Big Mistakes About Beer: #2: Beer Is Bad For Your Health
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If you know me a little, I think you already know my point of view on beer . So I'm going on the hunt to combat the big bad comments we can read here and there about our favorite drink. 😋
This article gives me the opportunity to loudly proclaim all the positive health benefits of beer . I have therefore counted 12 beneficial effects of beer . I must nevertheless point out that if it is consumed in too large quantities the effect is reversed. As a reminder, when you consume in moderation, it is always better (to have a rhyme in “on”)! 😅
So I'm going to make an effort to mention all the health benefits of beer that I've found. So, I give you permission to fill your mug and read the following lines!
Top 12 Beneficial Effects of Beer
Beer is the most nutritious of alcoholic beverages
Wine is always touted as the most nutritionally rich alcoholic beverage available. We hear a lot about the abundance of antioxidants in wine, but you should know that beer contains at least as many.
And then you could say: uh... Yeah, okay, that's great, but what are antioxidants ? And more importantly, what are antioxidants used for ?
A legitimate question, a legitimate answer! Oxidation in our bodies is a natural phenomenon that is due to the presence of free radicals in our organism. These radicals cause an alteration of all our tissues, that is to say aging . This is called aging at the cellular level! Antioxidants are therefore a good thing.
The benefit of beer is therefore to slow down the aging of our cells.
It turns out that nature has thought of everything and offers us the opportunity to combat this phenomenon through our diet. Fruits, grains, and vegetables are the basic elements for making alcoholic beverages. It therefore makes sense to find antioxidants in alcohol in general. 👍👍👍
Nature is well made, but not always simple. The specific antioxidants present in wine and beer are different. These antioxidants are beneficial in both beer and wine , and they do not act in exactly the same way .
The flavonoids in barley and hops are not the same as those found in grapes. However, their antioxidant properties remain similar.
Beer also contains more protein and vitamin B than wine . Better yet, beer contains iron, calcium, phosphates, and even fiber, according to the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry. 🏆🏆🏆
Beer helps protect your heart
Studies suggest that moderate beer consumption may make you less likely than those who don't drink beer to suffer heart attacks, strokes, or heart disease.
Moderate alcohol consumption has been shown to reduce the risk of heart attack (about 1 pint a day is considered moderate). Another " benefit beer ." 👊
Speaking of beer mugs, I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce you to our Gothic horned skull beer mug :
You can find it on our website by clicking directly here !
Polyphenols found in beer and red wine have been shown to be effective against cancer and cardiovascular disease . 💪
In fact, studies evaluating the relative benefits of wine versus beer versus spirits suggest that moderate consumption of any alcoholic beverage is associated with lower rates of cardiovascular disease. Source: New England Journal of Medicine
Beer helps prevent kidney stones.
Drinking beer may help reduce your risk of developing kidney stones . According to a recent study, men and women who reported drinking a moderate amount of beer reduced their risk of developing a kidney stone by 41%. 😊
The low calcium and magnesium content of beer thus helps to fight against the development of gallstones and kidney stones . 🔥
This is especially true for beers that contain a lot of hops, like pale ales or IPAs. They're rich in phytochemicals that promote kidney health, according to the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. And one more beer benefit !
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Beer lowers bad cholesterol and is beneficial for diabetes
The soluble fiber in beer can help lower your bad cholesterol . Yes, that's a virtue of beer . Pectin, gums, and mucilages are soluble fibers. They form a kind of gel during digestion and not only help prevent constipation, but also decrease the absorption of cholesterol and dietary fat.
Soluble fiber also helps slow down the digestion of carbohydrates. By slowing the rise in blood sugar (blood sugar), its consumption would have a significant impact on the prevention of type 2 diabetes. To put on a label: " beer for diabetics "... I don't think so either!
Increasing your soluble fiber intake has many health benefits. The fiber found in beer helps maintain healthy blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Beer and diabetes are therefore a good match.
However, because alcohol interferes with the body's ability to absorb vitamins and minerals, it can also decrease the body's ability to burn stored fat. If you haven't already, I invite you to read the article I wrote on the subject: Why Does Beer Make You Fat?
In this article you will find my answer to the question: which beer contains the least sugar ?
Beer improves digestion
As we've just seen, beer contains fiber. The benefits it provides can be therapeutic, but not only that. So now you understand the effect of beer on constipation .
As a reminder, we talk about constipation when we go to the toilet less than three times a week. We talk about diarrhea when we go to the toilet more than three times a day, or if the stools are soft or even liquid. So what's the connection between beer and diarrhea ?
Short video on digestion:
In fact, the digestive benefits of beer don't stop there, as it also helps fight diarrhea. Brewer's yeast has antibacterial properties. In fact, yeast helps regenerate intestinal flora. It thus restores balance by acting as a probiotic and fights bacterial diarrhea and gastroenteritis .
For this to work fully, you need to choose active brewer's yeast . This yeast should not be heated or denatured, but simply dehydrated. It is under these conditions that it has probiotic properties , unlike inactive brewer's yeast . Beer against diarrhea works, but beer and constipation too!
