Category The psychology of alcohol

The struggle between alcohol drinkers and temperance fighters is gaining momentum. On the one hand, the advocates of alcohol tell us that alcohol in small doses is harmless, on the other hand, “teetotalers” scare them with horror stories about the harmful effects on the body and the emergence of addiction. Today we will figure out whether it is possible to drink alcohol and remain a sane person.

In the debate about the dangers and benefits of alcohol, everyone forgot the difference between medicine and poison, and it is only in dosage. In uncontrolled quantities, even the healthiest food becomes harmful. Alcoholic drinks are no exception.

Everyone knows that it is good to eat fruits, as they contain a lot of vitamins. But try eating a bucket of apples every day. The benefits will be small, and the negative consequences will not be long in coming. Another example is exercise every day until you are exhausted. How soon will you get sick? The answer is obvious. The situation is the same with alcohol.

Small doses of alcoholic beverages are either harmless or even beneficial. For example, one or two glasses of brandy relieve headaches in hypertensive patients. Wine and vodka can help solve some digestive problems. And the French have learned to cure colds with champagne.

Of course, there are diseases in which alcohol is unacceptable. But then contraindications also apply to other products, the harmlessness of which is beyond doubt for most people. For example, sugar for diabetics. It’s just that every person should know what he can and what not.

Alcoholic beverages are common foods. Their harm and benefit is determined by the frequency of use and the amount drunk. Yes, you can’t get too carried away, but a complete rejection of alcohol does not bring any benefit.

People prone to addictions, even with a complete ban on alcohol, “find” themselves in gambling, smoking, drugs, overeating, religious fanaticism or something else. It is necessary to solve the very problem of addiction, and not write off everything on the external manifestation of the consequences.

Our ancestors have been drinking alcohol for six thousand years, and this did not lead to the death of civilization. Therefore, there is no need to dramatize the situation around alcohol. Yes, there is a problem of alcoholism in Russia. One of its reasons is the lack of a culture of drinking alcoholic beverages, but prohibitions cannot correct the situation. Gorbachev’s “dry law” 1985-1987 proved it.

The controversy over whether to give wine to children emerged after Boston University scientists published the sensational results of their study. Their report says wine is good for children when consumed occasionally. But many other doctors disagree with their Boston counterparts. We will consider the arguments of each side.

Boston scientists believe that the gradual introduction of alcoholic beverages in children under the supervision of their parents reduces the risk of developing alcoholism in adulthood. The study was carried out in the families of Italian winemakers and confirmed this hypothesis. There are very few alcoholics in Italy who have been drinking wine since childhood. But we are not Italy, our mentality is different.

Most Russian drug addicts do not share the optimism of their American colleagues. They believe that drinking alcohol at an early age can contribute to alcoholism, as the body begins to get used to alcohol. We do not have a highly developed drinking culture, a “small dose” of Russian can shock any European drinking. If these alcoholic traditions are extended to children, then a generation of alcoholics will appear in a few years. This is the general opinion of doctors.

The legislation also sets up barriers for children on the way to alcohol. Alcoholic drinks are allowed to be sold only to adults, their advertising is completely prohibited. But, despite the measures taken, every year child alcoholism is becoming an increasingly serious problem. For some reason, bans do not give the expected effect.

On the other hand, in any church the rite of communion is not complete without the Cahors, but no one brings priests to trial for violating the law. Communion with wine is considered completely normal, although it is inherently illegal.

By completely banning alcohol, the state has created a taboo for young people, which they really want to break. This is a kind of adult test. Sooner or later teenagers will try alcohol, that’s a fact. The only question is where it will happen: on the street among the same peers “hungry” for alcohol, or in the bosom of the family. If teenage drinking cannot be defeated, perhaps it needs to be led and controlled? This is the position of the advocates of the use of wine by children.

Raising children is a purely individual thing, each family approaches it differently. Whether to give alcohol to children should be decided by the parents themselves, based on their beliefs and the alcoholic traditions of the family. This article only discusses possible solutions to the problem, the author does not support any of the parties.