There are studies that explain how consuming alcohol in moderation can be beneficial for us. For example, drinking a glass of wine each day during dinner can benefit your overall health, including reducing your chances of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. However, many people who drink alcohol do not consume it in moderation and studies show that a lot of people drink heavily and even binge drink (equivalent to 4 or more drinks a day and 8 or more in a week), increasing their risk of certain diseases, some cancers, and even brain damage. Since there are far more negative risks associated with drinking alcohol than positive, cutting down on it or even cutting it out completely has far more benefits to one’s overall health and quality of life. These benefits include:
Reduced risk of heart disease
In John Hopkins Medicine, it was stated that consuming alcohol can lead to high blood pressure, heart failure or stroke, and there is even a condition called cardiomyopathy, where you can make your heart weaker by literally drinking it away. But of course, the complications can be increased if you aren’t eating enough nutrients and regularly exercising. To reduce the risk of attaining heart diseases, Top 10 Tips for Healthy Heart offers positive lifestyle habits that include limiting alcohol usage, having a healthy eating plan, and maintaining physical activity.
Reduced risk of cancer
Alcohol is a carcinogen. The CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) states that any type of alcohol, and regardless of the amount consumed, can increase your chances of getting cancer in your esophagus, mouth, and for females, their breasts. Alcohol becomes an acetaldehyde when we consume it, which is a chemical that damages our DNA. When our DNA is damaged, it stops the cells from repairing any damages. Make sure to include antioxidants into your diet, like vitamins A, C, E, as they are linked to aiding in the prevention of cancer and can help repair cell damage.
Prolonged life
CNN stated more than 350 grams of alcohol per week can shorten a person’s lifespan by 4 to 5 years, 200 to 350 grams per week can shorten it by 1 to 2 years, and that drinking as little as 100 grams per week (7 drinks) can shorten someone’s life by 6 months. For us to live long and healthy lives, we need to maintain healthy lifestyles. To do so, eating foods rich in vitamins and nutrients, staying hydrated, engaging in regular physical activity, and limiting alcohol consumption can help elongate our lives.
Weight loss
Alcohol induces cravings and slows down your metabolism. This will increase the amount of food you consume and pack on extra calories. Not only that, but your liver starts to use alcohol as a source of energy and all the extra energy that did not get burned becomes stored as fat. Instead of drinking alcohol, you can try and sub in kombucha, which contains acetic acid to reduce hunger, bloating, and stopping your body from turning good into fat. Kombucha also boosts your energy levels and reduces inflammation, especially after heavily or binge drinking alcohol.
Better memory
In Alcohol Rehab Guide, it’s been explained that alcohol decelerates signals being sent from neuron to neuron. The hippocampus part of your brain becomes damaged, causing short-term memory loss and the loss of brain cells. As this continues, permanent damage to your brain can occur, which may make it complicated to retain new memories. If you’ve been drinking a lot and you think some damage has been done to your brain, here are some ways to improve your brain health. Some of these ways include working out, which stimulates growth factors that help your brain cells survive and stay healthy, and exploring, which stimulate your brain with new information.
Hydration
Compared to other liquids, alcohol flushes fluids from your body at a quicker rate. This is what causes dehydration and leads to hangovers, which have symptoms of weakness, vomiting, mood disturbances, and more. Not only that, but your muscles can become stiff or cramped, and your kidneys and liver can become damaged. Always keep hydrated and drink plenty of water. This article, Flushed Away: The Urinary System, explains the basic anatomy of the urinary system, elaborates on why alcohol makes you go to the restroom more frequently, and how drinking water can help.
Improved skin
Since the alcohol dehydrates your body, hormone levels and oxidative stress change, which can cause acne. Also, as stated in Insider, “It dehydrates the skin and will cause your wrinkles and pores to be more visible.” Inflammation can even occur, making your skin look puffy and swollen! To let our skin heal, coconut oil and egg yolk are some examples of some food that balance out hormones and decrease oxidative stress to give us back that healthy, glowing skin.
Increased quality of sleep
According to the Sleep Foundation, alcohol can hinder your circadian rhythm, which is what helps us time our sleep and how we wake up. When your circadian rhythm is impaired, your REM sleep can be affected too, making it complicated for your body to get any rest and relaxation. Try eating some oatmeal or drinking chamomile tea to help you sleep due to alcohol. Oatmeal is rich in melatonin and chamomile tea reduces anxiety, which is often caused or enhanced by consuming alcohol.
Better mental health
Consuming alcohol can contribute to mood disturbances like anxiety, depression, and aggression. This is because it causes an imbalance in our brain’s chemicals. When we consume alcohol, more dopamine and serotonin are released, but as we continue to keep drinking, a dysregulation occurs, making the negative feelings feel way worse when we are sober. A few ways to improve your mental health after drinking alcohol are talking to someone, working out, and self care. Talking to someone can help you release stress, working out can help increase your energy, which can also boost your mood, and doing some self-care can help you with getting to know yourself better and giving yourself what you need to be happy.
Overall better physical health
Cutting down on alcohol can improve your immune system. One way is that it can improve your oral health, making you less prone to oral complications like gum diseases and oral cancer. Another way is, since alcohol actually weakens your immune system, you can be better protected from colds, flus, viruses, and infections.
Compared to the small amount of benefits one alcoholic drink a day can give people, there are far too many negative side effects that outweigh it. Even a small amount of alcohol can cause short-term negative effects that can later become long-term negative complications. The damage goes to your brain, your heart, your physical health, and your mental health, making it hard to live a longer and healthy life. Of course, not everyone can quit drinking alcohol right away, but cutting it down little by little and adopting a few healthy lifestyles is just enough to help improve anyone’s health!
