2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14
A lot of books have been written about the dangers of alcohol. About how alcohol is useful, they say little and reluctantly. Except during a noisy feast. There is no book that would tell colorfully about the positive effect of alcohol on the human body.
Is there any benefit in alcoholic beverages? What effect do they have on the body? And are there less dangerous drinks among them? Before answering the question of how alcohol is useful, it is worth making a short digression into history.
When did strong drinks appear? Who invented them? Did people in ancient times think about how alcohol is useful and what its destructive power is? Or has the tradition of talking about the quality and effect of alcohol been discussed only in recent centuries?
Ancient times
The first alcoholic drinks appeared several millennia ago. This is evidenced by the results of archaeological excavations. In prehistoric times, hardly anyone thought about the benefits of alcohol. At least, little is known about this by researchers. Still about attitudethe ancient Egyptians have more accurate information about alcohol. Texts dating back to 2100 BC talk about the positive effect of alcohol on the human body.
Once upon a time, Sumerian settlements were located in southern Mesopotamia. Here lived people who firmly believed that alcohol was to blame for their imperfection. According to the myth, the deities who created the first man were first taken on their chests. That is why weak, evil, envious people appeared on earth.
One of the most popular drinks in the world is beer. He is loved in Europe, and in Asia, and in America. Every year, factories produce several tens of thousands of types of low-alcohol drinks. In the menu of cafes and restaurants you can see not only all sorts of varieties, but also various beer cocktails. It is generally accepted that the best producers of foamy drink are Germany and the Czech Republic. But the ancient Egyptians invented it.
With reverence, the inhabitants of Egypt rushed to wine, which they considered a divine drink. They not only drank it at dinner, but also used it for medical and ritual purposes. The traditions of the production of alcoholic beverages in ancient times developed in China, Rome.
Middle Ages
After Columbus discovered the New World, European navigators got the opportunity to taste puke, the wine of the Aztecs. This drink is still produced in South America to this day. Its basis is fermented agave juice.
In Europe, the most popular drink was beer. The production of cider, apple and grape wine also developed. Alcohol is good in small doses. It was good about itknown to the inhabitants of medieval Europe, where, due to monstrous unsanitary conditions, an epidemic roamed every now and then. To quench one's thirst was much safer with wine than with water. Sweetish liquor saved many French and Germans from cholera.
New time
The minds of Western Europeans were influenced by the ideas of Martin Luther and John Calvin, who claimed that wine is nothing but a divine gift. Until the 18th century, attitudes towards alcohol were positive. People who did not know the limits of drinking were not condemned.
Healing drink
It was said above: little is said about the benefits of alcohol, much attention is paid to its destructive power. It is worth clarifying here. Wine is the only alcoholic drink about which many articles and books have been written. It is recommended by doctors for certain diseases. Poets and philosophers wrote a lot about him, and most of all - Omar Khayyam.
Red wine is considered a healing drink. It contains tannin, which, when ingested, thins the blood. Red wine is an excellent prophylactic against cardiovascular diseases.
Red wine contains flavonoids - natural antioxidants that stop the negative effects of free radicals. No wonder this drink is called the elixir of youth. Wine also contains many useful substances, including iron, which prevents anemia. Doctors recommend using the drink as a prevention of beriberi.
Alcohol dilates blood vessels. And so, in moderate doses it is useful. Especially wine, the healing properties of which are given above. But not worth itRemember that any alcohol is addictive. Moreover, dependence develops from regular receptions. A person who drinks 50 grams of wine daily is more addictive than one who drinks a bottle of Cabernet once every six months.
Best wines
A wide selection of wines is offered in elite alcohol stores. Not all of them have healing powers. Useful wine - dry or semi-dry. It contains many useful substances, little alcohol and sugar. Most Popular Varieties:
- "Pinot Noir".
- "Sauvignon blanc".
- "Shiraz".
- "Riesling".
- "Cabernet".
Wine lovers unanimously say: you can and should drink this drink every day. Abstract scientists are often mentioned, who allegedly confirmed this version in the course of research. It is worth knowing: there is no established norm of alcohol without harm to he alth. Doctors still disagree about what is the safe amount of alcohol and whether it is. One person can drink a couple of glasses of wine at dinner for twenty years and feel great. Such meals will turn another into an alcoholic a year later.
Acceptable rate
Still, most doctors believe that a man can drink a glass of wine a day. The allowable rate for a woman is half that, that is, 75 ml. The trouble is that wine lovers fail to adhere to such strict limits. Where one glass - there and the second.
