Is Alcohol ever good?
One of our readers sent in a thought-provoking question about Alcohol's health benefits (you can share your queries at letters@geethanpost.com), which sparked a deep discussion among us. We decided to delve into the topic and provide our readers with a comprehensive answer.
Before we proceed any further, we would like to highlight a few things:
- Alcohol is bad for health, almost always
- Alcohol leads to disruptive behavior
- Alcohol can also lead to addiction, which could ruin your or your close one's lives
We hope the reader considers these above points before reading the article further.
Most healthcare professionals we had talked to agreed that Alcohol is always bad for health. But some exceptions told us that Alcohol in moderation can be good for health even though they couldn't agree on what quantity constitutes moderation.
Some potential benefits of Alcohol in moderation could be:
Decreased heart risk
A study observed that Alcohol in moderation increases the good cholesterol in the human body, which in turn helps to decrease any heart-related risks.
Decreased stress
Another study hinted at a potential decrease in stress levels of individuals who indulged in the moderation of alcohol drinking. Though the evidence could have been circumstantial, it is understood that Alcohol could have stress-reducing benefits.
Reduced risk of dementia
It has also been studied that dementia is found to be lower in persons who have the occasional drink. Mild drinking could help reduce brain decline as we age.
So, what's our conclusion?
We felt that the studies about alcohol consumption, especially moderate consumption, are very circumstantial and not conclusive. We also understood after talking to multiple professionals that everyone had their own views, which are not based on science or evidence - and this makes it even trickier to understand the impact of moderate Alcohol.
After analyzing the facts before us, we conclude that even though moderate alcohol consumption can have some benefits, the risks associated with Alcohol outweigh the measly benefits, and it is advised to avoid Alcohol drinking altogether. Moreover, there need to be studies conducted before we can begin to believe that there is any advantage to moderate alcohol drinking.