I quit drinking and have experienced no discernable benefit

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree PP. the people calling this a conspiracy are simply addicted to alcohol and are afraid of evolving.

People believed the truth about cigarettes because it comported with their lived experiences - smoke cigarettes and you DO see how it impacts your health - directly. There are literally no long-term smokers who look good, are active, healthy, disease free.

But wine is different. My aunt drinks a bottle of wine a night, and has for TWENTY years. She’s almost 70. No health problems, no cancer, looks really good for her age. She eats well and exercises every day. Great lifestyle.

Your aunt is an alcoholic with a physiological dependency on alcohol. If she were to suddenly stop drinking, she will experience withdrawal, which is no fun at all.

This moment in time does remind me of smoking. Everyone knew smoking was bad for them - just like alcohol - but they did it anyway because it was a social norm. A very high percentage of people smoked from roughly 1940 to 2000. And then suddenly, smoking was deemed trashy and people stopped smoking cigarettes and young people didn't pick it up. I think a similar moment is happening with alcohol. People are increasingly aware that alcohol is a sledgehammer to every organ in their body. It's sugar and empty calories and it takes a long time to recover, particularly as you get older. More and more people are deciding the buzz isn't worth the costs - whether its health or the behavioral issues that sometimes arise with drinking.

But I don't think people are necessarily embracing 100 percent sobriety. It's not a coincidence that the turn away from alcohol is happening just as cannabis is becoming widely available and socially acceptable. Instead of drinks at the end of the day, people are taking a gummy instead. California sober will increasingly become the norm, particularly among the young. Plus bars are really expensive these days. A gummy costs approximately two dollars. Whereas two mixed drinks at a bar can easily run 40 dollars with tip. The trend lines are very clear. Young people can't afford to drink. And older people are increasingly concerned about their health.

No, this is simply an American bugbear. I am in Europe right now and everyone is drinking wine, lunch and dinner, young and old. I sat next to a table of 70 year olds knocking back wine at lunch yesterday.

A bottle of wine a night is not an American bugbear. It's alcohol use disorder. That said, I functioned just fine on a bottle of wine a night when I drank.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP I drink for two months of the year (more than 2 drinks). It used to be wine but now it is bloody Mary’s.
I too thought when I went to this life style I would lose 10lb from alcohol alone. It did not work that way for me either.
It did quickly lower my blood pressure I noticed.
For a few years I have been very into exercise and some old people body building competitions.
When I come off my two months of drinking it takes about 3-4 weeks for my body to reset, bp to drop, and “fog” of alcohol brain.

This is bizarre. For 2 months a year you drink bloody marys, then you don't drink the rest of the year?

Yes, 10 months out of the year I am in training. I probably only drink a few times a week in my off months but it is just bloody Mary’s and occasionally a beer or glass of wine.

Bloody Mary is one of the “healthiest” drinks actually. Not as good as vodka tonic or something but I like bloody Mary’s more and am going to indulge in my off time.

I love a bloody, but they have a ridiculous amount of sodium, so “healthy” might be a stretch.

[Anonymous]

This is 100% a man thing and a 50+ thing

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Beer, wine and spirits are for dumb boomers.

Ambitious, smart and competitive young professionals are into adderall, zyn and testosterone replacement therapy.

Adderall put me to sleep because I actually need it 🤭

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is 100% a man thing and a 50+ thing

What is?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Beer, wine and spirits are for dumb boomers.

Ambitious, smart and competitive young professionals are into adderall, zyn and testosterone replacement therapy.

Adderall put me to sleep because I actually need it 🤭

Hah, how are those drugs different than alcohol? They all mask and replace what you are really feeling inside.

FYI your balls will shrink from the extra testosterone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have long known that processed meat - bacon, sausage, pepperoni, as well as red meat is a carcinogen and it has been recognized as such and due to the industry you never ever hear about avoiding it on a regular basis whereas right now, huge alcohol is the devil message everywhere.

What's your gut instinct about why the focus is alcohol now vs red meat, processed food, environmental factors, etc?

DP here. It’s two things: the cannabis lobby and further testing by government to see how messaging works to change society. Will enough of society stop thinking critically and follow the herd if the right messaging is repeated over and over? For the last year, the answer was largely yes, but I think people are finally starting to wake up.

+1 I'm really starting to buy into the conspiracy theory that the cannabis lobby is behind the recent negative messaging around alcohol. Even in DCUM you had a post immediately after the surgeon general's recommendation asking for recommendations of gummies or a THC drink to replace alcohol.

You think the cannabis lobby is more powerful than the booze lobby? Come on.

OP here. You've summarized my take. Something seems off-normal and coordinated about the campaign to tell us that our skin, sleep, and spirit will improve with no alcohol. And it also seems that there's a lot of cannabis ads. But I would be surprised if cannabis is better organized than alcohol. Maybe cannabis is being bought up by powerful companies? On its face, it doesn't seem like this is the likely reason for all of this.

