Healthy Aging and the Role of Alcohol
Moderate alcohol consumption likely won't have any major health impact.
What’s your relationship with alcohol? At drashori.com, I help my patients avoid chronic disease, age healthy, and live a lifestyle aligned with their values. For some, that involves socializing with family and friends over alcohol, even if there is an ever-growing trend towards health concerns with alcohol.
Alcohol Consumption in Moderation
Our society deserves a lot more credit for its concept of moderation. Moderation is setting internal limits and boundaries around fun and unfun activities and habits. It’s a tricky concept to master as a teenager, but it becomes much easier with age.
I moderately exercise, moderately drink alcohol, and moderately consume delicacies. In this space of moderation, I’m skirting the line between too little and too much. Too little alcohol and I feel as though I’m restricting myself, which can lead to other negative behaviors. Too much alcohol, and it becomes tough to have fun without it.
Health Concerns of Alcohol
I’m aware of all the research and public health concerns of alcohol, which I would summarize as increased risk of cancer, heart disease, inflammation, insomnia, indigestion, depression, dependence, and degeneration. Of course, if I were a scientist and designing research studies, I’d do everything possible to generate a small signal, either vilifying or validating alcohol consumption.
Alcohol does have some negative health consequences, but for most of us, it moves the needle far too little to be significant. For some, even a tiny amount can be a major concern, such as someone with a strong family history of alcoholism. For others, even more significant amounts might be pretty safe, as demonstrated by so many of my patients who’ve consumed quite a lot of alcohol over their lifetime without any apparent negative consequences.
The Importance of Socialization & Lubrication
Socializing, laughing together, hanging out in public spaces, and enjoying the company of new friends cures loneliness and strongly prevents depression. My patients tell me they sleep much better at night after an intense day of socializing, even better than if they spent the day exercising.
If alcohol is needed or improves socializing, we should factor in its positive value. Some of us have more fun with a little bit of alcohol, while others might get a little … let’s say, grumpy.
The Bigger Health Picture
With my patients, I discuss the importance of overall health, which I call the big picture of health. What is the goal and direction of life, living, joy, and health? ‘Maximizers’ may want to do everything possible to live the healthiest life possible and often turn to Longevity doctors to achieve that. For this, they often have to sacrifice a portion of “life & living.”
‘Optimizers’ dance in the middle, in the moderation space of healthy and less healthy choices. They believe one negative action is outdone by positive action and life is best lived to minimize suffering for oneself and those around us. I like this philosophy; it works well for the people I care for.
Knowing Your Limits
Someone who has a disease called Alcohol Use Disorder knows that their limit is zero. To avoid the consequences of this disease, they must abstain by taking medications such as naltrexone and switch to an alternative source of pleasure such as THC.
If someone is dealing with poor sleep, obesity, or poor recovery after exercise, alcohol likely won’t help. This group will have to limit their alcohol use to 1-2 times per week and be cautious about the type of alcohol and the timing of it.
Those who are fairly self-aware know when they’re having too much alcohol. They come home daily and realize that the only way they can relax is to hvae a drink. So, they’ll try something different because they don’t want to be so habituated to alcohol that they stop enjoying it.
For a wonderful read about “alcohol best practices,” read Dr. Prasad’s 25 points recommendations for drinking alcohol:
Actionable Tips for Enjoying Alcohol
To enjoy alcohol use, it’s a good idea to vary it up from time to time. Instead of an alcoholic drink, try a tea or club soda. If that’s not your jam, you can try a different alcoholic beverage — instead of your usual beer, a glass of wine, or a smooth Scotch.
Remember that habits are formed when they are reinforced through repetition. They also tend to fade out when they aren’t reinforced. Drinking alcohol is such a social construct that most of us have developed a strong habit around it. To change that habit, it’s helpful to take small actions and celebrate the small wins.
Drink your drink a little slower, ideally in social settings, and a few hours before bedtime. Don’t worry about how many drinks you’re having because counting it often fuels anxiety, which creates negative thoughts, which … well, you know where that leads.
Curious about how your lifestyle choices impact healthy aging? Let’s chat!
"'Optimizers' dance in the middle". A great expression of choice -to work and play with health and healthy choices. I'm looking forward to following your postings.