Our good old beer therefore allows our body to have balanced digestion. It improves transit thanks to the fibers and yeast which, together, work in their domain so that everything goes well until the “exit”! 😅
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Beer fights stomach ulcers
A 2003 German study demonstrated the effects of beer on bacteria that cause gastric ulcers . Remember that we saw above that beer contains flavonoids . These come from hops and barley .
These little ones have antioxidant properties, but that's not all! They fight the Helicobacter Pylori bacteria, which is suspected of being responsible for certain ulcers, particularly stomach ulcers.
Be careful with the alcohol in beer, however, because alcohol stimulates the secretion of gastric acid. When you consume too much of it, it disrupts the balance of your gastric mucosa . This can cause gastritis and bleeding. This adverse effect can occur from more than one pint a day.
Beer strengthens your bones
Due to its high silicon content , beer may help build stronger bones . Dietary silicon in the soluble form of orthosilicic acid may be important for the growth and development of bone and connective tissue. It also helps reduce the risk of osteoporosis . 👊
Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens bones , with a risk of fractures occurring even with minimal trauma. Consuming beer more or less regularly therefore provides the body with silicon, which can help slow down bone degeneration .
I should point out that some mineral waters rich in calcium will also have positive benefits for this problem. However, in terms of taste and drinking pleasure, it's difficult to compare! 😉 🍺
Beer helps reduce stress and anxiety
Researchers have found that two glasses of beer a day can reduce work-related stress or anxiety . You'll admit, that cold beer you have after work or on your way home from a busy day has a special flavor .
This is normal because your body secretes dopamine when you have this beer. This is the reward phenomenon , just like chocolate or a cigarette for example. You know that little phrase we say: “I deserved it!”. 😉 😉 😉
Be careful, however, regularly turning to alcohol to help cope with stress can do more harm than good . While alcohol can help reduce stress in the moment, in the long run it can contribute to feelings of depression and anxiety , making stress more difficult to manage. This will have the opposite effect of what is intended.
Beer helps you fall asleep
Beer contains nicotinic acid and lactoflavin , two substances that promote sleep. Added to this is lupulin , which is found in hops . It has calming and anti-depressant properties.
The hoppier the beer, the calmer and more zen it will make you! A word of advice for IPA lovers, for example! 😎
If you're one of those people who likes to curl up on the couch, whether you're watching Netflix or dozing off, you'll agree that having a soft blanket is a real treat. What if I told you that you could stay warm while showing off your beer-loving beliefs? The solution is our American flag beer blanket :
It is available in several sizes. You can find it here.
Beautiful skin with beer
Aha! Who would have thought, right?! You'll be able to brag about taking care of your skin the next time someone criticizes you for drinking a beer for reason X or Y!
Beer is rich in vitamins, especially B vitamins. Vitamin B9 is particularly good for the skin . It gives our cells a boost and leads to increased epidermal regeneration. Beer thus allows our skin to have younger and more dynamic cells .
Beer helps cognitive functions and especially memory
For those who are not familiar with this word, it refers to the abilities of our brain that allow us to communicate, perceive our environment, concentrate, remember an event or accumulate knowledge.
Hops have a secret ingredient that may help improve cognitive function: xanthohumol. It's a flavonoid that helps slow the process of memory decay. This chemical process may help protect brain cells from oxidative damage associated with dementia.
The disease directly targeted is mainly Alzheimer's or dementia. In middle-aged subjects, increasing levels of alcohol consumption have been associated with better cognitive function . Up to a certain limit, of course, so be careful how you interpret this sentence!
These results do not suggest that increased alcohol consumption is encouraged, but that moderate alcohol consumption* has been shown to increase cognitive function.
I would take the example of Jeanne Calment who drank her glass of port until she died. The ethanol in this cooked wine helped keep her in Olympic shape! 😆
* Moderate consumption = one glass per day for women and two glasses per day for men. 25cl of beer = one glass for your information.
Beer brings pleasure and makes you happy
A study from Indiana University shows that drinking beer causes a sharp increase in dopamine in subjects . Our good old dopamine is released when you treat yourself to a reward . The result is usually that you feel happy!
The researchers conducted the same test with alcohol-free beer and the result was still positive. So it's not the alcohol in beer that gives us pleasure. So I can shout out loud and clear without feeling guilty that beer gives me pleasure and makes me happy ! 😍
What you need to know about beer
Generally speaking, the benefits of moderate alcohol consumption have not been widely endorsed by doctors. That's really strange, isn't it? 😒 More seriously, I suppose they're afraid that some heavy drinkers might interpret any message as a " license to drink ."
Here is a short video posted on our YouTube channel that covers several of the points raised:
You can also find it via this link: 8 good excuses to drink beer
If you pay attention, most of the beneficial effects I mentioned are related to the components of beer. Low-dose alcohol can have a "beneficial" effect (big quotes anyway), but my article wasn't about alcohol. It was beer that I wanted to defend against all odds !
I hope this article has helped to relieve some of the guilt. You now have some arguments to make to the doubters in your life. Science doesn't lie ! So I only have one thing left to say as I raise my beer mug: cheers! 🍻🍻🍻
Since I fully embrace my love of beer and hope you do the same, I present to you our This guy needs a beer T-shirt:
You can take a look by clicking here!
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