There is simply something going on here. In the NYT This Morning email there was a link to yet ANOTHER article about cutting back on alcohol. After just running one on Monday. One commenter on this article--because again, at least a few are starting to ask why, NYT--one person said they think it's Biden's last-ditch effort to make some kind of difference. That may be a stretch, and it's pretty pathetic. But something is up. This just doesn't make sense. Article after article, with nothing new.

I think the main thing that’s going on is that they reassessed the study/studies that suggested wine had any health benefits — turns out the benefits were relative only; wine drinkers weren’t being compared to non-drinkers, only to drinkers of hard liquors. Then the more they looked at the data using real controls, the worse it seemed.

Did people assume “something was up” when the media started discussing the harms of cigarettes, I wonder? It feels comparable — something that most of us do, that humans have done forever, that’s a source of real pleasure, that we assume probably isn’t great but can’t be *that* bad. If anyone remembers the anti-smoking shift, I’d be curious if the conversation/skepticism feels similar.

None of what you say is accurate. That's the problem. It's so easy for the government and media to fear-monger because they know they majority of people do not or are not able to understand the science behind it. Read the studies. Smoking was proven to directly cause cancer. Moderate drinking has not been so definitevely. You have to read the studies with just a tiny bit of care to understand this. But you read shallow articles and get your information from DCUM and Instagram and simply don't understand the facts.

I think it’s all these apps the techies use. We are all quickly able to see alcohol’s impact on heart rate, sleep, calories, weight, etc.

Plus everyone uses social media and zoom, so your weight and puffy face has more permanency than ever before.

Plus everyone uses those workout apps which share all of your physical activities.

It’s become really sad and cringe, for lack of a better word, to be seen as some lazy and puffy boozer. Eating cleanly. Living cleanly. Walking around in form-fitting workout clothes and yoga pants. Hiking.

Boozing just isn’t trendy and cool anymore. Boozing after work and happy hours are seen as like a boomer thing. Having lots of will-power to be a teetotaler is cool now.

No matter how many times you repeat this, it doesn’t take away from the fact that the world’s bars in large urban centers are packed with young, attractive people, drinking alcohol.

Maybe bars full of "Barstool" idiots? Otherwise, I'm afraid you're out of touch. The smartest most ambitious young people are not at happy hour or closing down the bars anymore. That has become cringe, immature, ignorant, or whatever. The smart young people were drinking a little wine and those zero cal drinks but even that has become less cool than being a pure teetotaler. Competitive kids want to look and act serious, get married, buy houses, be in great shape (maybe even run marathons or triathlons), and make a lot of money. Boozing your life away is for the unambitious and Barstool nitwits.

[Anonymous]

The craft beer, bourbon and wine industries are melting down. Why? Because trend-setting affluent people in their 20s-50s are not buying this crap anymore. 0% beers are building market share. Bars that literally don't serve alcoholic drinks are popping up everywhere. Teetotaling is having a big moment whether you want to admit it or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The craft beer, bourbon and wine industries are melting down. Why? Because trend-setting affluent people in their 20s-50s are not buying this crap anymore. 0% beers are building market share. Bars that literally don't serve alcoholic drinks are popping up everywhere. Teetotaling is having a big moment whether you want to admit it or not.

The only bar that served only non-alcoholic drinks near us shut down within 2 months.

Although I do agree, young people are less into alcohol and more into weed and pills. Possibly it is cheaper.

[Anonymous]

Every half-decent restaurant now carries a few 0% beers and their cocktail menu has mocktails on it. Is that all some conspiracy, too? Of course not. They’re responding to a growing niche.

Dovetailing, smart adults are avoiding seed oils. Look at Steak & Shake just announced they’re getting rid of seed oil and cooking fries in beef tallow. Internet and social media makes niche aspirational health trends explode in popularity over night.

[Anonymous]

Bourbon dweebs are cringe. Wine snobs are cringe. Craft beer dorks are fat and cringe. None of those things seem aspirational anymore because none of them improve you or your body or reflect well on you as a human being. Having self control is cool. Being in shape is cool. Being thin is cool. Clear eyes are cool. Bragging on the strava app is cool. Being a drunken addict isn’t cool, being a sober adrenaline junky is cool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bourbon dweebs are cringe. Wine snobs are cringe. Craft beer dorks are fat and cringe. None of those things seem aspirational anymore because none of them improve you or your body or reflect well on you as a human being. Having self control is cool. Being in shape is cool. Being thin is cool. Clear eyes are cool. Bragging on the strava app is cool. Being a drunken addict isn’t cool, being a sober adrenaline junky is cool.

Um I’m having a hard time believing you are sober, but if so, I understand why you can’t drink. You need all the brain cells you can get. Stop embarrassing yourself and everyone you identify with, goodness.

[Anonymous]

It varies from person to person and I think it’s mostly genetic.

My brother and H can’t have even one drink or they will go on a binge. So they are sober and feel much better.

My dad and I both enjoy 1 glass on wine on weeknights, 2 on the weekends. Neither of us have been drunk since our 20s. It’s just a nice evening ritual and way to unwind, similar to having a cup of coffee in the AM.