Representativethe weaker sex is interested in the calorie content of alcohol per 100 grams. By the way, red wine is included in some diets. One hundred grams of dry contains only 64 kcal. That's not a lot. It is impossible to get better by regularly drinking a glass of wine. However, this drink whets the appetite.
Champagne
In the 17th century, sparkling wine appeared. It gained wide popularity thanks to the monk, whose name can be seen today in any elite alcohol store. "Dom Perignon" is the name of one of the most expensive sparkling wines.
Champagne is the common name for a drink that appeared several centuries ago in one of the French provinces. There are a lot of sorts. Of course, the choice should be made in favor of more expensive brands. For example, "Veuve Clicquot", "Brut", "Extra Brut". "Asti Martini", so beloved by girls, contains too much sugar, its calorie content is twice that of dry wine.
It is extremely strange to talk about the benefits of champagne or any other alcohol. Nevertheless, there are versions about the healing power of this drink. It, like dry wine, contains antioxidants and normalizes blood pressure. But only if you drink it in small doses. The allowable amount per day for a woman is 75 ml.
Cognac
And there are many myths about the benefits of this strong alcoholic drink. Neither the expensive Armenian cognac nor the French "Martel" is a panacea or a medicine. Doctors categorically do not recommend drinking it regularly. He callsaddictive. The allowable norm for a man is one glass a day, that is, 50 ml. For a woman, even less - 25 ml.
Yet cognac is not devoid of useful qualities. If it's of good quality. Expensive Armenian cognac, like elite French drinks, contains sodium, potassium, and calcium. Taking it in small doses helps to strengthen the immune system. The low-quality drink, which is very common on store shelves, contains pesticides, sulfur compounds and other chemicals.
Beer
This drink is not classified as refined. Nevertheless, many ladies prefer it to fine French and Italian wines. Beer contains hops, m alt, sugar and, of course, alcohol. Is it dangerous to drink beer every day?
This drink may seem quite harmless - intoxication comes gradually, and more often a pleasant feeling of relaxation comes instead. Is it possible to become addicted by drinking one or two glasses of beer after a hard day at work? Undoubtedly. Any alcohol can be addictive - both strong and low alcohol. There is even such a thing as "beer alcoholism". True, it has no scientific justification. Alcoholism is not vodka, beer, cognac. Alcohol addiction has standard symptoms.
According to popular belief, drinking beer leads to the appearance of extra pounds. In fact, vodka, which is allowed on the so-called Kremlin diet, has more calories. It is not the foamy drink itself that is harmful, but the snacks that go with it. Traditionally, beer is served with crackers, nuts, chips. These are very high-calorie foods, and it is their consumption that leads to excess weight.
Beer contains useful substances. One or two glasses do not have a negative effect on the body. But it is better to refuse all kinds of beer cocktails. By the way, it is desirable to drink any alcoholic drink in its pure form. A cocktail, which, in addition to the intoxicating drink, contains only lemonade, is harmless, which cannot be said about the so-called "ruff". Vodka with beer is a mixture that, in large quantities, does not have the best effect on the state of mind. In addition, in the morning she can remind herself of an unbearable headache.
Liquor
Pleasant sweet drink included in many popular cocktails. Liquor is strong, dessert. We will not repeat ourselves about the risk of developing alcoholism, we will only say that this drink is useful in small doses. But of course not everyone. Only natural, devoid of flavors and dyes.
Becherovka
This is one of the most popular liqueurs, Czech drink with herbal taste. Once "Becherovka" was sold exclusively in pharmacies, it was used as a gastric remedy.
Drink strength - 38%. It contains twenty herbs, some of which are found, as a rule, in Karlovy Vary. It was here, in one of the best resorts in Eastern Europe, that Josef Becher came up with a recipe for a medicinal tincture, which later became a popular alcoholic drink. The list of ingredients is kept confidential. "Becherovka"produced only in the Czech Republic.
Aperitifs
This is the general name for alcoholic beverages that are taken before meals. Drinking aperitifs is a typical European tradition. She came to us relatively recently. Although the menu of many restaurants in Russia has a whole section with aperitifs, they are ordered both after dinner and during it.
The most popular aperitif is vermouth. The drink has a tart, slightly bitter taste. Wermut means "wormwood" in German. This drink appeared in the late Middle Ages and was originally a medicine.
There are several types of vermouth. All of them are great for improving digestion. True, in large quantities, vermouth can cause heartburn.
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