Discover what a new paper in the Journal Alcoholism found that might make you fall off the wagon!
Is it possible? Can it be true? There is no way... right?
As revealed in a new paper in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, people who do NOT drink alcohol do NOT live as long as people who do.
According to an article in Time Magazine, "Research suggests that -- for reasons that aren't entirely clear -- abstaining from alcohol does tend to increase one's risk of dying, even when you exclude former problem drinkers. The most shocking part? Abstainers' mortality rates are higher than those of heavy drinkers.
"Moderate drinking, which is defined as one to three drinks per day, is associated with the lowest mortality rates in alcohol studies."
WOW! According to this paper, people who do not drink at all die sooner than heavy drinkers... not people who have a drink or two a night - but... HEAVY DRINKERS!
According to the article, a moderate drinker, defined as 1-3 drinks per day, had the lowest mortality rate.
Even though researchers do not know the real answer, there are plenty of theories as to why these findings exist.
One is that moderate alcohol consumption (especially red wine) can improve circulation, cardiovascular health and reduce stress. Stress reduction may be the most important item on the list. Here is why...
There is a vast amount of research linking stress to poor health, possible disease and shortened lifespan.
In fact, a press release from September 3, 2010 states researchers had finally found direct evidence linking stress to heart attacks.
It's All About HAIR
According to the press release, "Researchers at The University of Western Ontario have provided the first direct evidence using a biological marker, to show chronic stress plays an important role in heart attacks. Stressors such as job and marital and financial problems have been linked to the increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease including heart attack."
This study, published in the journal Stress, said researchers developed a method to measure cortisol levels in hair. This is important because cortisol levels are an indicator of stress levels and now the cortisol/stress level can be measured for several months leading up to the heart attack.
Until now, cortisol levels were only measured in saliva, urine and serum. Because of this, stress levels were only seen at the time of the measurement - not leading up to the event. Doctors and researchers have suspected for a long time that stress was bad for you but it has been hard to measure and "prove." Now, it looks like we can all say with relative accuracy... that...
STRESS KILLS!
This might shed new light on the alcohol research above. Maybe it's not alcohol as a chemical compound that is beneficial to your longevity... Maybe the key is alcohol's role in stress reduction.
Who knows? Right now, no one knows for sure, but we do know that correlation is not causation. In other words, just because drinkers live longer does not mean "alcohol is good for you." For example, if the reason drinkers live longer is actually due to a reduction in stress... then it may be possible to get the same results without alcohol consumption. Maybe learning to control stress through meditation and other ways will be found to be just as effective. The mind-body connection is what's really important. Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States, and science has now linked it to your stress levels, which basically links it to the way you think.
The way you handle situations in life every single day is actually a matter of not just happiness... but of...
Life and Death
So here's a little advice: Learn about stress and stress management ASAP. Most likely it will not only lead to a happier life... but a longer one.
1 comment:
Hmmm, want to grab a drink?
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