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This newsletter is about the safety of alcohol.
July 29, 2012
Is Alcohol Bad?
Hi ,
One of my patients asked me to write an article on alcohol consumption and its effects on health and the brain.
Alcohol consumption certainly has a long history, with the earliest findings of traces of alcohol found in pottery from China over 9000 years old. Writings on the production and use of alcohol are found on clay tablets from Mesopotamia, Ayurvedic Hindu texts, Egyptian scrolls, early Hebrew Biblical references, and classical Greek literature. Alcohol is everywhere.
But is it good for you? It has a social purpose of slowing the brain down and producing feelings of relaxation. Alcohol actually enhances the action of the primary brain inhibitory neurotransmitter - GABA. Alcohol and GABA literally block brain function. As the levels go up the alcohol becomes neurotoxic and kills brain cells. This is not a good thing so high levels of alcohol are definitely a bad choice. Most people know this already even if they ignore this information.
But the real question is "what about the consumption of moderate amounts of alcohol?" Moderate amounts of alcohol have been defined as one (1) drink per day for women and two for men. One drink is defined as one glass of beer, one 5 ounce serving of wine, or one shot of distilled spirits. A number of correlational studies have shown that moderate alcohol drinkers live longer than either non-drinkers or heavy drinkers. This does not show a causal connection, meaning that these studies do not say that it is the alcohol that causes them to live longer. It could be that the kind of person that only drinks one alcoholic beverage per day is simply a more relaxed temperament type of person than uptight non-drinkers or bombed heavy drinkers. The lower stress and relaxation may be why they live longer.
Some people have tried to suggest that it is the beneficial levels of the nutrient resveratrol in the wine that is helping them live longer, but the same effect is true for those that drink beer or spirits that contain no resveratrol.
One interesting theory that has some evidence to back it up is that very low levels of alcohol (ethanol) in the blood keeps the body from breaking down methanol (wood alcohol) into the nasty toxin formaldehyde. Small amounts of methanol are found naturally in fruits and vegetables, but it is normally bound to pectin fibers and carried out of the body through the stool. But when we juice fruits and vegetables we eliminate the fiber (pectin) and end up absorbing the methanol into our body and then brain. The artificial sweetener aspartame (Equal) also turns into methanol in the body. This suggests to me that if you are doing a juice fast, you might want to drink a can of beer each day while on the fast to counteract the conversion of methanol from the fruit and vegetable juice into formaldehyde.
The amount of alcohol has to be very small each day or it will trigger your liver into increasing the levels of alcohol breakdown enzymes, and you won't have the low levels staying in the blood long enough to do any good. One glass of wine with dinner will stay with you for quite a while, as long as you don't over-indulge occasionally and pump up your liver enzymes.
Seriously though, you are better off eating fresh fruits whole in limited quantities (remember the fructose issues I wrote about a couple weeks ago) and vegetables whole rather than juicing them. This way you avoid the whole concern with methanol.
Heavy drinking - which for women means two beers or two glasses of wine per day is associated with a 40% increase in breast cancer as well as many other cancers. It  decreases your resistance to stress, damages your liver, and messes up your hormones. And as I said before, alcohol is neurotoxic - it kills your brain.
Moderate to low alcohol consumption over time still takes its toll. MRI studies of the brain show gradual brain shrinkage over time with even moderate alcohol consumption. This will negatively affect your brain functioning over time.
So what is the best amount of alcohol to consume? The answer seems to be that the best choice is to act and feel like a healthy person who would normally have a single drink each day, but to skip the actual drink. Avoid consuming fruit and vegetable juices to keep methanol levels down (and obviously never consume aspartame.) Health is all about the healthy relaxed lifestyle.
For those of you that really like your wine or beer, then one glass a day will likely be just fine, as long as you eat well and healthily and keep your B vitamin levels up. Low B vitamin levels make alcohol much more dangerous to the body. Alcohol is meant to be sipped in a relaxing atmosphere as an aid to winding down the tensions of the day. It is not designed to be used as a coping mechanism for unresolved feeling conflicts. Used this way it will only dull your ability to come up with creative solutions. Alcohol acts to dissociate you from your feelings, and without your feelings to guide you, none of your solutions will actually work.
Hopefully this broadens your awareness of alcohol so you can make the best decision for yourself and your health.
Take care
David
P.S. I found an interesting article on Gizmodo on the nine healthiest alcoholic drinks for those of you that enjoy your alcohol. They still warn you that 1 drink per day for women and 2 for men is the max. Check it out here.
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Coconut Chicken Soup
Ellen made this fabulous soup last week and I insisted she make it again this week and this time write down how she makes it so I could share it with you.
First -Remove the skin from
8 large chicken thighs
and brown in a skillet with some coconut oil. Once thoroughly browned, place the thighs in the bottom of a crock-pot.
While the chicken is browning, peel and cut into bite sized pieces
1 large sweet potato and
11/2 cups carrots, then
steam them for 7 minutes (till tender) and then
put them in the crock-pot with the chicken.
While the carrots and sweet potato are steaming chop
3 cups of raw mushroom into bite sized pieces and
1 large sweet onion diced and put into a skillet with
1-2 Tbs. Ghee or butter
1 Tbs. Fish Sauce and
3 Tbs. Cooking Sherry
sauté these until tender and put into the crock-pot
Finally, once all the above ingredients are in the crock-pot, add
3 cans of Coconut milk
1 cup of water
2 Tbs. Of Tom Yum paste
1 Tbs of Chicken Better than Bullion paste
set the crock-pot on low and let it cook until the chicken falls off the bone.
Remove the bones and you are set for a fantastic meal. I like it straight while Ellen likes hers over rice.
Coconut Flour and Coconut Oil
We have the good stuff from Tropical Traditions back in the office again for you. This is not your cheap solvent extracted coconut oil, but coconut oil harvested in the traditional manner - the oil is mechanically squeezed out of the coconut meat without the use of any chemical solvents. These are pure organic coconuts raised without fertilizers or pesticides. Its a little more expensive, but so much better for you.
New Exercise Program
Patients are reporting great results with the new back strengthening program I wrote about in the March 18th newsletter. I highly recommend this program for everyone as we all need stronger backs to counter the effects of too much sitting. If you missed this information here is a link to that newsletter.
Special Offer: Free Health Evaluation
Discover your true health status
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Questions - if you have questions of
a health or growth nature we could discuss in this newsletter, or if
you have comments or ideas about a future newsletter focus please email
me at:
david@fairoakshealth.com
You are free to reprint this article in your newsletter as long as you include the following statement in the same size type and color:
"This article appears courtesy of Fair Oaks Health News, offering natural and healthy solutions for body, mind and soul. For a complimentary subscription,
visit http://www.fairoakshealth.com"
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