There’s no denying it that alcohol over-consumption, binge drinking
and alcoholism can have some devastating effects. Nonetheless, alcohol
has become so normalized in our society that moderate drinking is
considered normal. Now, a new comparison between binge and moderate
drinking has raised the question. Is moderate drinking much worse for
the body than many of us think?
Drinking Guidelines
- Moderate consumption – up to 1 drink per day for women and up to 2 drinks per day for men.
- Binge drinking – 5 or more alcoholic drinks for males or 4 or more
alcoholic drinks for females on the same occasion (i.e., at the same
time or within a couple of hours of each other) on at least 1 day in the
past month.
- Heavy alcohol use – binge drinking on 5 or more days in the past month.
It is important to consider that “1 drink” equals to no more than 0.6
ounces of pure alcohol, 12 ounces of beer, or 5 ounces of wine.
The statistics are even more staggering when you consider USDUH’s
estimate that 86% of people 18 or over who live in the U.S. consume
alcohol. 56% of survey respondents reportedly drank within the last
month.
How Harmful Is Moderate Consumption?
Statistics about alcohol misuse may be quite scary. But if you’re not
a heavy or binge drinker, do you have to worry? New evidence suggests
that even moderate
alcohol consumption can be quite harmful.
In the BBC television segment below, doctors explored the difference
between binge drinking and moderate drinking. Identical twin brothers
each consumed 21 alcohol units. One brother drank 21 units in one night.
The other had three drinks per day over the course of one week. The
experiment continued for four weeks.
Doctors compared medical tests before and after the experiment. They
discovered that moderate drinking was actually quite harmful to the
body. Liver stiffness increased by about 25% for both the binge drinker
and the moderate-drinking brother. This type of
inflammation can lead to an irreversible condition called liver cirrhosis.
Effects of Alcohol on the Body
Drinking alcohol is very common, regardless of the negative effects on the body. But let’s consider the potential dangers.
Mercola reports that alcohol consumption:
- Depresses your central nervous system, including the limbic system
that controls emotions, the prefrontal cortex that governs reasoning and
judgment, and the cerebellum that plays a role in muscle activity and
impacts balance.
- Increases liver stiffness, which increases your risk of liver cirrhosis.
- Diminishes the formation of memories due to ethanol buildup in the
brain. Alcohol also causes your hippocampus to shrink, which affects
memory and learning.
- Promotes systemic inflammation. In other words, your body reacts to alcohol in the same way as it reacts to injury or infection.
- Increases stress on your heart, raising your risk for cardiomyopathy, arrhythmias, high blood pressure and stroke.
- Significantly increases endotoxin levels. In other words, alcohol
causes gut damage allowing bacteria to escape from your gut into your
blood stream.
- In terms of chronic disease, studies have linked excessive alcohol
consumption with an increased risk for poor immune function (which
raises your risk for most diseases), pancreatitis and cancer.
A more detailed listing of how alcohol affects all of the body’s systems can be found on
Healthline.
Mitigating Health Risks
The effect that alcohol will have on a person differs depending on
various factors. These include body weight, amount of body fat and
genetic makeup. Other important factors that can mitigate the effects of
alcohol consumption are lifestyle choices such as diet and exercise.
“Exercise is a foundational aspect of good health, but
may be even more important if you drink alcohol on a regular basis.
According to recent research chronic drinkers who exercise five hours a
week have the same rate of mortality as those who never drink alcohol,
in large part by counteracting the inflammation caused by alcohol.” (source)
Furthermore, alcohol depletes the body of vital nutrients. It is
important to ensure that if you drink alcohol, you eat foods rich in
nutrients such as Vitamin C, Magnesium and B Vitamins, or take a
supplement.
Milk thistle is another beneficial supplement. It contains antioxidants known to help protect the liver from toxins, including alcohol.
Researchers found that the antioxidant silymarin found in milk thistle may help to regenerate liver cells.
Alcohol Misuse Impacts More Than the Body
In the U.S. alone, alcohol misuse and alcohol use disorders carry a significant social cost.
An estimated $249 billion is spent on lost productivity, health care expenses, law enforcement, and other criminal justice costs.
In addition, there is the issue of codependency.
What is codependency?
It is a behavioral problem where people in the lives of those who are
afflicted with alcohol or drug dependency engage in mutually destructive
habits. It typically affects family members, friends or coworkers of
heavy drinkers.
You Choose
Alcohol consumption is a personal choice, similar to the foods one
eats and the amount of exercise one gets. It is important to understand,
though, that alcohol has many negative health effects. Even though
moderate alcohol use is widespread, it does not necessarily mean that it
is safe for everyone. Limiting consumption or abstaining altogether is
the best way to mitigate the harmful effects on the body.
Walking Times
