Alcohol - Is it healthy? Everything you need to know about Beer, Wine and Spirits

[@brynduffy]

Vinay, just so you know: You rock! Thank you for your excellence.

[@Hapotecario]

Yes sir!

[@heynow01]

Actually, he'd really rock if he did more self reflection on his poor analysis of the trials data submitted for Pfizer's EUA.

[@garnettlivingston3739]

Excellent video! I’m a professional chef, and have a passion for food and wine pairing as I cook mostly French tasting menu cuisine. I’m also passionate about eating food and it’s most pure form, without toxic artificial ingredient or excessive amounts of modified ingredients, sugar, or sodium. This doesn’t necessarily mean and I always buy organic because I believe that many times organic is not the most fresh available at the moment. But what I always find interesting with studies like this from the surgeon general, is we never discussed the quality of what we’re consuming. The quality of wines and alcohol are not all the same, just as they are different qualities of oranges. I can buy at the market. Some were grown organically, and some were grown with pesticides. If we really want to discuss cancer risk, shouldn’t we be talking about toxins and food rather than eliminating food? Shouldn’t we be talking about the toxins in our drinks, rather than eliminating drinks?

[@tayloranderson456]

The thing about that logic is it's like arguing about the quality of the tobacco in a cigarette. To your credit, organic tobacco probably is less bad for you than pesticide laden, just like an organic really high quality wine probably is less bad than a cheap one (assuming the same alcohol level). But that doesn't make it good, just marginally less bad. Now if it was an organic alcohol free wine or something like that...

[@maeton-gaming]

Dr. Prasad, excellent video! Could I beg you to create a video of the same caliber regarding thc and related cannabinoids?

[@annatanneberger1]

Health warnings will not move the needle to reduce drinking or smoking. The only thing that reduced smoking is the social stigma placed upon it. In many parts of the world cannabis has taken over from both alcohol and tobacco. In South Africa (where I live) cannabis has always been the drug of choice in the Muslim community -- because it is not alcohol. So as the far-left political wave started taking over the world it was easy to just legalise dagga (as we call it). When the WHO did their massive social engineering experiment and instructed all governments in the world to lock people in their homes, our government included bans on alcohol and cigarettes. The alcohol ban reduced the casualty department's work load, since it stopped all the stabbings. But they did not include cannabis in the ban. Lots of people stopped smoking, but I continued to smoke 5 cigs each evening, as I have for decades. I just bought my cigarettes from a guy who knew a guy who knew a guy. What I'm saying is: if you want to use cannabis - do so. But don't try to convince other people that it is cool or harmless. I smoke tobacco. I do not try to convince other people that it is cool or harmless. The same for alcohol. Any substance that you use other than food, is harmful. However, if that harm burdens society (as alcohol does with road accidents, knife fights and domestic abuse) then maybe a ban should be considered.

[@OpinionFactChecker]

Ooh, that's a touchy subject with JooToob. Psychological issues are a problem with cannabis!

[@annatanneberger1]

@@OpinionFactChecker I think all substances cause psychological issues. Either good or bad. That is why we use and abuse them. If it can be good, it can also be bad. Nothing is just an unqualified good thing. So that is why Vinay's advice on alcohol begins with teaching children to use alcohol responsibly before they leave home and go to college. And that is also why the use of a substance is (and should be) culturally specific. And that is why the arguments of "yes but you drink wine!" are a non-sequitur. I'm African. In parts of Africa the use of cannabis is culturally specific - goes together with animist rituals, trances etc. In the part where I live there is a large Muslim community, which have an alcohol ban - so they use cannabis - although not with unqualified approval. Cannabis (like alcohol) takes the edge off your stress -- which is maybe good to relax. But for kids at university, it takes the edge of the pressure to study and they drop out. Alcohol abuse doesn't seem to do that to kids. I think they binge-drink, then they have a hangover and worry about exams and set about studying the next day. So the biggest concern in the Muslim community is that dagga (what we call cannabis) causes kids to drop out of school and university. Then they hang out in the streets, start selling to finance their habit, join a gang, and the rest is sad history that keeps repeating itself.

[@UNKLELUKE86]

​@@annatanneberger1 👍🏽

[@tomkunich9401]

I am getting tired of arguing with people that cannabis is a gateway drug because everyone doesn't progress on to harder drugs. These arguments are usually with people who are actually addicted to pot.

