Thursday, December 31, 2009

HOLIDAY DRINKING

Most of us underestimate how much we drink during heavy parties.    Enjoying a drink is one thing, but often it leads to more than safe drinking without awareness.    We often underestimate our drinking levels and also forget about the harm we can cause other families and communities by our drinking. How can you curb your excessive consumption of liquor?


As a medical physician for over 51 years, I strive to give you the best medical information on controversial medical subjects, and help your read betwwen the lines. You must come to your own conclusions. I have no ties to any organization, pharmaceutical, or lobby group. As an practicing medical acupuncturist since 1982, I find western medicine and medical acupuncture are very complimentary. This results in astounding healing in pain management, addictions to cigarettes and food, and a host of other maladies. Visit drneedles is blogging" at the end of each blog for a complete alphabetical list of all my blogs
Visit  for http://www.americanacupuncture.com/more detailed information on mind, body, and spirit healing.

HOLIDAY DRINKING 
 

Most of us underestimate how much we drink during heavy parties.    Enjoying a drink is one thing, but often it leads to more than safe drinking without awareness.    We often underestimate our drinking levels and also forget about the harm we can cause other families and communities by our drinking. How can you curb your excessive consumption of liquor?  It’s very hard to resist the offers and promotions that liquor stores employ to encourage us to buy and drink involved.
    

The inevitable next morning hangover shows are you are close to developing serious conditions in the near future.   Hangovers after bourbon  are reported to be much more severe than after vodka.
    

Whether you drink vodka or bourbon doesn’t much matter since both lower your performance on tasks that require attention and limits your quick responses. The lingering effects of alcohol after a night of heavy drinking is seen in driving and safety sensitive tasks.
   
    Whiskey will give you a greater hangover than vodka since it contains 37 more toxic compounds than vodka.   Bourbon has some nasty organic compounds as acetone, acetaldehyde, tannins & furfurol.
   
    The number of molecules, called congeners, affect the hangovers. Whiskey drinkers have more angle where symptoms as headache, nausea, fatigue, and others, compared to vodka drinkers. However the overall performance of concentration tasks is roughly the same between the two groups.
   
    Long after alcohol disappears from the bloodstream, safety sensitive workers are still impaired. Cognitive tasks that require attention and quick reaction time, are slow in drinkers then the nondrinkers. The type of alcohol at no effect on performance. Both were equally impaired.

COMMENTARY

 
    Moderate drinking is linked to a 30% increased risk of recurrence of breast cancer in women. This increased risk was found in women who drank at least 3 to 4 drinks a week. Women who are postmenopausal, overweight, oral fees, should limit their drinks to less than three drinks a week. This will cut down their cancer risk.

    Over a long period of time alcohol has been shown to shrink the brain. Excessive drinking accelerates the reduction in brain size caused by aging.    Heavy  drinkers having more than 14 drinks a week at any risk 1 to 6 reduction and ratio of brain about him compared with non-drinkers. Drink and be merry but stay in the limits.

 

 Visit www.drneedles.com for more commentary on medical controversial subjects.
Sources
Damaris Rohsenow Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. Dec. 2009
American Association for Cancer Research breast cancer conference dec 2009
Wellesley College, American Academy of Neurology in Boston 03/05/2007
 

No comments:

Labels