Limited Evidence on Health Benefits of Alcohol Intake

Current evidence indicates an increased risk of all cause mortality among men drinking 2 drinks of per day compared to men drinking 1 drink per day. Current evidence also suggests there may be no benefit of low alcohol intake on cardiovascular disease.[1]

Although moderate alcohol intake may serves as a digestive aid, a source of comfort and relaxation, and inducing social interactions, thereby benefiting some aspects of the health triangle, the risks of any alcohol consumption do not outweigh the benefits for pregnant women, those who are taking medications that interact with alcohol, and those who are unable to drink in moderation.

The Reality

Overall, alcohol is an unhealthy substance. Alcohol is a that results in dehydration. It suppresses the release of antidiuretic hormone and less water is reabsorbed and more is excreted. The United States population is far from achieving alcohol consumption levels that would meaningfully reduce alcohol-related harms. Alcohol can be consumed at low levels with relatively low risk. However in terms of health, among those who consume alcohol, drinking less is better for health than drinking more.[2] Drinking alcohol in excess can lead to a “hangover,” of which the majority of symptoms are the direct result of dehydration.

Learning Activities

Technology Note: The second edition of the Human Nutrition Open Educational Resource (OER) textbook features interactive learning activities.  These activities are available in the web-based textbook and not available in the downloadable versions (EPUB, Digital PDF, Print_PDF, or Open Document).

Learning activities may be used across various mobile devices, however, for the best user experience it is strongly recommended that users complete these activities using a desktop or laptop computer.

 

 

 

  1. Scientific Report of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07/ScientificReport_of_the_2020DietaryGuidelinesAdvisoryCommittee_first-print.pdf. July 2020. Accessed July 20, 2021. ↵
  2. Scientific Report of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07/ScientificReport_of_the_2020DietaryGuidelinesAdvisoryCommittee_first-print.pdf. July 2020. Accessed July 20, 2021. ↵

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Human Nutrition 2e Copyright © 2022 by University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Food Science and Human Nutrition Program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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