TRUTH AND FALSE ABOUT ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

• SCIENCE
• 6/14/22

TRANSLATION IS AVAILABLE:

• RU

There are such occasions for drunkenness:

Wake, celebration, greeting, farewell,

Baptisms, weddings and divorces,

Frost, hunting, New Year,

Recovery, housewarming,

Sadness, remorse, joy,

Success, reward, new rank

And just drunkenness for no reason!

S. Marshak

For a long time, and especially in recent decades, lies about alcohol have been actively spreading, mainly through the mass media (newspapers, magazines, television and internet). It goes the same as in ancient times, but there is already more mass propaganda and distribution of alcohol not only through the products themselves and their advertising, but also through the formation of stereotypes and their introduction into the mass culture of society. For example: through popular cultural projects, featured films, ceremonies for official meetings and celebrations, and the behavior of idols. After all, through the images of idols, prominent people, movie characters, official figures and their “habits” it is the easiest way to encode a person, since any individual is prone to imitation.

This article is an attempt to systematize the main common postulates of FALSE about alcohol and alcoholic beverages and to show the TRUTH based on various scientific (medical and non-medical) research and data.

FALSE: Alcohol is a food product.

TRUTH: “Alcohol is a drug that undermines the health of the population.” This is an excerpt from a 1975 World Health Organization (WHO) decision. This statement is still in full agreement with the scientific definition of alcohol given in the writings of eminent scientists from all over the world. There is not a single scientific work that disputes that alcohol is a drug. The fact that alcohol is on a par with narcotic substances in terms of addiction has long been known. At the same time in our consumer society such inconvenient information is often removed from official sources, not advertised, silenced. A clear example of this is the change in the definition of alcohol in STATE (Fig.1).

FALSE: Small doses of alcohol are harmless.

TRUTH: There are no harmless doses of alcohol, as there are for other drugs. This has been scientifically proven by various studies in different countries [1–3].

Alcohol is poison to all living cells — this is a scientifically proven fact. Even the activity of the yeast fungus, which releases alcohol from sugar, is slowed down when alcohol accumulates in the fermenting liquid at about 3%, and completely stops when the concentration is 10% or higher.

There is not a single organ or tissue in the human body that would not be negatively affected to some degree by alcohol at different levels (biochemical, cellular, tissue, organ, systemic). Therefore it is absolutely impossible to take a harmless dose of alcohol, because the effect of alcohol on different organs and systems of the body affects in varying degrees and over varying periods of time.

At the same time, the most vulnerable tissue of the human body to alcohol is the brain. Alcohol and its metabolites (acetaldehyde, acetic acid), as substances that are good at dissolving fat, easily damage brain cells with increased amounts of fatty tissue, including membranes, myelin sheaths of nerve cells. There is also cerebral hypoxia as a result of microcirculatory disorders, changes in redox processes in tissues with acidification of the intercellular matrix. Headache hangover syndrome is also a removal process of dead brain cells. A person who took alcohol the day before literally pees with his own brains (products of brain cell decay). Scientists have found that with so-called “moderate” alcohol consumption, as early as four years later, in 85% of cases a shrunken brain can be detected behind the CT/MRI data of the brain.

Experiments and observations conducted on people who drank a single shot (50 ml) of vodka found that in all cases alcohol slowed and hindered mental processes, activated animal instincts, the work of motor centers first accelerated and then slowed down with increasing inaccuracy in the work performed. In experiments of the academician I.P. Pavlov established that after repeated alcohol intake the higher functions of brain activity are disturbed, which are restored only on 8–12 days. Modern studies of British scientists on 25378 subjects have shown that there are no safe doses of alcohol for the brain [4].

Alcohol intake contributes to the emergence of all known mental disorders and diseases. Most often, anxiety and depressive disorders increase, extroversion and impulsiveness of mental reactions increase, and emotional stability and behavioral awareness decrease [5]. The frequency of sleep disorders, eating disorders, the development of borderline mental disorders with antisocial behavior, post-traumatic stress disorder increases.

It is a known fact that alcohol has a destructive effect on mirror neurons. Even a single dose of alcohol blocks the functioning of mirror neurons of the brain. So does any other drug. The discovery of mirror neurons in primates by Italian scientist Giacomo Rizzolatti in 1992 and by a group of scientists in humans in 2010 was as important as the discovery of DNA and became a real sensation in the scientific world. The hypotheses created on the basis of this discovery successfully allow us to explain why the higher nervous functions inherent to humans suffer when taking alcohol.

Using the mechanism of mirror neurons involvement, it is possible to explain how exactly a person reads information, feelings, emotions of another person, even before receiving verbal or visual information from another person. Operation of mirror neurons reveals neurophysiological mechanisms of understanding such phenomena of human social life as imitation, empathy, sympathy, emotional responsiveness of people to experiences of another person, as well as mechanisms of telepathy, quick human adaptation to different conditions, modeling events and actions [6].

After the above information, it is not difficult to guess which qualities suffer in a person due to alcohol intake. If alcohol consumption takes place, for example, several times a week, mirror neurons are essentially in a depressed state all the time. Deep moral changes of the individual develop, the spiritual development of a person as a Personality is blocked. Such changes come very early, when mental and thought processes are still almost unchanged. Empathy disappears, moral callousness appears, lies increase, sincerity and truth diminish, and conscience is lost. The loss of shame, of moral qualities in people who drink alcohol was popularly referred to as “shameless lying,” and in a typical expression to a drunk person, “no shame, no conscience”.

Thus, one cannot speak of the harmlessness of drinking alcoholic beverages in any dose, in any form, and with any frequency of consumption.

FALSE: Only people who abuse alcohol are addicted to taking alcohol.

TRUTH: Everyone who consumes alcohol has an addiction to drinking — regardless of how often they drink or how much they drink. The whole perniciousness of alcohol consumption for a human being can be understood by reviewing information set forth in the encyclopedia of the Primordial Knowledge — the “AllatRa” book [7].

“One of the ways in which the Animal mind completely subdues a person is to provoke in him the desire to use alcohol or drugs.

At the level of neurophysiology, there is an imbalance, many neurons in the brain are blocked. A person perceives information poorly already. But the Animal nature actively dominates him, it seems to him that he is a “hero”, that he is allowed everything in this world. Such a bubble (illusion) does not arise in principle because of what a person is like in reality, but simply because there is a failure in the brain system, the state of consciousness of the Personality is switched to another mode, where there is a complete subordination to the Animal nature. For the Spiritual nature in person — it is a collapse, it is like, figuratively speaking, to put the Soul in a deadly poisonous environment. Its power is already partially blocked by the “light-filters”-sub-personalities, and such total domination of the Animal nature in the new Personality simply deprives it of its last chance and hope. Alcohol and drugs make a person an obedient slave to the Animal mind and, even in small doses, kill off the germ of the spiritual in him. Over time a person develops an alcohol or drug addiction, which he denies in every possible way. At the same time the person stubbornly continues to use this poison, citing any reasons (traditions, holidays, birthdays, funerals, personal stresses and so on). As a result, he does not notice how his spiritual foundations are lost, how this addiction grows into a reduction of his human nature to the level of animal instincts, and how his Personality degenerates. I have already mentioned that people who are intoxicated are inadequate in their perception of information. In most cases, all that dominates in them at the moment of alcoholic intoxication (consider poisoning) are thoughts aloud from the Animal nature about themselves, about the objects of their pride, about their unfulfilled selfish desires, unrealized, exorbitant ambitions. This is indeed a real tragedy, and first of all, for the Personality itself.

“…a person who consumes even small amounts of alcohol, no matter for what period of time, spiritually degrades as a Personality. …if a person completely quits drinking or using drugs, the body eventually recovers, and the person gets a chance to develop his Personality spiritually.”

“AllatRa” book by A. Novykh

It becomes clear that any attempt to quit drinking alcohol will be accompanied by a syndrome of obsessive thoughts — why one should not quit drinking alcohol and why one should continue using it. But if the Personality has not yet completely degenerated from drinking alcohol, it can choose to stop drinking alcohol at any time, ignoring any negative thoughts and desires.

