People have different attitudes toward alcohol. One cannot survive even on a night without a glass of beer, while others have never touched alcohol in their lives. Although a person without a degree is clear that drinking alcohol every day is harmful to the body, but what if we talk about the optimal dose of alcohol? How much can you drink to reduce the health effects of alcohol? This question is relevant to many. Let's try to find out.
How much alcohol should not be drunk
I'll let you know right away - there is no consensus on this issue. Some scientists say that even in small amounts, alcohol has a detrimental effect on the body. Others believe that in small doses, alcohol is also beneficial. And there is a WHO (World Health Organization) recommendation, which according to him, the dangerous alcohol dose is 60 ml of ethanol for men and 50 ml for women. But because very few people use ethanol in its pure form (well, I hope), that is what alcohol is very dangerous in terms of the drink most people usually drink:
- 180 g vodka for men and 150 g vodka for women
- 1. 5 l. bir
- 0. 5 l. wain
A truly dangerous dose of alcohol- the average value of the amount of alcohol consumed, enough to cause death.
But do not think that if you drink less than these values, then nothing will happen to the body. Even if you take the equivalent of 30 ml of ethanol a day (90 g of vodka, 800 ml of beer or a large glass of wine), you can seriously endanger 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 the blockage of blood vessels by cholesterol plaques. Why is cholesterol dangerous? It causes circulatory problems. The blood stops circulating normally through the blood vessels, as it is filled with cholesterol, and the person may even die. Alcohol, on the other hand, "cleanses" the ducts and does not allow cholesterol to stagnate.
Does this mean you can drink alcohol every day? No. In this case, we are talking about a very low dose of alcohol. Based on the same WHO recommendation, experts advise not to drink alcohol at least two days a week. Of course, the longer you do not drink, the better.
The optimal dose of alcohol, which is not too harmful to health, and may even bring certain benefits, is150 ml of dry red wine.
But this does not mean you have to drink a small glass of wine every day, although there are many stories circulating on the Web, how some grandparents drink a glass every day and are 90 years old. All things here are individual and need to take into account many factors - from chronic disease to hereditary predisposition. Not to mention the fact that alcohol is categorized as contraindicated for minors and pregnant women.
If you drink alcohol every day, the body will not be able to remove it from the body, and diseases such as alcoholism will begin. It has 3 stages, and in this article we will discuss it. But first, let's understand - how does alcohol generally affect a person?
How alcohol works
What is alcohol in a scientific sense? This is ethyl alcohol, which is made by fermentation of sugar, yeast and starch. And all these "nuclear" mixtures have extraordinary properties: they go through all levels of digestion very quickly. That is, when you digest lunch soup (about 30 minutes) or chicken (up to 2 hours), alcohol quickly achieves its purpose - the human circulatory system, sometimes even passing through the liver, if you drink on a serious scale. He could not produce large amounts of alcohol.
Alcohol begins to do evil business in the circulatory system: it damages red blood cells (small bodies that make up blood), which is why it sticks together, forming blood clots. Blood clots, in turn, block blood flow in small arteries, and this causes blockage of blood vessels in the brain. Thus, a feeling of intoxication arises, which is similar to when the brain lacks oxygen.
Therefore, if you do not drink alcohol in moderation, the brain will always be in this state. This will lead to a decrease in mental and physical function - a condition comparable to drinking a lot of alcohol at one time. One can not stand normally and not give an explanation of his actions.
Scientists have proven that alcohol damages DNA and increases the risk of cancer.
Alcoholism level
Alcohol consumption leads to alcoholism, which has three levels.
- In the first stage of alcohol addiction, a person gradually loses control over the amount of drink, which leads to the emergence of pathological cravings for alcohol.
- In the second stage, a person even experiences "immunity" to alcohol, or rather, it looks like that. Indeed, if a person at this stage consumes more than 1 liter of alcohol, the body will seem to begin to feel alcohol more easily. In fact, it hides the development of serious diseases - hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, esophageal cancer and stomach cancer.
- Third-degree alcoholism is characterized by a complete decline in personality in both physical and mental areas. One can no longer drink alcohol and in most cases die.
Scientists believe that alcoholism is influenced by hereditary tendencies caused by inadequate production of enzymes that metabolize alcohol. But in fact, the amount of alcohol consumed affects this. You do not need to drink if you notice that you have lost control of yourself, and an unpleasant body condition appears.
Why does drunkenness occur?
This question is often asked the next morning after a busy party (usually with the words "well, I will definitely not drink again"). In fact, the explanation is quite simple: alcohol enters the body's bloodstream quickly, but leaves it VERY slowly. And the human body can not fully recover from the stormy night until the substance is destroyed and digested completely. This is how drunkenness happens.
Of course many people googled how to avoid getting drunk before starting to celebrate other alcohol events. But the answer can be summed up in one sentence: do not drink in large quantities, and then alcohol will have time to leave the body before your head touches the pillow.
How do I drink alcohol?
Researchers distinguish between the "northern" drinking model and the "southern" drinking model. The first includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, the Baltic countries, which drink a lot of alcohol, moreover, in shock doses, and not always frequently. The "southern" model is typical of Spain, Italy, Greece, where they can drink more often than in other countries, but less and less strong alcohol: for example, a glass of dry wine at dinner. No one drinks 100 g of vodka every day.
Scientists agree that the southern model is safer for health, although they still note that daily alcohol intake is harmful to health. So do not use too much.