Why alcohol is bad for you

[DrakeWurrum]

Oh, and to you folks that say "Well doctors tell you to drink a glass of wine everyday" wine is bad for you, too.

http://www.advance-health.com/redwine.html

"When alcohol is consumed, the alcohol level in the blood
increases and
produces the intoxication effect. The body then begins
"detoxifying" or
metabolizing the alcohol. The first step is the conversion of alcohol
to
acetaldehyde by the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase. This happens fairly
quickly in individuals who regularly consume alcohol. The second step
is the
conversion of acetaldehyde into acetate by the enzyme aldehyde
dehydrogenase. This process is a bit slower and leaves a quantity of
acetaldehyde in the system for several hours or longer. It is the
acetaldehyde that produces most of the undesirable toxic effects. The
acetate is metabolized to produce energy much like any other
carbohydrate.
Excess drinking can make you fat just as binging on pasta, ice cream
or any
other carbohydrate would.


Alcohol & Acetaldehyde Toxicity


Acetaldehyde, produced primarily in the liver, but also in other
organs to a lesser extent, readily binds to the walls of red blood
cells and
hitches a ride to all parts of the body including the brain. By
attaching
itself to the red blood cells, it makes them more rigid and prevents
them
from entering the smaller capillaries. (The smaller capillaries are
much
smaller than a red blood cell and the cell is forced to stretch,
elongate
and squeeze its way through.) This reduces the oxygen supply to most
of the
cells of the body including the brain. ( The Brain consumes 20% of
all the
oxygen we breathe). Acetaldehyde also combines with the hemoglobin in
the
red blood cells further reducing its ability to carry oxygen.

In addition to inducing hypoxia (oxygen starvation at the
cellular
level), Acetaldehyde reduces the ability of the protein tubulin to
assemble
into microtubules. Microtubules provide a structural support for the
neurons
and dendrites in the brain and actually transport neurochemicals
manufactured in the nerve cells to the dendrites, including genetic
material. Without the microtubules, the dendrites gradually atrophy
and die
off.

Acetaldehyde also induces deficiencies in B1 (Thiamine), B3
(Niacin),
NAD, Acetyl Coenzyme A, B5 (Pantothenic Acid), P5P
(Pyridoxal--5-Phosphate)
and inhibits Prostaglandin synthesis.

B1 deficiency can produce a syndrome characterized by mental
confusion, poor memory, poor coordination and visual disturbances.

B3 and NAD (an enzyme made from B3) are involved in the
metabolism of
sugars and fats into energy and are an important catalyst in the
production
of neurotransmitters, including seratonin, and activates the enzymes
alcohol
dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase. Niacin deficiency symptoms
include
feeling fearful, apprehensiveness, worry, suspicion, depression,
headaches,
insomnia, depression, agitation and inability to concentrate.

B5 and its active form, Coenzyme A, is the most important
component of
the Krebs cycle which produces 90% of the body's energy. It is also
the
precursor of acetylcholine, an important neurotransmitter.

P5P is the major enzyme that is necessary to form virtually all
major
brain neurotransmitters. It also regulates the admission of magnesium
into
cells and thereby controls the excitability of nerve cells.

Acetaldehyde is also known to promote the production of opiate
like
chemicals in the body and promote the development of addiction to
toxic
substances.

... the point is that acetaldehyde is a very dangerous toxic
chemical
to have in the human body and brain. In addition to alcohol
consumption,
inhaling cigarette smoke or auto exhaust are other sources of
acetaldehyde.
The existence of certain strains of alcohol producing yeast in the GI
tract
can also be a source."

[Ronze]

Yes, but alcohol is still the best ways for guys to get... Ya

[cuauhtemoc]

Why beer is better than milk. (http://www.milksucks.com/beersurvey.html)


Edit: Found a better link.

[DrakeWurrum]

Human milk contains all the nutrients a human needs, and would be the healthiest to drink. That's not going to ever happen, though, because it would weird to ask mother's to do such a thing, and to sell such a thing in stores. O.o

Is Beer Healthful?
An August 13, 2002, Wall Street Journal article reports that beer “delivers protection against major ailments such as heart attacks, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, and dementia.” According to Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School’s Guide to Healthy Eating (2001), a book that reviews all the science and all the studies, moderate alcohol consumption “protects against heart disease and ischemic strokes, and mounting evidence [shows] that it protects against diabetes and gallstones.”

This is the sort of thing that people come up with to defend that beer is good. It may be true, but while you're drinking beer to help prevent those ailments, you're suffering far worse ailments. Also, hasn't beer been known to induce heart attacks?

My father's father died before he was eight, because he drank beer, smoked cigarettes, and didn't eat right. Trust me, beer is bad.

[cuauhtemoc]

Genetically, he was unsuited to any kind of toxins. Im sorry you lost your father, I posted that link as something humurous, not as fact :P

However, My dad is nearly 50, and im turning 27 this month. He smoked 2+ packs a day for over 36 years, and up until he was about 40, Always had huge drinking binges when he could with alot of friends. Military friends.


He quit drinking because it got boring. He quit smoking because he wanted to save money. He quit smoking 4 months ago. The doctors told him, "You could keep smoking like that for another 30 years, then MAYBE, we could tell. You have the lungs and liver of an 18 year old trackstar vegetarian."


Hope i inherited it :) Hooray for enjoying the good things in life and being genetically tolerant of it ^_^ I dont drink very often, occassionally, very occassionally, my family has a history of alcoholism going back, to Ireland, and beyond. Alcohol, in many family lines, is as regular as water.

Especially since in the dark times of europe before the romans came, and even in isreal around jesus time, it was easier to turn water into wine via grapes and other fermented fruits, because it would "Keep" longer without spoiling or becoming tainted with some kind of infestation of insects, rodents, or bizarre bacteria.

Ive read in Discover, that They have seen evidence of men from thousands of years ago, with containers that might have held a type of fermented liquid, from analyzing the way things fossilize.

Its only bad, When taken in excess. Alcochol is not inherently evil, thats what the liver is for, detoxifying the blood. Over taxing the liver, causing it damage and pushing it beyond its limits, is what is bad.

I wish i could remember who it was, someone great wise and famous.... :P but they even had it carved on their tombstone...

"Nothing In Excess.

[DrakeWurrum]

It wasn't my father, it was my father's father. I guess I should have said "Grandfather before I even knew him, when my dad was eight" instead. :rolleyes:

[cuauhtemoc]

Oh yes,
About a human's milk.

Its forumlated for the growing body of a human infant.

The metabolism and demands of the human body change drastically at around the age of 18-24 months old, as the bones and muscles begins to become extremely active, and growth takes off, and the baby's immune system takes over. Human's milk is not nutritious enough to carry the youngling past this age alone, or at all. human milk, contains a large portion of the strength of the immune system of the mother still, and at around this age, the stomach has grown strong enough to dissolve even these chemicals from the mother.

In essence, it becomes obsolete.

[Bae'Lin]

Its six o'clock in the morning...and all this talk about beer is makin me thirsty...

[DrakeWurrum]

Oh great, you mentioned the word thirsty...now I'm thirsty...

I'm gonna go get a drink of water now.

And it's only five where I am. :D

[shadow]

Originally posted by cuauhtemoc
Why beer is better than milk. (http://www.milksucks.com/beersurvey.html)


Edit: Found a better link.

awsome :D

[Kolibri]

Originally posted by DrakeWurrum


My father's father died before he was eight, because he drank beer, smoked cigarettes, and didn't eat right. Trust me, beer is bad.

What is wrong with this picture....? Before he was 8 years old?

[DrakeWurrum]

I meant before my father was eight. I hate pronouns. U_U