And man’s inner freedom arises only when he is on the spiritual path, when he develops a Personality. If a person as a Personality feels the world of the Spiritual, has an experience of contact with it — he will never use alcohol or drugs, he will be steadfast in his choice. He will not replace the feeling of inner celebration with emotions and surrogates of comfort from consciousness.

FALSE: If blood alcohol concentration does not exceed such and such level — then it is acceptable, both at work, driving and at home.

TRUTH: There have been many studies showing a direct correlation between the increase in injuries and deaths of workers at work and in transport depending on the dose of alcohol consumed. For example, research by Czechoslovak scientists has shown that a mug of beer drunk by a driver before driving increases the number of accidents by 7 times, intake of 50g of vodka — by 30 times, and intake of 200g of vodka — by 130 times in comparison with sober drivers. Also, about 18% of workplace injuries are related to intoxication. There is no “permissible” concentration of alcohol in the blood, which supposedly has no significant effect on the frequency of accidents in transport and production.

Statistics show that 28% of alcohol-related deaths are due to injuries from traffic accidents, self-harm, and interpersonal violence. About 20% of domestic injuries, 46% of street injuries, and up to 18% of work-related injuries are due to intoxication. Alcohol use is responsible for up to 80% of marital breakdowns. Even a small amount of alcohol or low-alcohol beverages increases the risk of violence, especially among teenagers and young adults. According to law enforcement, drunk people are responsible for more than 90 percent of gun crimes and more than 85 percent of fights and altercations. Alcohol is the cause of half to two-thirds of all homicides, at least half of serious assaults, and more than a quarter of all rapes [8].

It is also necessary to consider a general property of narcotic poisons: those who start taking minimum doses quickly become addicted and then move on to larger doses and more frequent use of alcohol.

FALSE: Alcohol is good for health: alcohol relieves stress, wine reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, vodka is the best remedy for flu and colds, pure alcohol treats stomach and duodenal ulcers, drinking alcohol increases sexual potency, beer improves digestion and metabolism.

TRUTH: Alcohol has certain properties that create the illusion that it can act like medicine.

Alcohol relieves tension, it seems to a person that he is a “hero”, that everything is allowed to him in this world, that he achieves freedom from external circumstances. But the trouble is that a person does not become like that. As mentioned above, such perception arises due to the blocking of many neurons, a person inadequately perceives information. A person seeks inner freedom, but through alcohol he does not find it, external and internal conflicts only get worse over time. At the beginning of the twentieth century, I. A. Sikorsky (father of I. I. Sikorsky, the famous aircraft designer) wrote:

Here is the clear payback for the short-term illusion of well-being, and the relief of stress.

Alcohol can dilate blood vessels. But this is short-lived. At the same time, many European and American medical researchers have been stubbornly proving for a long time the preventive effect of alcohol in CHD (coronary heart disease), based on the so-called French paradox. A short-term phenomenon under the influence of alcohol, then they narrow as a result of many reasons. The action of alcohol leads to the gluing of red blood cells into “coin columns”, which exacerbates blood flow disorders in the capillaries, increases oxygen starvation of tissues, vascular dystonia and capillary microthrombosis develop. This leads to an increase in blood pressure and the likelihood of stroke and myocardial infarction. Damage to the cardiovascular system from an alcohol consumption is often seen in the form of alcoholic hypertension and myocardial damage with reduced myocardial function.

It consists of mortality from CHD in France is lower than would be expected because of the high national prevalence of smoking and saturated fat consumption. This is explained by frequent consumption of red wine [9]. This assumption had no scientific support and was primarily attributed not to the effects of alcohol per se, but to the effects of resveratrol, an antioxidant contained in red wine. Resveratrol is a substance produced by plants in response to stress and is found in grape skins and red wine. The experiment has shown that the resveratrol has the ability to improve metabolism and longevity in mice fed a high-fat diet [10]. But considering that the concentration of resveratrol in red wine is between 1.5 and 3 mg per liter, a person weighing 70 kg would need to consume more than 1000 liters of red wine a day to achieve the concentration of resveratrol as in this study. In addition, it has been shown in studies involving over 24,000 adults over the age of 50, that any dose of alcohol does not reduce people’s mortality rates. [11, 12]. On the contrary, life expectancy is reduced by an average of 10% in women and 15% in men when alcohol is consumed.

