched to vaping tobacco and smoking marijuana.
- ericmay 6y agoYea, not to mention cigarettes versus tobacco being a bit different.
- bnralt 6y ago> I think this view is fairly American centric. Go to any bar in Tokyo and you will be given an ashtray to smoke cigarettes with your drink. From March this year: "Japan’s ban on smoking inside restaurants and bars takes effect this week"[1] Seemingly entrenched cultural trends can and do change. [1] https://www.stripes.com/news/japan-s-ban-on-smoking-inside-restaurants-and-bars-takes-effect-this-week-1.624171 https://www.stripes.com/news/japan-s-ban-on-smoking-inside-r...