Alternative Health Blog

The reports of wine as beneficial to your health are long-standing and consistently positive—as long your definition of moderate aligns with the researcher’s version.

Carl Erickson, director of the Addiction Science Research and Education Center at the University of Texas in Austin, has developed an extensive and annotated website related to 300 alcohol facts. He has posted clear definitions of "moderate" and "social" drinking.

Moderate use of alcohol, he writes, has been defined by the Department of Agriculture (and other sources) as one to two drinks per day—one drink for women, two drinks for men. He points out that moderate drinking is associated with reduced risk for heart disease (and possibly to preventing diabetes and strokes), but that the "mechanism of the protective effect is unknown."

A note about what translates to one “drink”: five ounces of wine, 12 ounces of beer, 1.5 ounces. It’s pretty much an honor system for you to estimate personal alcohol consumption. Researchers know that most Americans tend to underreport their alcoholic drink consumption.

As for "social use" of alcohol, Erickson defines it as "an occasional drink or two in the company of friends: a glass of champagne at a wedding, a cold beer after a softball game, or a glass of fine wine with a meal."

The UTexas researcher adds, "Contrary to popular belief, social drinking does not kill brain cells, nor does it adversely affect any major body organ."

OK, so a few practical notes as we agree that moderate alcohol is healthy, but no health practitioner or the Alternative Health Blog is recommending that anyone begin drinking alcohol if they presently do not.

One note is that women documented in studies to be more affected by alcohol. Erickson explains that women break down alcohol more slowly than men because there is a smaller amount of alcohol metabolizing enzyme (alcohol dehydrogenase) in the stomach of women.

"Because less enzyme is present, more alcohol passes through the stomach to the duodenum, the main alcohol-absorbing portion of the gut," writes Erickson, who is a pharmacist. "This effect, combined with a different fat/lean body makeup between men and women, leads to higher blood alcohol levels (BACs) in women than men after identical alcoholic drinks."

Another point: A University of Missouri study confirms women suffer more hangover symptoms than their male counterparts. It is fact.

Julie Burns, a Chicago-based sports nutritionist who works regularly with the Chicago Bears and Chicago Blackhawks professional sports teams, has long advocated eating a shrimp cocktail or other lean protein before having a drink. Her reasoning is that food significantly affects absorption of alcohol in the stomach. Food slows transport of the alcohol into the duodenum. The longer alcohol stays in the stomach, the less it can affect you during a party or the next day.

Further endorsement for the shrimp cocktail or chicken satay: A  University of Buffalo study indicates that drinking alcohol without eating food increases your chances of developing high blood pressure.

Dr. Arthur Agatston, Miami-based cardiologist and creator of the popular South Beach diet, says it is always best to consume yoru wine with some food. Along with slowing absorption of the alcohol, you also blunt the appetite-stimulating effect of your wine.

Research points clearly to red wine as the healthiest choice because of its higher content of the antioxidant resveratrol. But Agatston and others say all alcohol in limited quantity will provide the same health benefit.

One more positive about red wine: It tends to be more the sipping choice than, say, cold chardonnays or other white wines. 

Bob Condor blogs for Alternative Health Journal every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.