Alcohol has a disinfectant property. But this does not mean that if you drink alcohol, it will destroy germs and viruses in the human body. Ethyl alcohol destroys microflora as long as its concentration is as high as 70%. To achieve the disinfectant properties of alcohol, a patient would need to drink at least 10 liters of alcohol, which is 20 times the lethal dose for humans. That is why not a single person has been cured of influenza by a glass of vodka and pepper so far. The French Academy of Sciences specifically checked this folk belief and proved that alcohol has no effect on influenza viruses, as well as other viruses, and cannot serve as a therapeutic or prophylactic agent. On the contrary, drinking alcohol weakens cellular and humoral immunity, also increases the permeability of cell membranes and increases the risk of microorganisms and their toxins entering the cell. This can lead to a more severe course of any infectious disease.

On the background of taking concentrated ethyl alcohol, ulcer pains go away, and stomach and 12 duodenal ulcers are scarred. In fact, patients with peptic ulcer disease who were treated with this “folk” method often come to the surgical department with a perforated ulcer or eventually with a stomach tumor. This is explained by the fact that undiluted 96% alcohol, entering the stomach, kills nerve endings exposed in the ulcer (in medicine this effect of ethyl alcohol is used to conduct alcohol blockades for severe untreatable neuralgic pain). If painful sensations disappear with an unhealed ulcer, there is no adequate treatment, the ulcerous defect deepens, and then it can be ruptured. If an ulcer on the background of taking ethyl alcohol with time heals, then rough ulcerous scars are formed, against which the risk of malignant tumors of the stomach increases.

Alcohol promotes sex drive. But how! When intoxicated, a man easily follows his instincts, showing promiscuity and irresponsibility in his behavior,such restraining mechanisms as embarrassment, awkwardness, caution are turned off. This also applies to sexual desire. The consequences can be dramatic: infection with venereal diseases, HIV infection, unwanted pregnancies, followed by psychological problems and broken lives. Alcohol consumption also causes impotence over time. Shakespeare, through the mouth of one of his characters, claimed that alcohol “gives rise to desire, but prevents satisfaction.” One cannot but agree with the classic.

Beer (and to a lesser extent other alcoholic beverages) contributes to the acidity of the stomach due to the summation of the effects of alcohol, bitterness and carbon dioxide contained in beer. Accordingly, the production of digestive enzymes is also stimulated. At the same time, even after a single consumption of beer or other alcoholic beverage, a typical picture of gastritis (inflammation of the stomach) develops, the pancreas suffers with the frequent development of pancreatitis. Over time, under the influence of alcohol, atrophic changes occur in the entire glandular apparatus of the digestive tract, which leads to decreased secretion and, accordingly, impaired digestion, increased risk of malignant neoplasms.

Alcohol is the main enemy of the liver, whose main function is to cleanse the body of toxins and regulate all kinds of metabolism. In the liver, taking beer or other alcohol, can quickly develop fatty hepatosis, chronic hepatitis, and over time, even cirrhosis and malignant liver tumor. In the initial stages, these diseases may occur in a latent form. For example, in Europe, the highest incidence of liver cirrhosis is recorded in the Czech Republic, Germany, and Austria, where, according to statistics, the highest consumption of beer per 1 inhabitant of these countries.

People who constantly drink beer increase the likelihood of coronary heart disease, the heart increases in size (the so-called “bull’s heart”). This leads to heart failure, physical activity is hard to bear. There is also a significant increase in the risk of death from a stroke.

Beer contains phytoestrogen, which is a plant analogue of the female sex hormone progesterone. Beer suppresses the production of the male sex hormone testosterone. Against this background, female hormones begin to dominate, causing changes in the appearance of the man: decreased amount of hair on the body and face, decreased muscle mass, enlarged breasts, changes in voice timbre, there is a “beer belly” and fat is deposited on the hips and waist. At the same time the sex drive decreases in both sexes.

