All Forms Of Alcohol Now Considered Beneficial
The experts just can’t make up their minds, can they? It used to be that just red wine was good for you (in moderation of course) and considered heart-healthy. Beer and liquor were not associated with any health benefits.
Now it seems that alcohol of any form - whether it be liquor, wine, or beer - has health benefits when consumed in moderation (one drink a day on average, and less than 7 drinks a week).
Some of the benefits (from MSNBC) include:
-Raises “good” (HDL) cholesterol
-Regulates insulin
-Protects against rheumatoid arthritis
-Better than average health all around
Whether it hurts weight loss efforts is still unclear. I prefer abstaining during weight loss, but to each their own!
Claire
Tags: Alcohol, beer, HDL-cholesterol, health, insulin, liquor, rheumatoid-arthritis, wineRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Claire
10 opinions for All Forms Of Alcohol Now Considered Beneficial
Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD
Nov 28, 2007 at 11:29 pm
Dear Claire,
Congratulations on your weight loss. But, how’s your mood? Energy level? Cravings? Quality of sleep? I ask because by eliminating carbs on South Beach many people are in a bad mood, have low energy, have terrible carb cravings, and sleep more poorly. Without carbs, the brain is not able to make serotonin, the natural “feel good” chemical that balances mood, takes away appetite, and gives mental energy and can indirectly help people sleep better. Women and people on antidepressants and people who suffer from seasonal affective disorder are particularly susceptible to the negative effects of serotonin (carb) depletion. We know this from our clinics based on my colleague Judith Wurtman, PhD’s MIT research on the topic. We wrote a book on our program called “The Serotonin Power Diet” http://serotoninpowerdiet.com that uses carbs therapeutically so that dieting is not about deprivation but one people can actually stick to. I invite you to check it out. If you’d like to feature it in your blog, we’d be happy to send you a copy for your review.
All my best,
Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD
co-author, “The Serotonin Power Diet”
http://serotoninpowerdiet.com
Claire
Nov 28, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Nina,
Thanks for your concern. My mood, energy level, cravings etc are just fine. South Beach is not about eliminating carbs. For instance, you can have skim milk on SB, even in the first phase, which has 12 carbs per cup. You can also now have beans in Phase 1, which are around 20-30 per serving. Things like tomato juice, nuts and cottage cheese add to the total. I’m consuming way more carbs than I was on Atkins, and I actually feel a lot better.
I am interested in your diet, though. I struggle with SAD and need to boost my serotonin levels, especially during the winter. Please send me an email (a link is included on the main page of this blog).
Thanks!
Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD
Nov 29, 2007 at 12:15 am
Dear Claire,
I sent you an email but not sure I sent it to the right address. Here it is again:
Glad you’re feeling good on SF - way better than Atkins for many.
Even if you’re eating carbs, the thing is, when you eat protein along with those carbs, it interferes with the brain’s ability to make serotonin so, for the purposes of raising brain serotonin, the timing of when you eat protein (best earlier in the day, like at breakfast and lunch) and carbs (best late afternoon and dinnertime and an optional 30-60 minutes before lunch in the form of a small snack) is very important.
When you said you were interested in our diet, please send an email, did you mean please send a book for your personal review and review on your site? If so, please send me an address and it’ll be on it’s way.
Regards,
Nina
nina@serotoninpowerdiet.com
p.s. I’ve added you to our blogroll - any interest in adding our site to yours?
Jason
Nov 29, 2007 at 12:12 pm
Claire,
I enjoyed this post. People really can’t make up their minds about alcohol. I personally feel that we already know it can hurt your liver and make you fat, but we are searching for a reason to justify having our daily beer or glass of wine. When I see all the disagreeing studies out there, I wonder how scientific they really are.
Claire
Nov 29, 2007 at 9:02 pm
Jason - Glad you liked it. I’m on the fence about daily drinking - my parents drink red wine daily and are very healthy, but it seems like it would have a detrimental effect on the liver, and certainly wouldn’t help keep you thin.
Nina,
I’d be happy to add you to my blogroll. I sent you an email, hope you got it.
Sherrie
Dec 4, 2007 at 8:40 pm
Funny you say that Nina because I have found people on low carb diets report the exact opposite!
