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Alcohol is Good for Your Brain
An anonymous reader writes "A new study reported on by Nature is saying that moderate consumption of alchohol wards off dementia. Better drink up!"
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It's more likely certain side effects of the alcohol, reducing blood pressure and so on.
Some wines contain tanins (acids) that are considered reasonably healthy, although I know some people have allergies to the tanins, and become itchy and red from drinking red wine.
Antioxidants are also present in some alcoholic beverages.
Moderation is incredibly important however.
I am government man, come from the government. The government has sent me. -- G.I.R.
What the study considers moderate drinking is on average no more than a single glass of wine (wine glass, not tumbler), a single bottle/can of beer, or a single shot or mixed drink containing no more than a shot's worth of alcohol in a day. That is moderation. The damage from exceeding that moderate level outweighs the benefits very quickly.
PS: Read a little bit more and you find out that the study was only done on a group of women (no men - just assumptions of equivalent or greater effect).
I was taking one day at a time, but then several days got together and ambushed me. (from a Rhymes with Orange comic)
There have been earlier studies that have shown that daily, moderate alcohol comsumption can help prevent both heart diseases and stroke.
Thats around 1-3 drinks per day
But again earlier studies have shown that excess alcohol drinking can lead to the destruction of the liver or can be toxic to the brain (alcoholic dementia)
The new study showing that alcohol may fight Alzheimer's involved more than 5,000 people over the age of 55 and lasted for six years.
At the beginning of the study, none of the participants had any signs of dementia. At the end of the study, around 197 of the participants developed Alzheimer's or some other form of dementia. Those who drank between 1 to 3 drinks per day had a 42% lower risk of developing dementia than the nondrinkers. Those who did not drink daily but had more than one drink per week day had a 25% lower risk of developing dementia than the nondrinkers.
One final point, it did not seem to matter what people drank, (beer, wine or liquor), the effect was the same.
So as alcohol may bring you a more fun life , fun can be good for you!
But in this world anything is bad for you so drink up and enjoy a more exciting life!