The upsides of alcohol
1. A little red wine helps your heart: Previous studies have
shown the benefits red wine may have on the heart, but a
groundbreaking study published this year revealed that it might not
take that much drinking to achieve them. When lab mice were fed
small amounts of resveratrol, a polyphenol antioxidant found in red
wine, they aged more slowly. Their hearts, in particular, stayed
younger longer.
2. A little wine can protect your liver: A 2008 study found that,
compared with teetotalers, people who drank one glass of red or
white wine a day were half as likely to develop nonalcoholic fatty
liver disease, the most common liver problem in this country.
3. Moderation may lower cholesterol: In a 2007 study researchers
examined the bloodstreams of older moderate drinkers (people who had
one to six drinks a week) and saw that they had larger particles of
good and bad (LDL) cholesterol in their bloodstreams than did those
who drank more. Larger HDL particles fight heart disease, while
sizable LDL particles are less likely to cause it.
4. Alcohol boosts the benefits of fruit: A 2007 study found that
adding fruit to alcoholic drinks -- plopping strawberries in
champagne or sliced apples in sangria -- may help to increase the
already beneficial antioxidant potency of the fruits. The effect you
get depends on the fruit you use (berries tend to be the most
antioxidant-rich) and how much you include in your drink. So a fresh-
raspberry margarita, for example, offers more nutrients than one
made with a juice concentrate or mix.
The downside of drinking
1. It can increase the risk of breast cancer: Research presented
at the 2007 European Cancer Conference indicates that having three
or more drinks a day may increase your risk of breast cancer by 30
percent. This news isn't as dramatic as it first seems. A typical
woman in her 50s already has about a 3 percent risk of the disease,
so a 30 percent jump would bump her risk to nearly 4 percent. But
most experts agree that this is reason enough to cut back.
2. Alcohol can stress your skin: The ethanol in alcohol dilates
blood vessels. Initially, you might flush a bit during a night out,
but, over time, too much drinking can stretch the capillaries,
giving your face a permanent red hue.
3. Drinking can lead to overeating: Alcohol doesn't stimulate
appetite per se, but if you're struggling to control your eating,
drinking can lower your inhibitions and weaken your resolve to
steer clear of the cocktail nuts.
4. Too much alcohol affects your sleep: "To keep your brain alert
in the face of sedation, the brain alters the activity of certain
hormones," said Robert Swift, a psychiatrist and an associate
director of the Brown University Center for Alcohol and Addiction
Studies, in Providence, R.I. But the effects of what you drink will
wear off well before your system's countermeasures do. "The
relaxation effect goes away and you wake up in the middle of the
night with your thoughts racing."
How to drink wisely
1. Slow down and be still: The rate at which your body absorbs
alcohol into your bloodstream and how intoxicated you feel aren't
based on just the proof of your beverage; these results also hinge
upon how quickly you drink. In other words, a small glass of wine
drunk in a half hour can have the same effect as a stiff vodka
martini sipped over an hour. But the effects of the martini will
last longer. Having a carbonated drink, such as champagne or a gin
and tonic, may also make you feel effects faster.
2. Drink later in the day: Until midafternoon, your body is
building its food and water reserves, so a drink at lunch will have
a bigger impact than one at dinner. Likewise, drinking in a warm
environment or under a hot sun promotes sweating, which dehydrates
your body and leaves it with less fluid to dilute the alcohol.
3. Eat smart: Before you have a drink, eat something that
contains a little oil or fat, which will slow the rate at which your
body absorbs the alcohol. This is not license to decimate an entire
hors d'oeuvre tray, but a handful of spiced nuts, a cheese-and-
cracker combo or a few olives are all good options.
4. Stick to light colors: Pure alcohol is clear. So whether you
choose beer, wine or spirits, the darker your drink, the more
outside compounds it contains, which can leave you feeling more hung
over the next day. Also consider a wine or liquor bottle's price; a
costlier bottle usually means that higher-quality wooden barrels,
like French oak, were used and the product was distilled many times
(the more, the better), which cuts down on the amount of impurities.
5. Ditch the diet soda: According to a 2006 study, people who mix
liquor with diet soda absorb the alcohol faster than do those who
choose regular soda or juice as a mixer. Scientists believe the
calories in regular drinks, which need to be digested, act as a
buffer. And because diet soda masks the taste of alcohol, it may
prevent people from pacing themselves.
6. Don't keep up with the boys: Going drink for drink with a man
is a quick way to get drunk and ensure a hangover. Women metabolize
alcohol more slowly than men do, and, surprisingly, this has nothing
to do with body weight. Pound for pound, men have 20 percent to 30
percent more water in their systems, so anything a man drinks will
automatically be diluted that much more, even if he's exactly your
weight.
(C) 2008 Roanoke Times & World News. via ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved