The Dietary Impact of Alcohol
Looking into the Dietary Impact of Alcohol, it’s not necessary to include ethanol in your diet specifically, but considering its popularity and social acceptability as a recreational drug, complete abstinence is unlikely for most people. Thus, it’s crucial to factor in alcohol consumption when creating a nutritious diet plan.
It is recommended to limit alcohol consumption to moderate levels, as excessive intake can have negative effects on overall health, including liver disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Additionally, drinking too much alcohol can lead to weight gain as alcohol is high in calories, and it may interfere with weight management goals. For a healthy diet, it is important to balance the intake of all macronutrients, including alcohol.
Guidance for the Consumption of Alcohol
The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (US Department of Agriculture) advise that moderate alcohol consumption (moderate drinking) is the recommended way to drink, with up to one drink per day for women and up to two drinks per day for men. Consuming four or more drinks in a day or eight or more drinks in a week is considered high-risk for women, while five or more drinks in a day or 15 or more drinks in a week is considered high-risk for men. Such high levels of alcohol increase the risk of harm significantly.
In addition to the recommended daily intake, binge drinking is a concerning issue. This refers to drinking an excessive amount of alcohol, over four or five standard drinks for women and men, respectively, within a short period. Even if the weekly ethanol intake does not exceed guidelines, regularly engaging in binge drinking can result in severe physical, mental, and societal harm.
Short-term Health Effects
Let’s take a look at risks from binge drinking.
| Harm to physycal health | Harm to mental health |
|---|---|
| Behaviors that pose a risk, resulting in accidents, falls, injuries, and death | Suicidal tendencies |
| Loss of consciousness | Heightened stress, frustration, and anxiety |
| intestinal irritation and loose stools | Worsening sleep problems |
| Pancreatitis caused by inflammation | |
| Sexual dysfunction |
People who are pregnant or may become pregnant, under 21 years old, or who will be driving should not drink alcohol, even in small to moderate amounts, as ethanol may not be safe for them.
It's important for people consuming alcohol to be aware of the amount of ethanol in each drink to avoid dangerous levels. They need to be cautious when defining a drink: drinking multiple drinks or a single drink with a high ethanol content to avoid binge drinking. For instance, drinking two Long Island Iced Teas over 2 hours can result in consuming 7.5 standard drinks, which is high-risk, binge drinking behavior for both males and females, exceeding the recommended daily alcohol consumption by a large margin.