There is an opinion that beer improves lactation and in children it improves sleep. New studies have found that the alcohol content of beer levels out all of its possible beneficial properties (the content of trace elements, biologically active substances). It is also found that beer reduces the level of the female sex hormone oxytocin which enhances the secretion of milk. It is proven that beer does not reliably increase lactation, in addition, it becomes more difficult to start feeding. Alcohol passes into breast milk. There is evidence that mothers’ use of alcohol can negatively affect infants’ sleep, they wake up more often, and their sleep becomes 25% shorter. But the most important question parents should ask themselves is: What are the consequences for me and my child if he or she becomes addicted to alcohol from the first months of life? The question itself is sobering.

FALSE: Alcohol helps cure by being part of various medicines.

TRUTH: Alcohol is a solvent and preservative in medicines. Its damaging effect on biological membranes increases their permeability, which speeds up and increases the completeness of absorption of alcohol-dissolved drugs, which increases their therapeutic effect. Alcohol tinctures are usually taken in drops.

Regular use of alcohol-containing medications can be harmful both to health in general and to the formation of alcohol dependence. The harms of ethyl alcohol have forced health professionals to look for other ways to administer medications to the body. Safer drug delivery methods are now being introduced, such as aerosols, powdered fine nebulizers, carbon dioxide carbonated solutions, sublingual, rectal use of drugs in the form of suppositories, foam, liposomal trandermal drug forms, development of nanoparticles of drugs.

FALSE: The negative effects of alcohol are greatly exaggerated.

TRUTH: In fact, as a rule, the mass media downplay or suppress information about the negative impact of alcohol on human health, on spiritual development, on relations between people in teams and society, on the economy of states.

Alcohol is one of the most dangerous substances in the world. Its use is associated with higher rates of morbidity and mortality, a decrease in the quality of life of both drinkers themselves and their loved ones. According to WHO data for 2018, more than 3 million people die each year from alcohol consumption, most of them men [13]. Thus, about 1 in 10 deaths among the working-age population is the result of alcohol use [14, 15]. The medical consequences of alcohol use can be manifest in any organ and system of the organism [16, 17].

Alcohol consumption increases the risk of certain cancers (esophagus, stomach, colon, biliary tract and pancreas, liver, breast, lung) [18–21].

According to 83 studies analyzing data from about 600,000 patients, it has been found that mortality from disease increases in direct proportion to increasing the dose of alcohol consumption and correlates with lower life expectancy [22].

Falls, bone fractures, drowning, burns, hypothermia, and occupational injuries are more common among drinkers [23–26]. Also alcohol consumption (in any dose) is a leading risk factor for disability [27].

A meta-analysis of 31 studies combining data from more than 400,000 participants found a link between alcohol use and both suicidal ideation and suicide [28].

From this you can see that the negative consequences associated with alcohol consumption are enormous.

FALSE: Alcohol can be consumed during pregnancy.

TRUTH: According to medical research, it is not recommended to consume alcohol in any dose during pregnancy [29–31].

Alcohol penetrates freely through the placenta: fetal blood alcohol levels approach maternal levels within two hours of its ingestion by the mother. Alcohol is a teratogen that affects fetal growth and development at all stages of pregnancy [32–36].

Children with developmental abnormalities are born 4–5 times more often to “cultured drinkers”, and 37 times more often to alcoholics than to teetotalers. The most serious consequences of alcohol exposure during pregnancy are stillbirths, physical and mental defects and malformations developing both in the fetus and in childhood [37–39].

It is also appropriate to cite the results of a unique experiment conducted by the French scientist Morel. He followed the lives of four generations of alcohol drinkers and summarized the results of the study:

FALSE: You can quench your thirst by drinking beer.

