Drinkers and non-drinkers

[Cloppy]

I stopped drinking alcohol a few months ago because first it's expensive and also it give me heartburn. There is something I heard about drinkers (I mean the one who drink in moderation) live longer than non-drinkers. There are some websites that say that too. Is it true or is it just something to encourage people to drink more?

[brimstoneSalad]

There are a couple issues to consider here. One is personal health, and the other is societal.

I stopped drinking alcohol a few months ago because first it's expensive and also it give me heartburn.

It's also empty calories. Your body processes it as sugar, and it's nutritionally roughly equivalent to sugar.

There is something I heard about drinkers (I mean the one who drink in moderation) live longer than non-drinkers. There are some websites that say that too. Is it true or is it just something to encourage people to drink more?

Consensus is that more than moderate drinking is certainly harmful, and that the risks of alcohol don't outweigh the benefits. There may or may not be slight benefits to reduction in some heart disease from moderate drinking (this is contentious), but these benefits are overshadowed by the certain risk.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/alcohol/art-20044551

It sounds like a mixed message: Drinking alcohol may offer some health benefits, especially for your heart. On the other hand, alcohol may increase your risk of health problems and damage your heart.

So which is it? When it comes to drinking alcohol, the key is doing so only in moderation. Certainly, you don't have to drink any alcohol, and if you currently don't drink, don't start drinking for the possible health benefits. In some cases, it's safest to avoid alcohol entirely — the possible benefits don't outweigh the risks.

For more detail, here's the CDC:

http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/moderate-drinking.htm

Alcohol consumption is associated with a variety of short- and long-term health risks, including motor vehicle crashes, violence, sexual risk behaviors, high blood pressure, and various cancers (e.g., breast cancer).1
The risk of these harms increases with the amount of alcohol you drink. For some conditions, like some cancers, the risk increases even at very low levels of alcohol consumption (less than1 drink).2,3
To reduce the risk of alcohol-related harms, the 2015-2020 U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that if alcohol is consumed, it should be consumed in moderation—up to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men—and only by adults of legal drinking age. This is not intended as an average over several days, but rather the amount consumed on any single day.4 The Guidelines also do not recommend that individuals who do not drink alcohol start drinking for any reason.4[...]
Science around Moderate Alcohol Consumption
For some conditions, such as certain types of cancer (e.g., breast cancer) and liver disease, there is no known safe level of alcohol consumption.2,3
Although past studies have indicated that moderate alcohol consumption has protective health benefits (e.g., reducing risk of heart disease), recent studies show this may not be true.6-10 While some studies have found improved health outcomes among moderate drinkers, it’s impossible to conclude whether these improved outcomes are due to moderate alcohol consumption or other differences in behaviors or genetics between people who drink moderately and people who don’t.6-10

Also see this, for definitions:

https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/moderate-binge-drinking


The important thing to remember from a health perspective is that drinking alcohol increases your risk of cancer and liver disease, as well as likely neurological problems, and others. Alcohol consumption is correlated with a huge number of diseases, and causally linked to many.

When people eat a diet high in saturated fat and cholesterol, drinking in moderation may slightly reduce the risk of heart attack (not enough to counteract the effects of a bad diet, but just a little).

So, for a meat eater, having 1-2 drinks a day may be a wash. It won't make his or her risk as low as a vegan, but the slight reduction in heart disease risk may be enough to counteract the increased risk of cancer (although a meat eater already has a higher risk of cancer too).
For a vegan, because we already have lower cholesterol and heart disease risk, drinking probably does nothing but increase our risk of cancer, and probably even harm our cardiovascular systems.

I would say it looks something like this, in terms of cardiovascular risk:

Healthiest: ___Non-drinking Vegan
Second: ______Moderately drinking Vegan
Third: ________Moderately drinking meat-eater
Worst health: Non-drinking meat-eater

This is just my guess, though.


The social aspect is more complicated, and has to do with the inherent tendency to abuse that alcohol has, when used socially, and the harm that causes.

[Cloppy]

I see so it mostly say that it's better not to drink at all and that I shouldn't start drinking again for these "health benefits". Well thanks for the information.

[Indigo]

There are some cases where alcohol is considered OK for health. For instance, the single small glass of red wine with dinner is good for your heart. This however, is a lot less alcohol than a "moderate drinker" would consider. This is a few ounces at most. This amount of alcohol is so small that there would be no effects felt. Something along those lines is considered a safe and healthy option, but then it leads to the question of necessity. The benefits earned that way, are not exclusive to the glass of wine, so the important thing to do is consider what positive effect you're aiming for, and find if there are non-alcoholic options, and in many cases, the answer is an emphatic yes.