[@terryc1538]

The kind of in depth analysis that can teach everyone how research can and should be done, not just for alcohol, but for all food based research. I hope both Jay and RFK are reading you.

[@nicholasm2239]

*cracks a beer to watch this one

[@pascool99]

Yes!

[@user-ju7dx8mu6d]

I love this site. An MD who actually understands experimental design and the scientific method is a rare wonder to behold.

[@StevenLewis-u1j]

This video is best viewed with a glass of Chardonnay.

[@stacyjamesnear]

I'd prefer a nice cabernet, for the resveratrol.

[@goldcountryruss7035]

I was weak and allowed alcohol to ruin my teenage years and early adult life. Three alcohol related convictions by age 19, including two drunk driving. Just by the grace of God that I never hurt anybody. The good part remains, by age 24, I was done with alcohol and remained sober for the last 56 years. Around me, my mother, father, stepfather, father in-law, and others suffered from alcohol abuse. I have come to consider alcohol consumption generally to be very dangerous and unnecessary. My lone exception is when I have a sore throat, cough, headache, generally need sleep but can't, only then my wife will make me a nasty terrible tasting concoction she calls a hot toddy. A good night's sleep is assured, and I thank my Lord for the alcohol.

[@dlmsarge8329]

That's fantastic! Congratulations on beating your addiction. Without knowing it you may have saved many others by setting an example. I'm 5 yrs alcohol free after about 40 yrs of drinking, heavy daily drinking at the end.

[@jenda386]

Could you share your wife's recipe for a hot toddy?

[@petemccutchen3266]

There is no question that, for alcoholics, it is very, very bad. Alcohol can be extremely destructive. For some people, abstaining from alcohol is the best choice. However, in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal, alcohol is routinely paired with appropriate meals and consumed in moderation. I am a skilled home chef, and my wife and I will often pair a dinner with a glass or two of wine. And the invention of the Coravin device makes it easy for us to consume part of a bottle of wine and leave the rest, well preserved, for later. You should not assume that everyone’s experience matches your own.

[@Bob-q7x1i]

Vinay,respect to you brother. I worked as an ICU nurse for 46 years, just retired. During the dark days of covid ,we looked at each other and said,"where's our frequent flyer alcoholics that used to show up every week?" They didn't get sick,or if they did not bad enough to get ICU. Hmm?We were all like ,drink up!

[@Atheria444]

I joke that my alcohol intake kills germs. I only very rarely catch any illnesses.

[@alunjones3860]

@@Atheria444 I recall there have been problems with alcoholics abusing hand gel.

[@Atheria444]

@ Ick.

[@thecynicalaussie]

Maybe they weren't reporting to or being dragged into hospitals and being admitted? Maybe they didn't actually need hospitalization?

[@Bob-q7x1i]

Funny thing ,a local distillery started making hand sanitizer for us ,it smelled like bourbon! We were glad visitors weren't allowed cuz we smelled like booze!​@alunjones3860

[@Tech-49]

I was a 70+ per week drinker for many years, I stopped cold turkey 3 months ago. My blood tests have shown a huge improvement in 3 months including reversing type 2 diabetes Hba1c 7.0 in October down to 5.5 in January.

[@C2yourself]

10 drinks a day? That's pretty high, congrats for quiting

[@LeviathanSparrow]

Same here, man. I drank like you up until about 10 years ago. Drank 10-14 drinks per day for years. 10 years later, all my stats have gone back to normal - like a non-drinker's stats. Just lucky the liver effects didn't cross that threshold you can't come back from. Hopefully the same for you.

[@reasonablespeculation3893]

10 a day ...EVERY Day WOW.. I drink one a day,,,, maybe 2 or 3 for a special occasion, so I'm certainly not a teetotaler. I think 10 drinks a day would kill me in one year.

[@MAR72132]

“If you are an economist reading this data, you’ll shit your pants” 😂😂😂 You are incredible and intelligent so this made me laugh

[@Coromi1]

I think an economist would wet his pants and proof that poor people were more healthy that richer ones or it's their own fault. This is how they make their money. They don't get paid by socialists.

[@ParulJain2013]

Vinay you are a wizard sir! I have watched almost every lecture and podcast, including VPZD. I am not in the medical field but I have learnt a lot about how to look at data and think critically from you. It has greatly improved my ability to extract signal from noise. Please keep doing this. Thank you! One thing to note is that the chart you showed "Average # drinks per week by decile" seems like BS to me. First it is from 2007. Second it is self reported. Third n = 43,093 to represent a population of 235 million. Fourth the creator of the chart saw mismatch with alcohol sales and decided to multiply each respondent's number of drinks by 1.97. That is one reason why the top decile shows an incredible 74 drinks a week! Fifth the data is for 18 and over; we all know many drink below 18. And so on.

[@witwct3]

VP, I appreciate your work! Thanks

[@barbloft]

I like that your recommendations are largely Mindfull in their focus, Vinay. Versus the Shame-based messages that often get indiscriminately hurled at us.

[@pikminman13]

The point is to correct the bad action, so that should be done with minimal damage otherwise. That being said, some people do need some shame.

[@dareekie2074]

Life is not about avoiding risk.Its about trading risk for quality of life. I think that’s what Vinay is saying about alcohol.

[@thecynicalaussie]

Good point. With severe chronic pain alcohol makes like tolerable and liveable.

[@Batmans_Pet_Goldfish]

I fall into addiction easily. I'm 28 and never touched the stuff, thank goodness. That said, I really want you to do a general video on confounding variables and one on absolute vs relative risk. I think both would be valuable.

[@Brandon-eb5ep]

To our future Surgeon General and I'll drink to that!

[@murphy-clark3057]

Excellent work, as always!

[@C2yourself]

My dad drank like a frat boy socially on the weekends and a couple drinks daily after work. He smoked 2 packs of cigarettes a day. At 68 he went into shock after a couple drinks. ER doc concluded it was from taking Advil for arthritic condition and being a daily medium to heavy drinker. He had developed an antiphlaxis allergy to alcoholic at 68 and had to quit cold turkey. He continued smoking a pack a day until late 70s when he cut back to 1/2 pack. He developed alzheimers at 85 died at 89 after bouts of Cdiff and UTIs. Never had cancer but did get a pacemaker at 75. He ate a low carb diet, heavy salads, red meat and chicken and worked out with weights until early 80s. Always worked in the yard and had a trim waist and muscular build. Who knows why he didn't get cancer, he was the poster boy for high risk

[@gabip412]

Because he was active and ate well! A huge factor is also the way of managing stress

[@MarkCassano]

This economist has been waiting for this video. Confirmed all my suspicions and more. Well done.

[@kimcorbisiero9480]

Your thinking is so logical!! Keep up the videos VP!!

[@harveybc]

You gave excellent advice on drinking. I probably say that because it closely mirrors. my experiences. I had my first drink when I was in about the 6th grade, but wasn't wine. My father mixed some drinks for new years eve. He made me one but very weak. I don't think it put more than a cap full of the liquor in it. Also, when I was in high school he told me if I wanted to drink to drink it at home and he would buy it. As a result it was never the forbidden fruit. I was a junior in college before I first drank enough to get drunk. I learned a lot for it. The big take was that afterwards it made me feel so bad I really didn't want to do it very often.

[@ResonantFrequency]

When NPR was running a segment on this the lady who was being interviewed was asked the question "How many drinks should the average person have a week?" and I knew what she was going to say before she said it; "The best amount of alcohol to consume is zero drinks" Well la dee dah, what a great answer. I'm sure the directors of the ACA and AHA all got a little excited and had to change their pants when she said that on air, but what a completely worthless statement for the general population. Nobody is going tee total over that information and now nobody who might have reduced their alcohol intake won't take any action because you gave them zero information to work with. The same thing was said over vaping, in which somehow these people think vague platitudes will somehow stand up against a nicotine addiction and change people's minds. Every time I hear a scientist offer these dumb statements that push you towards living like a Mormon it just makes me think they have no idea what they're talking about, that they don't have the science to back up what they're saying and don't understand what their job is, which is not to make every person live forever and brow beat them out of having fun, but to disclose risk so that individuals can make informed decisions about their health.

[@SiriusZiriux]

Nerd~

[@acmhfmggru]

Let me let you in on a secret: they don't actually want to empower you to make informed health choices. Work cited: 2020-2024 on planet Earth

[@Technichian462]

Show actual risk, not relative risk. Indeed, I’m Geek.