You mention that you need carbs to make serotonin but what about good old sun, exercise, and dare I say it, cholesterol. What about the effect of crazy blood sugars on mood? Who knows they maybe some whom need to make sure not to go too low on the carbs but the majority are not what you describe and usual complain of being how you describe before they start a low carb diet to find they feel much much better now.
Also regarding the alcohol, I am not sure I believe that. All these years on low carb forums it seems to me that the ones whom have the most trouble sticking to it/ maintaining are the ones that drink regularly. Maybe its co-incidence I don’t know, but that is how it seems to me. Also regarding arthritis I have read the opposite where it can aggravate due to its diuretic effect.
Claire
Dec 4, 2007 at 8:47 pm
Hi Sherrie,
I do believe that some people who are prone to depression may need more carbs than others. I know when I was on Atkins induction, I had a hard time with my moods. Ongoing weight loss made me feel much better because I upped my carbs somewhat. I still don’t have that many even on South Beach - just more than I had on Atkins.
I think the reason those who drink regularly have trouble maintaining weight is that a) alcohol is an appetite stimulant and b) when the liver is processing alcohol, it can’t burn fat which can lead to weight gain. Just my 2 cents.
Sherrie
Dec 4, 2007 at 9:13 pm
Hey Claire yes I agree with you, not sure about Nina though :)
Regarding the alcohol yes definitely agree with you which I would say is a definite negative in regards to alcohol and health, but also wonder if it stimulates appetite what does this mean in regards to insulin?
Better then average health all round, I have a lot of trouble believing that. Its funny how the media demonises (sp?) drugs and cigarettes (with good reason) but praise alcohol. I mean, they all have the same health problems in regards to cancers, being addictive and in regards to alcohol and drugs, altering mood and common sense. There are other things that are helpful in drugs and cigarettes such as the connection between marijuana and pain relief and just recently they found something in marijuana that is thought to be a much better alternative treatment to chemotherapy. Nicotine also has benefits, for example weight loss.
I guess I just find it weird how alcohol is portrayed in comparison to these and how much more socially acceptable it is yet is it really any better? I don’t think it is.
Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD
Dec 4, 2007 at 10:28 pm
The key is to eat carefully timed carbs in low “doses” so that your brain can make the serotonin it needs. I’m sure everyone in the line at Starbucks at 4pm and women who satisfy their PMS cravings with chocolate and other carbs know what I’m talking about - they’re getting their serotonin fixes (the problem with this kind of “fix”, though, is it’s usually too high in fat which slows down serotonin production and adds unnecessary calories - the fat can also make you feel like a zombie). Low GI carbs do the trick as well as other carbs so they can be used for your brain to make serotonin. And protein is a key component of any healthy diet - in many other cultures, including those in which people live to be nearly 100 and have very little disease consume a much smaller amount of protein than we do in the West. Sun, exercise, and cholesterol (well, the kind in eggs, especially, which supposedly has a positive impact on your cholesterol profile) may make you feel really good, but they have no impact on serotonin levels - carbs are the only way for your brain to make serotonin, a proven mood-booster and appetite suppressor.
Everybody’s chemistry, including their brain chemistry, is different and one needs to feed themselves the way their body needs to be fed. People on antidepressants, for example, have a different brain chemistry in which for some reason the appetite supression mechanism is disrupted and they respond very positively to a diet that includes carbs that are specifically timed and portioned to raise brain serotonin. Not surprisingly, they do horribly on Atkins and South Beach.
Serious alcoholics are often very thin and one reason is because they’re so consumed with their disorder they can’t get around to eating any food on a regular basis. People who consume alcohol liberally are often consumers of lots of food, too. And yes, alcohol does stimulate the appetite and take away eating inhibition.
Claire
Dec 6, 2007 at 10:34 pm
Sherrie - yes it is strange how the media praises alcohol and only talks about how bad smoking/drugs are. Each of them in excess will lead to disease - yet alcohol is more of a widely accepted pasttime. I think it would be interesting to find out what effect it has on insulin. One clue is that is causes stomach fat to increase.
Nina - South Beach is more about low GI carbs that limited carbs like Atkins. SB is not actually a carb limited diet, except in the first phase. Thank you for the information though :) I will be looking out for my book in the mail.
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