My sister and mom rarely drink during day to day life but love to party during holidays and vacations, they’re the type who starts drinking by noon and will have several throughout the day. But once the vacation is over, they’re done.

Even among the binge drinkers, the effects are different. My brother is an extremely angry drunk, and after he gave alcohol up, he lost weight like crazy, slept better, looks better. H is the type who could knock back 10 drinks and you’d never know - his laid back personality never changes (I was shocked when he confessed to me he had a problem, I never even knew). He never lost any weight when he quit drinking, sleeps like a rock either way, and overall looks great with flawless skin and a full head of hair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bourbon dweebs are cringe. Wine snobs are cringe. Craft beer dorks are fat and cringe. None of those things seem aspirational anymore because none of them improve you or your body or reflect well on you as a human being. Having self control is cool. Being in shape is cool. Being thin is cool. Clear eyes are cool. Bragging on the strava app is cool. Being a drunken addict isn’t cool, being a sober adrenaline junky is cool.

As an adrenaline junky, good luck having and maintaining a family with a career and marathons etc in the coming decades. We will check up on you to see if you are still married and not completely burned out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have long known that processed meat - bacon, sausage, pepperoni, as well as red meat is a carcinogen and it has been recognized as such and due to the industry you never ever hear about avoiding it on a regular basis whereas right now, huge alcohol is the devil message everywhere.

What's your gut instinct about why the focus is alcohol now vs red meat, processed food, environmental factors, etc?

DP here. It’s two things: the cannabis lobby and further testing by government to see how messaging works to change society. Will enough of society stop thinking critically and follow the herd if the right messaging is repeated over and over? For the last year, the answer was largely yes, but I think people are finally starting to wake up.

+1 I'm really starting to buy into the conspiracy theory that the cannabis lobby is behind the recent negative messaging around alcohol. Even in DCUM you had a post immediately after the surgeon general's recommendation asking for recommendations of gummies or a THC drink to replace alcohol.

You think the cannabis lobby is more powerful than the booze lobby? Come on.

OP here. You've summarized my take. Something seems off-normal and coordinated about the campaign to tell us that our skin, sleep, and spirit will improve with no alcohol. And it also seems that there's a lot of cannabis ads. But I would be surprised if cannabis is better organized than alcohol. Maybe cannabis is being bought up by powerful companies? On its face, it doesn't seem like this is the likely reason for all of this.

There is simply something going on here. In the NYT This Morning email there was a link to yet ANOTHER article about cutting back on alcohol. After just running one on Monday. One commenter on this article--because again, at least a few are starting to ask why, NYT--one person said they think it's Biden's last-ditch effort to make some kind of difference. That may be a stretch, and it's pretty pathetic. But something is up. This just doesn't make sense. Article after article, with nothing new.

I think the main thing that’s going on is that they reassessed the study/studies that suggested wine had any health benefits — turns out the benefits were relative only; wine drinkers weren’t being compared to non-drinkers, only to drinkers of hard liquors. Then the more they looked at the data using real controls, the worse it seemed.

Did people assume “something was up” when the media started discussing the harms of cigarettes, I wonder? It feels comparable — something that most of us do, that humans have done forever, that’s a source of real pleasure, that we assume probably isn’t great but can’t be *that* bad. If anyone remembers the anti-smoking shift, I’d be curious if the conversation/skepticism feels similar.

None of what you say is accurate. That's the problem. It's so easy for the government and media to fear-monger because they know they majority of people do not or are not able to understand the science behind it. Read the studies. Smoking was proven to directly cause cancer. Moderate drinking has not been so definitevely. You have to read the studies with just a tiny bit of care to understand this. But you read shallow articles and get your information from DCUM and Instagram and simply don't understand the facts.

I think it’s all these apps the techies use. We are all quickly able to see alcohol’s impact on heart rate, sleep, calories, weight, etc.

Plus everyone uses social media and zoom, so your weight and puffy face has more permanency than ever before.

Plus everyone uses those workout apps which share all of your physical activities.

It’s become really sad and cringe, for lack of a better word, to be seen as some lazy and puffy boozer. Eating cleanly. Living cleanly. Walking around in form-fitting workout clothes and yoga pants. Hiking.

Boozing just isn’t trendy and cool anymore. Boozing after work and happy hours are seen as like a boomer thing. Having lots of will-power to be a teetotaler is cool now.

No matter how many times you repeat this, it doesn’t take away from the fact that the world’s bars in large urban centers are packed with young, attractive people, drinking alcohol.

Maybe bars full of "Barstool" idiots? Otherwise, I'm afraid you're out of touch. The smartest most ambitious young people are not at happy hour or closing down the bars anymore. That has become cringe, immature, ignorant, or whatever. The smart young people were drinking a little wine and those zero cal drinks but even that has become less cool than being a pure teetotaler. Competitive kids want to look and act serious, get married, buy houses, be in great shape (maybe even run marathons or triathlons), and make a lot of money. Boozing your life away is for the unambitious and Barstool nitwits.

Those people are insufferable. Cheers to the barstool nitwits!