[@Technichian462]

@@SiriusZiriuxThe term is Geek. A nerd sits around scratching his ass, and then sniffing his fingers. A Geek just enjoys getting information. And having it BE CORRECT.

[@Mr.N0.0ne]

I am just wondering what your issue is exactly with the statement that the healthiest amount of alcohol to ingest is zero. This is a factually correct statement. The same is true for vaping. Why are you acting offended by these facts and making nonsensical comparisons to Mormonism? I'm going to guess that you enjoy drinking alcohol and possibly vaping too and hearing inconvenient facts about these practises offends you. I think if you enjoy those practises by all means go for it as long as you aren't harming anyone else. But don't be offended by the facts around them and insult those who mention those facts.

[@tracyhealey8312]

I love a great meal with a glass or two of wine in the evening...it brings me great joy and in the end that personally negates any small potential for any deleterious health effects...thank you for your balanced analysis, as per usual...

[@michellemcdermott2026]

Same here....how about the Italians??? They live long lives

[@doyathink49]

you, sir, are a delight. Carry on!

[@gretchenmchugh]

My dad was one of those who had less than 12 drinks in his lifetime. Truly. He died with cirrhosis of the liver. His doctor assumed he was a heavy drinker. Most likely it was from NAFLD. Or exposure to heavy metals at his machinist job. We’ll never know.

[@marchhair01]

Wit and humor are clearly surrogate markers for intelligence. I’m WAY funnier than my friends and would love an invite to your dinner party! Cheers.

[@mamandapanda185]

I had a friend go out with pancreatic cancer at 42 and he drank like a fish and smoked like a chimney. It gives me insomnia so I rarely do it.

[@sliglusamelius8578]

@@mamandapanda185 I just attended funeral of a similar friend, he did both activities like crazy. It seems to me that smoking and alcohol are KNOWN pancreatic cancer risks.

[@uteruspower1862]

I have a doctor friend who died at age 50 of pancreatic cancer and he never drank or smoked and lived a very healthy lifestyle.

[@SkyForgeVideos]

I drink once per year. I think I'll survive.

[@laveraparato258]

I'm a little more frequent than you at 8 drinks/year, but yeah, I'm good.

[@janinedalbey2448]

My dad is 93 excellent health excellent labs. He drinks scotch and beer almost every day. Wine when he goes out for dinner. He's been drinking since he was a young man. He did stop smoking at 40 cold turkey.

[@TheHouseofContemplation]

What is your father's diet like? And how many drinks per day? I'm very curious. I notice drinkers who do well have a meat-based diet.

[@janinedalbey2448]

​@TheHouseofContemplation he was born in UK 1932. Loves food especially shrimp fish meat soups salads. Not alot of veggies unless Brussels sprouts or peas. Had malaria in the 50s in Hong Kong funny his uric acid is off the charts. He takes allopurinol, if his gout flares up. He takes vitamins sporadically, and he finally started taking his bp meds regularly for about a year now lol. It's a very low dose.

[@janinedalbey2448]

He can finish his bottle of scotch pretty easy beers I think are at the bar he frequent in Tucson ( where he lives). He's very social and upbeat for the most part.

[@nicolemillward287]

Anecdotal. Alcohol is poison.

[@Ukie88]

@@nicolemillward287our environment has become poisonous from the 70s on…think synthetics, plastics, asbestos, heavy metals, etc.

[@iosmom]

i read your substack on this to my 12 year old granddaughter. i think she listened. i wanted her to be able to look critically at what she hears and reads. also your recommendations at the end lead to a discussion

[@barneyfyfe8313]

I'd like to see a logic based study on the negative effects of smoking marijuana. I find it hard to believe inhaling combustion by products is harmless.

[@robertoconnell5054]

Recognizing the limitations of evidence and making policy and individual patient recs accordingly is a rare and much needed form of wisdom. Thank you!

[@bradv9449]

I have noticed that I was having problems with memory recall and clarity of thought after a weekend of moderate to heavy drinking. I would struggle with lethargy and brain fog on Mondays. I went a couple months without drinking and now limit my drinking to a few on Saturday night. I have lost weight and my thinking and memory have improved. I smoked for twenty years and quit cold turkey fifteen years ago. I have found it harder to stop drinking than quitting smoking.

[@farmfarmdorrie]

This is common among many I know.

[@scottmirly6628]

I, for one, appreciate the humor. Thank you for your work. Always refreshing to hear someone sense.

[@denisehenry4894]

You are such a brilliant joy to listen to. Please invite me to your dinner party!! I literally laughed out loud several times during your presentation. Go Dr go!

[@yelnik9000]

Can you do a video like this on veganism/meat?

[@Coromi1]

How about veganism/ meat/ omnivore?

[@dedesunbeam9361]

@@Coromi1 I'd like to see one on pescatarianism, so no animal food except seafood and fish. No eggs or dairy, no meat or poultry.

[@marcustulliuscicero2676]

@@dedesunbeam9361 Pescatarianism never made any sense to me. What's the rationale? I can understand vegetarians who don't eat animals. Or Jains who take it a step further and won't even eat root vegetables (you take a carrot out, you kill that whole plant). But saying I won't eat this animal because I'm such a Goody Two-Shoes, but I'm totally fine with killing and eating that other animal seems silly. Btw, pescatarianism doesn't exclude dairy - and neither does vegetarianism. That's a vegan thing - another senseless diet.

[@dedesunbeam9361]

@@marcustulliuscicero2676 My goodness someone is cranky. But to clarify, I don't eat dairy or eggs so you can pick a nice term that you like that doesn't get you all hot and bothered.

[@dedesunbeam9361]

@@marcustulliuscicero2676 "because I'm such a Goody Two-Shoes" I never said that, you did. But since you got all hot and bothered about the term, you pick one that makes you happy and includes seafood but not eggs, dairy, meat, or poultry.

[@LettCommCBA]

What a great job, you do! Thanks a lot, Vinay! It's a privilege to watch your posts!

[@jessicamann684]

I made it to around the age of thirty as a never drinker -- including participating in high school and college party culture. It isn't that strange. Now I like scotch. From a practical biological standpoint alcohol is digested using the same metabolic pathway as sugar (fructose). Humans (and mammals) can metabolize alcohol because it is in everything that has had any time for yeast to grow on it. For thousands of years, alcohol was used to ensure that potable water remained bacteria free for travel by boat.

[@tania604]

Great video. I'd love if you covered drinking while pregnant. The study that looked at drinking during pregnancy studied binge drinking in pregnant college people. People have extended that to believe even one drink while pregnant is bad for the fetus. Thanks for what you do!

[@lorrieoconnor8207]

I have BRCA1 and BRCA2 in my family on Father's side. The 3 aunties who drank socially, wine mostly, all died of breast cancer at 65. The one non -drinking aunty is still alive in her 80's. I myself could never tolerate alcohol, a blessing turns out.

[@gabip412]

Your aunt who didn’t drink might also took a good care of herself in general, like chose healthy food, controlled her stress and weight. It’s impossible that only one factor (occasional drinking wine) caused cancer. What about sugar consumption, etc…

[@petemccutchen3266]

One of your suggestions- my wife and I sometimes have dinner parties where we serve three bottles of wine in opaque bags. One will be a mid-range wine, something in the $30-$50 range. One will be a high end $200+ wine. And the third will be Three Buck Chuck or similar grocery store swill. At the end, we vote and reveal. Alas, my friends always hone in on the most expensive stuff and demand more.

[@reasonablespeculation3893]

Takes $$$ to satisfy friends with refined palates

[@nickmullen402]

My key takeaway from this video is that I need a drink immediately

[@operamaniak81]

Dear Dr Prasad, I love your skepticism. My short story. There was no alcohol at my home. But there was plenty at my grandparents' - so as a kid I judged them badly. When I was close to 40 years old, I got stomach ulcers (like everyone on the grandparents side of my family). They found that my stomach upper sphincter goes through my diaphragm, so my stomach is never closed. Hence my life-long burping, clogged nose, white tongue, heart palpitations, poor results in sports. So, now my stomach is so fragile that a meal just a little too large, just a little too fat, just a little too al dente, and nothing helps but cookies (baking soda? sugar?) and... alcohol. I understand my grandparents very well now. I wonder, what are my other options. Oh, and on humid (?) days I can't bear many foods that on dry days were OK with my stomach. It repeats every Fall and every storm.

[@dawncc1]

I have a friend from CA where the wine tends to flow freely. She used to open a bottle and enjoy a drink or two. On my recent visits the bottle on the counter has disappeared yet when I come in and out of the house she always has a glass of wine. I’ve known her for approximately 30 years. Recently she is having memory and recall problems and I’m guessing it’s from the alcohol.

[@PeteQuad]

Thank you for challenging these studies which make it seem like medicine is no better than the social sciences, where the science is no better than what we had before the scientific method was created. It is just a bunch of observations by a few people with no rigor around the tests. There are so few good tests and society is continually confused and swamped by the massive number of these poor tests so that we struggle to gain consensus on what is true or not. The numbers and jargon make it seem more "scientific" which fools many into thinking they must have controlled for all the confounding factors.

[@Parker_Miller_M.S.]

Observational studies are hugely impactful for guiding public health recommendations. Methods have and continue to be improved to make Analyses and data gathering more precise. Observational data is how we learned smoking is a casual risk factor for lung cancer and many other cancers, physical activity reduces mortality, etc. just blanketly disregarding epidemiology is massively ignorant and naive.

[@PeteQuad]

@Parker_Miller_M.S. And misrepresenting a simple paragraph to fit your narrative is massively arrogant. The fact is, the vast majority of studies these days are pure garbage. I specifically pointed out that the problem is that the good ones are being lost in the noise, which with reading comprehension tells you that I am not blankety disregarding all studies. The public, the politicians, and many actual academicians are having difficulty determining the actual truth as a result of this phenomenon.

[@michaelgilbreath3692]

"# 6) Jalapeño's and Habaneros have no place in alcohol"? Wow. This was one of the best, and most factual channels on KZbin, right up until that moment. Otherwise well done, yet again, Dr. Prasad!. ..;-)

[@franburns-yv5pt]

Thank you for an excellent video!!!

[@lisaBinfinity]

Great video! I thought I might have a problem with drinking, but I just enjoy it moderately. Especially after power cleaning my house or a very busy day working in the ER! And I would love to be invited to your dinner party!🎉

[@DeltiBecker]

33:09 - I want to be invited to your "dinner farty" lol I laughed so hard when I heard that for some reason.

[@Atheria444]

As a post menopausal woman who needs estrogen, since alcohol increases a woman's estrogen level is one of my justifications for vodka, tequila, etc. ;-) I also mentioned to someone else that I only RARELY get sick and when I was a kid, my grandparents would give us kids a shot of whiskey if we even sneezed. The next morning, we were fine.

[@emilinebee6280]

I think the "don't count your drinks" thing is a little crazy. I only have ever lost track when it got into double digits...which I would count as like twice?

[@mcd5478]

First time watcher. Extremely interesting. I’ll be watching more frequently.

[@bostonsamus9466]

3:57 - THAT is the question, Sir! 😊

[@rikardo1070]

nice to see you again dude

[@suz4keeps]

Thoughtful and engaging thank you

[@suz4keeps]

25 recommendations thanks 30:30

[@GlobalShutterNY]

Such wonderful scientific analysis showing how difficult it is to draw meaningful conclusions from population wide studies... Thank you as always !

[@Dawned-13]

I appreciate your honest and open opinions and knowledge of studies and their validity.

[@lorilybrook7943]

And this is why I listen to you and trust your judgement. Thank you for the objective assessment combined with common sense on alcohol. Invite me to your dinner party and I’ll bring some amazing NYS Finger Lakes Cab to share

[@mcd5478]

Or an Ice Wine for dessert! 😉

[@kenkessner9594]

Great analysis, Doctor. Love your work.

[@billybud9557]

I had never before taken a random study out of a meta-analysis, and looked at it carefully. Wow. Great vid. Often, of late, the Surgeon Gen is completely FOS

[@glendaprice4727]

Always great information Dr. Prasad! I enjoy listening and learning from your broadcasts!

[@Ashk4n.01]

I recently discovered your videos and must say your approach is an excellent way to deepen my understanding of research. Thank you for sharing your insights !

[@Skan64530]

A video that is more than an ounce of sense. Cheers, chin chin, Prost to an intelligent doctor!

[@allisonfalin8854]

I carry bias as I workin GI and see the effects of alcohol (and,to be fair, obesity, smoking and inactivity). My parents were not ever really ones to smoke, it they were drinkers in their younger years. Mom has had breast and colon cancer, Dad has had ascvd and a fib. I cut back significantly on any alcohol intake. I don’t think that, for me, there is personal benefit. I don’t instruct my patients that aren’t in the high risk of disease development on alcohol, but I do counsel a lot of AUD patients that their alcohol and smoking habits will be the reason they end up seeing us regularly, if not the oncology team. The causation may not have been established firmly, but I do think that it is reasonable to limit the intake of actual toxin when you can. That goes for all of them, including being in a metabolically unhealthy state. Wonder if they measure for obesity with alcohol use? Diabetics and drinkers? Recipes for disaster.