TRUTH: You can’t quench your thirst with beer. Beer accelerates the excretion of fluid from the body due to the diuretic effect, which means that the more you drink it, the more significant the lack of fluid in the body becomes. In addition, alcohol acidifies the body, intercellular fluid due to the decay products of alcohol (acetaldehyde, acetic acid), which also requires additional attraction of fluid to the intercellular matrix. Despite the pronounced diuretic effect, beer, like other alcohol, contributes to the retention of fluid in the tissues (there is puffiness of tissues, puffiness of the face). Beer washes important “building materials” from the body — micro- and macroelements, especially potassium, magnesium and vitamin C. Potassium deficiency leads to heart rhythm disorders, calf pain and weakness in the legs. Magnesium deficiency affects mood — a person becomes irritable, weepy, sleep becomes worse. Due to the lack of vitamin C, immunity decreases and colds occur more often. To compensate for the loss of fluid (leading to increased thirst), you will drink over and over again. So, trying to quench your thirst with beer so that you don’t want to drink is like pouring oil on the fire to put it out.

FALSE: The amount of alcohol that comes with beer is minimal.

TRUTH: That’s not true. Beer does have a much lower alcohol concentration than vodka, but a beer glass holds much more liquid than a shot of vodka. A 0.5 liter of beer, a glass of wine or a shot of vodka (50 ml) contain approximately the same amount of alcohol. Some beers have an alcohol content of up to 14% or more, which means that a glass of beer is equivalent to 100 ml of vodka.

But the most important thing is that even on the background of smaller doses of alcohol, addiction to it develops 3–4 times faster! There is even a separate medical term — beer alcoholism. This is partly due to the accessibility and ease of drinking the drink. In terms of narcology, beer addiction is even worse to treat than other types of alcoholism. More often such patients come to hospitals with heart, liver and stomach problems, and they always deny beer addiction.

FALSE: Alcohol warms you up.

TRUTH: Contrary to the popular expression “drinking to warm you up,” after taking alcohol, the body temperature not only does not increase, but even decreases slightly. Indeed, on a cold winter’s day, it may seem that after drinking alcohol, one’s body warms up. But this is only an illusion: alcohol acts on the vascular center in the brain, as a result of which the blood vessels, including the capillaries under the skin, expand. A deceptive feeling of warmth arises, a person has less control over his condition — in fact, the total body temperature, on the contrary, decreases due to increased heat transfer to the environment. Also the vasodilating effect of alcohol is short-lived, much longer the resulting microcirculatory disorders due to metabolic changes and the sticking of red blood cells into “coin columns”. Because of all this, the risk of hypothermia is much higher in a person who has been drinking in the cold.

FALSE: A few cups of coffee drunk after drinking alcohol relieves intoxication and makes it hard to detect that you’ve been drinking.

TRUTH: Neither coffee, peppermint, chewing gum, or advertised medications can neutralize alcohol. The most they can do to mask the distinctive smell of your breath. Only the liver can neutralize alcohol, but this takes time.

FALSE: If you drink “culturally,” there’s nothing wrong with it.

TRUTH: Culture, morality, ethics, morals-all of these relate to the activity of the brain. The whole absurdity of the “drinking culturally” proposition is that alcohol causes irreversible changes in brain cells, as detailed above. And addiction to alcohol develops with any dose of alcohol. Changes in the central nervous system lead to profound changes in the psyche — spiritual degradation, uncultivation, decay of morality, reduction of intellect. On the contrary, the refusal of “cultural” consumption of alcoholic beverages is the key to the solution of the whole alcoholic problem. N.A. Semashko wrote: “Drunkenness and culture are two concepts that are mutually exclusive, like ice and fire, light and darkness.”

FALSE: All the harm caused by alcoholic beverages applies only to hardened alcoholics.

TRUTH: Attempts to attribute the harmful effects of alcohol only to those recognized as alcoholics are fundamentally wrong. The changes that occur in the brain under the influence of alcohol, with all the resulting negative consequences for a man as a Personality, occur when alcohol is consumed in any dose.

FALSE: “Dry laws” do not lead to anything good.

TRUTH: World experience shows that a reasonable combination of legislative, prohibitive, social, educational and other measures, applied in a complex to solve the alcohol problem, as a rule, leads to positive changes.

