People have different attitudes towards alcohol. Someone can't even go an evening without a glass of beer while others have never touched alcohol in their life. Even an unqualified person understands that drinking alcohol daily is harmful to the body. But what if we are talking about the optimal dose of alcohol? How Much Can You Drink to Minimize the Health Effects of Alcohol? This question is relevant to many. Let's try to find out.
How much alcohol is not allowed to drink?
I'll tell you right away - there is no consensus on this matter. Some scientists say that even small amounts of alcohol have a devastating effect on the body. Others believe that even small doses of alcohol are beneficial. And there are recommendations from the WHO (World Health Organization) that a dangerous dose of alcohol is 60 ml of ethanol for men and 50 ml for women. But since very few people consume ethanol in its pure form (well, I hope), an absolutely dangerous dose of alcohol in terms of drinks that most are familiar with looks like:
- 180 g vodka for men and 150 g vodka for women
- 1, 5 l. Beer
- 0. 5 l. Wine
Absolutely dangerous dose of alcohol- the average value of the amount of alcohol consumed, which is sufficient to lead to death.
But don't think that if you drink less than these values, nothing will happen to the body. Even if you consume 30 ml of ethanol per day (90 g of vodka, 800 ml of beer or a large glass of wine), you can seriously damage your health.
What happens if you drink alcohol every day?
Scientists have long studied this problem. Recent evidence suggests that alcohol reduces the risk of atherosclerosis. In part, it helps prevent blood vessels from becoming clogged with cholesterol plaques. Why is cholesterol dangerous? It causes circulatory problems. The blood no longer circulates normally through the vessels because they are filled with cholesterol and the person may even die. Alcohol, on the other hand, "flushes" the blood vessels and prevents the cholesterol from stagnating.
Does that mean you can drink alcohol every day? No. In this case, it is extremely low doses of alcohol. Based on the same WHO recommendations, experts advise completely avoiding alcohol at least two days a week. The longer you don't drink the better.
The optimal dose of alcohol, which is not very harmful to health and can even bring certain benefits, is150 ml dry red wine.
However, this does not mean that you have to have a small glass of wine every day, although there are numerous stories floating around on the internet of how a grandfather drank a glass every day and lived to be 90 years old. Everything here is individual and many factors must be taken into account - from chronic diseases to hereditary predispositions. Not to mention the fact that alcohol is categorically contraindicated for minors and pregnant women.
If you drink alcohol every day, the body cannot remove it from the body, and a disease like alcoholism begins. It has 3 stages, and in this article we are going to cover them. But first let's find out - how does alcohol affect a person in general?
How alcohol works
What is alcohol in a scientific sense? This is ethyl alcohol made by fermenting sugar, yeast, and starch. And all of these "nuclear" mixtures have one amazing property: they go through all stages of digestion incredibly quickly. That said, while you're digesting lunch soup (around 30 minutes) or chicken (up to 2 hours), alcohol quickly reaches its destination - the human circulatory system, which sometimes bypasses even the liver if you drink seriously. She just isn't able to give that much alcohol by herself.
Alcohol begins to do its unpleasant business in the circulation: it damages red blood cells (tiny bodies that make up blood), which is why they stick together and form blood clots. Blood clots, in turn, block blood flow in small arteries, which leads to blockages of blood vessels in the brain. This creates a feeling of poisoning, similar to when the brain lacks oxygen.
So if you don't drink alcohol in moderation, the brain is in this state all the time. This leads to a deterioration in many mental and physical functions - a condition that is comparable to drinking a lot of alcohol at the same time. A person cannot stand normally and does not report their actions.
Scientists have already shown that alcohol damages DNA and increases the risk of cancer.
Stages of alcoholism
Alcohol consumption leads to alcoholism, which has three stages.
- In the first stage of alcohol addiction, a person gradually loses control over the amount of drink, which leads to the appearance of a pathological craving for alcohol.
- In the second stage a person even develops an "immunity" to alcohol, or rather, it seems so to him. Apparently, if a person consumes more than 1 liter of alcohol at this stage, the body will more easily perceive alcohol. In fact, this hides the development of serious diseases - hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, esophageal cancer, and stomach cancer.
- Third stage alcoholism is characterized by a complete deterioration in personality on the physical and mental levels. A person can no longer drink alcohol and in most cases dies.
Scientists believe that alcoholism is influenced by a hereditary predisposition caused by an inadequate production of enzymes that metabolize alcohol. However, it actually affects the amount of alcohol consumed. Just do not need to drink if you find yourself losing control of yourself and an uncomfortable state of the body arises.
Why does a hangover occur?
This question is asked by many the next morning after a hectic party (usually with the words, "Well, I'm definitely not going to drink anymore"). In fact, the explanation is very simple: Alcohol gets into the body's bloodstream very quickly, but it leaves it VERY slowly. And the human body cannot fully recover from a stormy night until the substance is completely destroyed and digested. This is how a hangover occurs.
I'm sure a lot of people googled how to avoid a hangover before they started celebrating another alcoholic event. But the answer can be summed up in one sentence: do not drink in large quantities, and then the alcohol will have time to leave your body before your head comes into contact with the pillow.
How do I drink alcohol?
Researchers differentiate between the so-called "northern" drinking model and the "southern" one. The first includes Belarus, Kazakhstan and the Baltic countries, which also drink a lot of alcohol in shock cans and not always often. The "southern" model is typical of Spain, Italy, Greece, where you can drink more often than in other countries, but less and less strong alcohol: for example a glass of dry wine with dinner. Nobody drinks 100 g of vodka every day.
Scientists agree that the southern model is safer for health, although they still state that daily alcohol consumption is harmful to health. So don't be overused.