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The Jewish Home | JUNE 23, 2022
Health & F tness
Alcohol and Its Impact On the Body By Aliza Beer MS, RD, CDN
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et’s explore if and how alcohol has a place in a healthy diet. The general recommendation is that women should consume no more than one alcoholic drink each day and that men shouldn’t consume more than two alcoholic drinks daily. One standard alcoholic beverage in the U.S. is equal to 14g of pure alcohol, which is found in a 5 oz. serving of wine, a 12 oz. beer, or 1.5 oz. of spirits like vodka or tequila. There are different types of alcohol and each one has its benefits and possible risks. The key is to find the type of alcohol that aligns with your goals and to make sure you have a healthy relationship with alcohol.
The Benefits of Alcohol 1. Balances blood sugar: Research has shown that moderate alcohol consumption can lower the risk of type-2 diabetes. Alcohol increases the levels of a hormone that improves insulin sensitivity. This hormone makes it simpler for the body to process glucose. It makes the
process more efficient, which reduces the amount of sugar in the blood, thereby decreasing the risk of developing diabetes. However, it is important to limit alcohol to one drink a day for women and two for men. Excess alcohol intake will do the opposite. Beer and sweet wine could raise blood sugar, and other types of alcohol in large amounts could decrease your blood sugar level. 2. Good for your brain: Consuming a normal amount of alcohol (1 drink/day for women and 2 for men) can decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and dementia. 3. Boosts mental health: When you first drink the alcoholic beverage, the brain releases more dopamine, the chemical linked to pleasure. Therefore, drinking occasionally can improve mental health, make you more relaxed, and improve your mood. 4. Healthy for the heart: If a person is healthy, drinking alcohol moderately decreases the risk of a heart attack by 25-40%. Drinking moderately, according
to the National Institute on Alcoholism, means drinking a maximum of three alcoholic drinks for women and four alcoholic drinks for men in a single day. Please note that this recommendation is on the higher end and that one should still stick to the general recommendation of one serving for women and two servings for men per day. The reason for this is that alcohol increases the amount of good cholesterol in the body, which contributes to a healthier heart. However, if a person drinks heavily, it can increase their risk of heart disease.
The Drawbacks of Consuming Alcohol Drinking a lot of alcohol can be detrimental to your health. It may lead to many easily avoidable issues. 1. Heart damage: Drinking too much can lead to heart muscle damage, high blood pressure, and an irregular heartbeat. 2. Lowers immune system: Overdrinking weakens the immune system
and makes a person much more vulnerable to disease. 3. Stroke: Alcohol causes blood pressure and high triglycerides, which both can increase the risk of having a stroke. 4. Liver problems: Heavy drinking – consuming more than three or more alcoholic beverages a day for women and more than four for men – can be detrimental to your liver health. Liver disease is caused by this and can lead to liver failure, which can be fatal. There are different stages of liver disease, and alcohol worsens it. Although less than these amounts of alcoholic beverages aren’t considered heavy drinking, it is best to stick to the recommendation of not more than 1 drink a day for women and 2 for men. 5. Cancer: Alcohol is labeled a human carcinogen by the U.S. government. Therefore, the overconsumption of alcoholic beverages can lead to different types of cancer. 6. Pancreatitis: Pancreatitis, a dangerous swelling of the blood vessels in
