Can alcohol be part of a healthy lifestyle?

Here at The Hogget, alcohol is a large part of our life. Our temperature controlled cellar is given over to the storing of beers, wines, sprits, and yes mixers and fruit juices too. Our cellar is there to deliver well kept beverages to your table for your maximum enjoyment.

But what of health? Is alcohol unremittingly bad for you? Research suggests that this is not so, and as more research comes in, the more we find that alcohol, in moderate amounts, is actually good for you. And the older you get, the better it gets. Let me explain.

Several research studies in the US have indicated that alcohol, and wine in particular, is one of the key five habits for a healthy lifestyle. For your interest, the others are: not smoking; at least 30 minutes of exercise daily; avoiding becoming obese; and following a healthy diet, rich in fruits, vegeatbles, grains and fish - all of which of course, you'll find on The Hogget's menu.

The conclusion of this research is that moderate alcohol consumption lowers the risk of heart disease, heart attacks and strokes, even for those with an already healthy lifestyle, and refutes the suggestion that moderate drinkers enjoy better health only because of they already have a healthy lifestyle.

Now, what about the geriatric angle? Numerous studies, from the US, Australia, China and the Mediterranean suggest that people over 60 who consume one or two alcoholic drinks daily are more likely to be in good health than non-drinkers. Dementia is shown to be reduced for light to moderate drinkers compared with non drinkers; cognitive function in Hispanics over 65 showed higher scores for moderate drinkers, and research has also showed that moderate consumption of red wine slows the symptoms of Alzheimers.

In a surprising result from a US study (look up Mukamel et al on Google) of US adults over 65, the lowest risk of strokes was in the heaviest drinking group, i.e. those drinking more than 14 drinks a week!

To balance this, the same study concluded that binge drinking, i.e. those consuming three or more drinks within 2 hours had a twofold risk of mortality compared to non binge drinkers.

The bottom lines appears to be that moderate drinking is more likely to be beneficiual than not, and that moderate drinking is more or less aligned to Her Majesty's Government's advice, which is:

The Department of Health advises that men should not drink more than three to four units of alcohol per day, and women should drink no more than two to three units of alcohol per day.

Based on the research presented above, I believe that drinking in moderation has many benefits, particularly for us older people, and where better to drink than The Hogget?

Cheers!