[@dramanexus]

I knew if anyone could make me feel good about my drinking, it would be Vinay! Thank you, sir! Cheers! 🍻

[@johnnemeth6913]

Alright people, one vice at a time. It's too hard to study you otherwise.

[@henrikgustav2294]

we won't die without alcohol

[@holleyman1970]

I did drink but through experience and experimentation I found that any amount of alcohol caused flare up of Crohn’s so I cut it out and I’m feeling better for it. I have acquaintances and friends that drink moderately (a glass of wine for dinner, a beer at the ball game) and they are pretty healthy. some are in their mid to late 70s. I know of a non drinker that died of bowel cancer this year… I agree with you, in the wash it probably makes little to no difference in cancer risk. I think heavy drinking will be found to have negative overall consequences but moderate and below probably will show to have very little to no affect on cancer in the long run. Anecdotal yes but that doesn’t mean it isn’t valid.

[@AMMA-Das]

Thanks for putting this out. I feel much better now.

[@seymoursmix4810]

dr. prasad -- you are adorable and a real treasure. wish you were my doctor !

[@RightToFreedomGirl]

@seymoursmix4810 😂 do i really think calling a grown "adorabe" is appropriate? He's not a dog or 3 yr old

[@sassysandie2865]

@@RightToFreedomGirloh please! He is adorable! Lighten up😂

[@RightToFreedomGirl]

@sassysandie2865 He's a grown man with Ph.D. give him the respect he deserves. YTuber has far more education & _emotional intelligence_ than u, it appears.

[@sassysandie2865]

@ he’s an MD and I would bet he likes being called “adorable.” Just love the insults lol!😂

[@RightToFreedomGirl]

@sassysandie2865 I have _educated_ you. Now u have no excuse for ignorance, but proceed and continue to allow it to ruin all of your relationships. You r hereby blocked 🚫 so thanks for allowing me to do my good deed for the day. Blessings!

[@floraperrone-ng7it]

Excellent work!

[@sandynoall]

Adjusting for enzyme alcoholdehydrogenase.... big difference between male & female

[@pixl8me]

Cheers! 🍾🥂

[@septemberamyx]

Great evaluation! You tease out the details that drive me crazy as well. Logic seems a natural skill. You can elevate skill at logic, but it is something you can't seem to teach if there is no inherent skill.

[@annripley1964]

All things in moderation!

[@haveaday1812]

Including moderation!

[@itscool770]

Would you say that about heroin or cocaine or speed or fentanyl?

[@Madmartigan6]

@@itscool770Some things are kind of obvious with a certain IQ.

[@Sherukka]

This is always wrong advice!!! 😢

[@celiacresswell6909]

Try everything once except incest and morris dancing

[@ericswann1417]

Complete agreement on the NO PEPPERS IN BEER!!!

[@garethevans3600]

This was very timely. I just recently started seeing adverts in Australia about this and it just sounded unlikely that there was clear evidence on this front. Knowing Australia is always just downstream of US, I googled it and saw it was based on a bunch of Meta-analyses. Having followed this channel for quite a while I know how poor meta-analysis can be and then there was the video from Vinay.

[@stacylaclaire8004]

Appreciate this video- so timely and informative!

[@ShawnStradamus520]

I am in my sixtieth lap of the sun and have lived a very fit and healthy life. I eat a healthy diet, maintain my BMI in the normal range, and get regular exercise. For most of my adult life I had consumed about 10 drinks per week, a beer after work and the occasional cocktail. At my last annual physical my bloodwork indicated that I had a form of anemia where my red blood cells were enlarged from liver damage caused by alcohol consumption, and my doctor recommended cessation of consuming any alcohol. I have been "sober" for four months now and I don't miss it. As an added bonus I was able to lose this nagging little five pounds that I hadn't been able to shake for the past few years. My takeaway is that for some people there is no safe amount of alcohol consumption. To each his own...

