Health Issues Related To Every Day Drinking?

[lukemarsh]

I know I also posted a topic on stout and whether it is good for you or not, but I was also wondering if drinking beer every day is harmful to your health?

I'm 19 years old as of next Monday, and have been getting right into beer since I began brewing just after christmas (last few months), trying different beers etc... I've been drinking lots since I was about 16, but only on certain weekends and with mostly spirits. Thesedays I'll have a beer or two most nights, and hardly ever drink spirits unless it is a special occasion.

Is drinking one beer every day harmful to your health? I've found that since getting into beer so much I've felt the urge to drink beer pretty much every day, and often will succumb to the urge and have a cold one after work... if it's early enough I might have two.

 

[homebrewkid]

well im no doctor but 1 or 2 a day wont hurt [well i hope it wont anyway] as long as you have 1 or 2 days a week with NO ALCOHOL thats what the doc told me and im 29 drinking most days but i have 3 or 4 longnecks................

 

[dans6401]

I guess it depends on what you're drinking? If it's VB or an equivalent i'd say it's way too much.
On a serious note, i think they recommend 1 or 2 standard drinks a nights max with at least 1 or 2 days a week off. Depends on what you read / believe.
That's probably bad news for most posters here.
Just make sure that the one or two don't become one or two six packs. Like most things moderation is the key.
I erred by putting the kegerator besides the couch.

 

[Cocko]

I am no doctor either... BUT;

I can tell you that while your alive there is no problems!

ENJOY every moment if it means you drink more beer than some study based on 'the norm' tells you you should than I guess you are adhering to the norm.

In short, very hippy I know, but live your life and so on....


2c.

EDIT: Who made these so called rules?

 

[rendo]

Is drinking one beer every day harmful to your health? I've found that since getting into beer so much I've felt the urge to drink beer pretty much every day, and often will succumb to the urge and have a cold one after work... if it's early enough I might have two.

I have a secret that I will let you in on. Stop ALL drinking in the day and you will be fine. Just drinking in the nights....no one will ever know

Rendo

 

[Pete2501]

Uh.... 100% of people that never drink beer die eventually. Pretty sure 100% of people that drink beer also die eventually.

Now I could say the above and leave it as a throw away comment but what matters more to me than the health issues is the mentality of drinking. If I can't go a night without drinking then I personally would think I had an issue. I can go without drinking and have had times when I've poured myself a pint and it ends up just sitting there all night because the habit of pouring one and the satisfaction of making my own beer is there but the need to drink it isn't.

I gain more pleasure from making and perfecting the processes and sharing what i've done with others much more than getting drink or the need to put beer in my mouth. That said I enjoy beer but it's certainly not everything about me.

So as you can see I think beer does more good for man that it does bad. If i had health or social issues because of alcohol my mindset would change. If you think alcohol is doing more harm than good for you then have less. Are you less active because you'd rather drink a beer? Do you find yourself wanting a beer during the day? Do you prefer to drink beer to other drinks if you have a choice? Do your limit your social activities because of beer?

I ask myself these questions because health isn't just your body it's a bunch of stuff. Getting the balance is the important part. If you feel you have a good balance then 2 or 3 beers a night is fine for you. If you're worried about physical damage consult your GP.

Looking at all those words, maybe I've said too much. But I really think this is a personal issue decision so I hope the above helps you question things so you have an informed decision.
:icon_cheers:

 

[Cocko]

That said I enjoy beer but it's certainly not everything about me.

Huh, looks like we differ.... Who is it about than? I bet its ME yeah?

 

[Pete2501]

Huh, looks like we differ.... Who is it about than? I bet its ME yeah?

The quickest way to my heart isn't my stomach it's cocko. :lol:

 

[RdeVjun]

The quickest way to my heart isn't my stomach it's cocko. :lol:

Are you quite sure you really wanted to say that Pete? :blink: I just sprayed coffee out my nose... :lol:
Its cool though, we aren't homophobic around here, are we now? Capitalisation is a bitch!

Back to the OP, having signed up to increased AFDs a few months ago and failed miserably I am having another go- I am not convinced that sinking about four pints a day is completely beneficial to the health, plus my weight has been +/- 4kg of 66kg all of my adult life (even through a spell of chemo), but since I started drinking every day it has skipped the negative swings and gone just +12 in 18 months... So I think it is time to pull my head in.

Edit: Skipped the OP.

 

[wabster]

A major point on this topic is that as long as the consumption of the beer (or any form of alcohol) isn't causing you to make poor choices in other aspects of your life such as diet, activity levels, and relationships, the health aspect will take care of itself. To a 19 year old this may sound like gibberish, but daily consumption of alcohol at the level your state, on most days of the week should not effect your health directly. The potential dangers lie in it becoming a habit and increasing the daily consumption, and this is where many people falter. If you feel you are developing a habit or drinking too much, stop for a few week minimum.