No prohibitionist system has ever been repealed by popular initiative. In countries whose governments have defended it and fought irreconcilably against violators, it has stood the test of time. The Muslim populations of Arab countries (Libya, Iran, Saudi Arabia and others) have lived sober lives for the second millennium and are not going to repeal the dry law. In some European countries (Norway, Iceland) at the beginning of the twentieth century, dry laws proved to be very effective, but were repealed under pressure from transnational alcoholic beverage producers. In the U.S., during Prohibition in the early twentieth century, the overall level of alcohol consumption decreased so much that after its repeal, the level of alcohol consumption by the population was low for another 20 years or so.

In today’s consumer society, people’s sober lifestyles are disadvantageous, especially to those who govern the nations. Why is it that, for all the apparent struggle against the use of alcohol around the world, it is actually tacitly encouraged? Who benefits from it — the answer is obvious.

FALSE: Religions do not forbid the consumption of alcohol.

TRUTH: There really is no direct prohibition against drinking alcohol in the Bible. In fact, at the end of the Last Supper, where Christ said goodbye to his disciples, he took the cup of wine and bequeathed to them, “Drink of it all. For this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins.” This commandment was embodied by Christians in the ritual of communion, during which the priest gives the congregation some wine and bread as a symbol of Christ’s blood and flesh.

More and more Bible and New Testament scholars doubt that Jesus Christ gave alcoholic wine to those present during the Last Supper and at the wedding at Cana of Galilee. In these texts there is clearly a collision in the translation of the word “wine” from Aramaic, the language spoken by the prophet, into ancient Greek, the language in which the Bible was already written and the Christian religion was built. In fact, it was pure grape juice. Knowing the consequences of wedding drunkenness with showdowns and fights, it is hard to imagine Christ provoking people to do such things. And during the Easter, when the events of the Last Supper took place, the Jewish tradition was to have no leaven or fermentation products in the house for seven days at all.

The Bible clearly condemns drunkenness and drunkards. Many currents of Christianity (Old Believers, Pentecostals) also adhere to a complete renunciation of alcohol. In modern orthodoxy there are also strict restrictions on alcohol consumption; it is forbidden to drink on all Lenten days (about 200 sober days a year) and to drink alcohol at funerals.

Hinduism forbids the consumption of alcohol, so no alcohol is served in restaurants, but some establishments allow you to bring your own. On Fridays in India, the law is dry, and alcohol cannot be obtained at any cost.

In Buddhism the use of alcohol is condemned. In early Buddhism, followers of Shakyamuni Buddha were instructed to avoid drinking alcoholic beverages completely and without exception.

Islam is unequivocally prohibits a person from drinking alcohol and use of drugs. The Prophet Muhammad did not approve of the use of alcohol, even for medicinal purposes. Here are some ayats of the Koran: “They ask you about wine and gambling. Say, “In them is great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people. But their sin is greater than their benefit.” And they ask you what they should spend. Say, “The excess [beyond needs].” (Qur’an, Al-Baqarah [2] : 219) O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful. (Qur’an, Al-Ma’idah [5] : 90). However, the main real historical consequence of Islam’s prohibition of alcohol has been the exclusion of its consumption from the sphere of open publicity. Thus, the prohibition in the Islamic religion has not become absolute, and the complete rejection of alcohol is a personal matter for each believer.

Thus, as the scriptures and laws of many religions show, alcohol and communication with God are incompatible and the best option for the believer is sobriety.

FALSE: I drink like everyone else because all people drink alcoholic beverages.

TRUTH: According to WHO estimates, 2.3 billion people in the world currently drink alcohol [40]. The largest amounts of alcohol are consumed in Europe, the United States, Canada, England, and the Russian Federation.

WHO experts consider 8 liters of pure alcohol per year per resident over the age of 15 to be the critical threshold, followed by degradation and actual self-destruction of the nation. This threshold has been passed by all of the above countries.

But is everything so hopeless?

Globally, more than half (57%, or 3.1 billion people) of the world’s population aged 15 and older had abstained from alcohol in the previous 12 months in 2016 [40].

First of all, each person must decide for himself whether to use alcoholic drugs or to give them up completely and lead a life worthy of the title of Man. Who stops a Personality from disciplining his thoughts? Who stops people from bringing order to society themselves? Everything is in the hands of the people themselves.

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