[@AB-ih6ig]

Haven’t had a drink since New Year’s Eve but watching this is really making me want one 🍷

[@farmfarmdorrie]

This is a great breakdown of scientific missteps, but if alcohol is a problem for you, you should keep on that break. Even if you don't quit for good, time away from a thing never hurts.

[@karlsinclair9918]

Craft beer is delicious. Who cares if it's healthy or not. Moderation is key. No more than 8 pints each morning.

[@sliglusamelius8578]

What about the MRI studies showing brain injury from small alcohol intake over lifetime? I think it was a British study.

[@michaelh929]

It showed an association, not a cause. This is something Vinay harps on all the time.

[@sliglusamelius8578]

@ Yeah, but the study had a good matched control group as I recall. (The group was "good", so I did not say "well-matched"). Cause-effect would be based on known toxicity of alcohol on neurons and cells in general. It seems to be getting close to the level of evidence with smoking studies at this point. They used to deny cause-effect with smoking too! I would like to hear Vinay's opinions.

[@PeterDMayr]

It seems HIGHLY intuitive to say that this is so. I mean everyone has experienced headaches after too many drinks. So, maybe 1 drink per hour might not impact someone, be detectable. We know 2 or 3 does with neurological effects of less stress,... I also wonder about the high link to liver diseases (cirrhosis,...). Hepatic liver? It could be that the body (the brain) is unable to cope with a certain dose (overdose). Eating 5 grams of extra sugar is fine, but 30 per day is not, although both will not kill you tomorrow. Still, it looks like some alcohol is good against cardiovascular diseases.

[@ImNoclue]

The global burden of disease is a crap study, which seems like all the Lancet publishes these days.

[@PreampCnnsr]

Never have so many been so grateful, to so few, for distilling kickass whiskey.

[@FrancoisYergeau]

Totally agree with your position !

[@bradmercier8267]

Good overview

[@joshuabriggs7114]

Cheers Dr. Prasad!

[@olson.pamela]

Very reasonable and insight, however this is a hot button topic. Many many people grew up in families where alcohol contributed to abusive parenting. They too may grow up drinking. Alcohol is a big negative in many people’s lives. An interesting study would be “how many families are positively effected by alcohol use and how many families are negatively affected”.

[@DerekFullerWhoIsGovt]

Thank You Doctor🙏🏽

[@BubsDp]

Thank you for this... very common sense!

[@stephenbender7593]

Drink when you're happy, never when you're sad. That's all you need to know.

[@2394098234509]

I think my bias here is in the opposite direction as Vinay's (I tend to believe alcohol is on net destructive, though I recognize this is largely unsubstantiated), but I appreciate his study design to get an answer. I agree that 1,000 low quality observational studies is certainly not the answer.

[@guest_informant]

In case anyone is interested _Howtown_ recently did a deep dive into alcohol research. TLDR: The original "a small amount of alcohol (J-curve) study is good for you" was not well designed, eg they had not taken account of income. There's a lot more to it than that though; IMHO the whole video is a welcome addition to the conversation.

[@simonvogel8886]

It seems plausible, that the basis for the alcohol leading to an increase in risk of throat and breast cancer may have other reasons, but what about the link between liver cancer and alcohol use as alcohol is specifically metabolized by the liver?

[@bjh3661]

Giving up addictions is like Whack-a-Mole.

[@rosstaylor9969]

Thanks for this reasoned review...we appreciate so much that you do and share.

[@MarySkondras]

Ikaria Greece, Blue Zone, where drinking and smoking is part of daily life for many of the centerarians. What keeps them healthy? Fresh air and produce, walking, afternoon naps, and wine!

[@VickiErwin-Wilson]

This was really informative and enjoyable. I have entertained those same thoughts related to the reports of nothing but adverse effects of alcohol (and cannabis as well). Let’s not forget about following the dollars behind the studies, as well (though I have not completely pegged the motivating forces behind the all-negative campaigns against alcohol right now--any ideas???)! Sounds like your dinner parties are pretty amazing, by the way!!!

[@theprogressivemichigander6588]

If we want to put a warning label on alcohol shouldn't it be for Cirrhosis of the liver?

[@foolbart]

I thought half the population were alcoholics. I know one non-drinker, former alcoholic! I think people are lying on the surveys. One reason for lying is fear that insurance companies could penalize you.

[@SandrinaN]

Thank you for all your excellent videos.