Beer (or any forms of booze) is one of life's great pleasures, especially when you are making you own exactly the way you like it. Enjoy it. Cheerz Wabster.

 

[Dazza_devil]

The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.

 

[Adamt]

My understanding of the current health "guidelines" is 1-2 drinks per day on average can be almost beneficial, but it is also beneficial to have a couple of days off completely per week.

These guidelines change on a yearly basis though, so who knows?

 

[manticle]

A major point on this topic is that as long as the consumption of the beer (or any form of alcohol) isn't causing you to make poor choices in other aspects of your life such as diet, activity levels, and relationships, the health aspect will take care of itself. To a 19 year old this may sound like gibberish, but daily consumption of alcohol at the level your state, on most days of the week should not effect your health directly. The potential dangers lie in it becoming a habit and increasing the daily consumption, and this is where many people falter. If you feel you are developing a habit or drinking too much, stop for a few week minimum.

Beer (or any forms of booze) is one of life's great pleasures, especially when you are making you own exactly the way you like it. Enjoy it. Cheerz Wabster.

This.

You set your own limits. If you perform badly at work or stuff up important relationships or find other aspects of your life are being stuffed up and you can attibute that to beer drinking then it's time to slow down. Otherwise as Cocko said - your life, your beer - enjoy it. You can monitor your own health and combined with good diet and exercise you should be fine. The number of different 'safe' guidelines we are supposed to follow (1 glass is good for the heart, 2 drinks a night, 4 drinks for males, a standard drink is really only a thimble, don't drink brown beer on Thursdays etc etc etc) is absurd. We are the all knowing beer drinkers and we set our own guidelines.

 

[jetfoley]

I just drank 10 tallies and a glass of wine last night...

so right now i think that drinking is the DEVIL...

Mind you the hangover aint that bad, I'm still pissed as a tit tho, so maybe its coming :chug:

 

[chefeffect]

I have been thinking the same thing for years "is drinking every night a bad thing" well every night from the age of 18 to about 26 was ok for me but as i turned 29 and now 30 i find i need 2 days off a week just to set things right in the head.

When i first started home brewing into kegs i started drinkin a shit load more and put on 15kg in 12 months, now i have lost 20kg in 12 months and exercise really hard and find i drink just as much but dont feel sluggish or get many hang overs.

1 or 2 days off is sometimes a struggle, and hitting the gym too, but it makes the other days guilt free, if you feel guilty chances are drinking every day is a problem.

 

[Nick JD]

I knew a chap who died of Cirrhosis. He drank a LOT. All of his drinking buddies are still alive - but he drank slightly more than them.

Your body can put up with a lot of shit, and some people's bodies can put up with more, or less than other's ... but there is an invisible line drawn that you personally cannot cross without adverse affects.

You'll find this line on the same day a doctor tell you your last beer was last night.

In most cases though, if a doctor has told you the alcohol is killing you it's probably the last thing to go wrong in a long chain of events.

 

[Zizzle]

 

[HoppingMad]

h34r: Reckon this is not the right question to ask this on this forum. You're going to get a biased answer!

We celebrate brewing and drinking the stuff here. We love it. So collectively we all have an in-built bias that the stuff is harmless and you should drink it freely.

But drinking isn't harmless. Drinking freely can mean you develop habits, and habits can effect your body and mind, and effect others and their well-being, meaning that that as a person you can't necessarily be as could as you could be.

So listen to what we all say here - but consult advice beyond this forum too. Talk to your partner, your friends, relatives and health professionals, do some reading yourself and also see how you function the day after your drinking and see how your drinking is affecting those around you. Drinking every night doesn't just have health implications, it can affect things as subtle as mood swings. Take this all into account.

I'm not saying that what has been said above is wrong - because I would drink every night like many, but that doesn't necessarily make it the correct behaviour.

All the best,

Hopper.

 

[zoidbergmerc]

My housemates liver just started hating him the other day. But he drinks like a lot lot. But I think the real killer is the pain killers you take the morning after, that's the shit that kills your liver. You're better off having another beer to kill the hangover.

A good way to check if you're drinking too much and if you're liver is having a hard time is to see in the corners of your eyes if they're turning yellow.

 

[bum]

My housemates liver just started hating him the other day. But he drinks like a lot lot. But I think the real killer is the pain killers you take the morning after, that's the shit that kills your liver. You're better off having another beer to kill the hangover.

A good way to check if you're drinking too much and if you're liver is having a hard time is to see in the corners of your eyes if they're turning yellow.

Another good trick to tell if you're drinking too much is if you need to think about having beer for breakfast because of the beers you had for tea.