Research: Surprising Side Effects Wine Has On Your Heart
“Since alcohol dependency is a real threat whenever you enjoy an adult beverage, experts are providing more specifics around how wine can help your heart—as well as how it can harm it.” - Eat this Not That
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Not as dramatic as their headline tries to imply, but I found it interesting that a secular health publication felt the need to say—twice—that there’s risk in drinking at all and if you are an abstainer there’s no reason to start.
Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
I had this discussion not long ago, and a fellow SI person (can’t remember who) mentioned the CDC recommended if you don’t drink, don’t start. I checked it out, and he was right. Cooking with wine gives the same benefit. I have strong opinions about food, so, in my view, good cooks frequently use wine. I go through a gallon a year or more in my cooking. Adds great flavor to spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce (really important) beef stew, and soups (esp. oxtail soup). I use mostly the cheapest red wine I can find. White wine (I also buy the cheapest) is good with some chicken and fish dishes.
So cook with it. The alcohol evaporates, but all the health benefits remain. The only problem is that you will probably put on weight because food tastes so good!
"The Midrash Detective"
Sorry Ed, this author is clearly ignorant and must be dismissed. As we were told in the last thread on alcohol, the risks of problem drinking are minimal at best since there are many social and cultural safeguards in place to prevent people from becoming drunks. And on top of that, the research is generally bunk.
Lol, I’m just parroting what we were told last time we discussed this here. I think this article is interesting and we must certainly weigh these factors in any decision on this issue. For myself, I have chosen to abstain, although I do cook with wine on occasion.
Pvawter wrote:
\Sorry Ed, this author is clearly ignorant and must be dismissed. As we were told in the last thread on alcohol, the risks of problem drinking are minimal at best since there are many social and cultural safeguards in place to prevent people from becoming drunks. And on top of that, the research is generally bunk.
It is true, however, that the CDC does say that if you don’t drink, do not start. Their evaluation suggests that drinking is bad for your health, even in moderation (although I do not believe the risks are great in moderation).
In the Bible, alcohol is associated as a source of joy (Psalm 4:7), God’s blessing (Deut. 7:13), as a way to celebrate and recreate (Deut. 14:26), and even as a drug on ones deathbed (Proverbs 31:6). In light of this, it is difficult to say that moderate drinking is morally wrong. The question is whether it is wise and worth the benefits, particularly in our modern society.
…Alcohol consumption is associated with a variety of short- and long-term health risks, including motor vehicle crashes, violence, sexual risk behaviors, high blood pressure, and various cancers (e.g., breast cancer).1
The risk of these harms increases with the amount of alcohol you drink. For some conditions, like some cancers, the risk increases even at very low levels of alcohol consumption (less than 1 drink).2,3
To reduce the risk of alcohol-related harms, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americansexternal icon recommends that adults of legal drinking age can choose not to drink, or to drink in moderation by limiting intake to 2 drinks or less in a day for men or 1 drink or less in a day for women, on days when alcohol is consumed.4 The Guidelines also do not recommend that individuals who do not drink alcohol start drinking for any reason and that if adults of legal drinking age choose to drink alcoholic beverages, drinking less is better for health than drinking more.4
[source: https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/moderate-drinking.htm]
As I mentioned also before, I do not think that drinking in moderation is bad. But the CDC recommends that we not begin drinking for reason of health benefits.
"The Midrash Detective"
Ed, I agree completely.
Discussion