Draciack

A lot of things associate with a lot of things.

The study is really well done, taking into account a bunch of variables, but things that were left out are pretty damn important - years of abstaining, reasons for abstaining, to name just two. Also there are the usual problems with self-report measures, i.e. that people can be deceptive, and that alcohol consumption was measured according to baseline - not over the entire period of the study.

But, yeah, interesting.

Oh, and the article never specifies the difference between hard drinkers and alcoholics. A lot of people drank as much as I did. But I'm the guy who can't stop once he starts and has the mental obsession, etc. Major difference IMO.

DrunkenBasement

So there is a slight chance that I am immortal? Cool.

Boleo

I digress. I thought this was a recovery related forum. LOL!

GettingStronger2

"Abstainers’ mortality rates are higher than those of heavy drinkers…"

LMAO. Last i checked, we all pretty much have the same rate -- 100%.

Fandy

me too.....i think that there are many factors to be considered regarding longevity.

Drinking exacerbates my depression...sometimes it was to the point where i did not get out of bed, except to refill my wine glass.

Dee74

I'm not too bothered by scientific research - the article comes from Time or Newsweek and ends up suggesting moderate drinking is a good thing, healthwise.

It's obviously not an article written for guys like us LOL.

I know for a fact it's likely I'd be dead, or pretty much near to it, had I kept drinking.

I may cash in my chips tomorrow (hopefully not LOL) but I know the last 4 years have been the best of my life - I want to keep living the way I am for the rest of my life...

D

BackToSquareOne

Dee is right, I've read many articles that concluded that moderate drinkers live longer than non-drinkers. Alcohol may very have some positive health benefits in small amounts.

You can overdose on almost anything, even food. Chronic overdosing on alcohol is slow suicide, it affects every organ in your body. If you factor in the premature deaths from alcohol related disease, accidents, mental health and social problems related to alcoholism it no longer seems like such a great deal.

c49

The real reason for the higher mortality rate is simple.... Sobriety increases the likelihood of have great, passionate, and not to mention frequent sex with quality partners.... that in turn increases the risk of stroke or heart attack.

grateful101010

I'm from the South originally. It is a fact that in the South and midWest, there is a significant portion of the population who are lifelong teetotalers due to religion. Go to one of their frequent church gatherings. I guarantee you will see a lot of obese, sedentary people eating very unhealthy food. So they're not going to live as long. But it's not because they don't drink.

topspin

Grateful, I think you're on to something there.


I don't go out to many resturaunts here in the Deep South , for just that reason.

Finished a long bike ride several weeks ago on a day trip that toured the Okeefenokie Swamp. Loading our bikes up, we noticed a local place with a packed parking lot, ....advertizing their Buffet. We were damn hungry, so in we went !?!

Still can't get the image out of my mind, once we left.

Bic, ...yea, I mean to tell ya', Folkston Ga. some really Bic folks.
Dollars to dougnuts, ....not a serious boozer in the bunch.

grateful101010

Let's not forget, there are a lot of bible-thumping, teetotaling smokers, too. Got to support one of their major cash crops.

So, due to the gold ole boy diet, we have: obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, emphysema, lung cancer, other cancers, but no cirrhosis.

StPeteGrad

Holy Crap! I'm gonna die? Somhow, sometime?

A year ago I wasn't afraid of death but I was also afraid to live.

I've got some living to do now, no time for death.

Seth84

That makes sense. Totally agree. I had an Uncle who was a dry drunk. The guy was a total nut case. Prior to that he had been a relatively normal, nice person, aside from being an active alcoholic. He tried recovery, never followed through. He ultimately turned into a psychopath, but always pointed out how he was sober. He was sober all right, but something totally malfunctioned in his brain. Dry drunking is bad news if you're an alcoholic. Needless to say, he died at 59.

littlefish

Hee hee: this thread gave me something to chuckle about. Yes, I have been to one of those southern all-you-can-eat buffets. Man, it was like me at happy hour: all I could pour down my throat 2 for 1. Gah!
I agree with one of the posters here who said the study obviously was not including people like us.

ozgoddess

Drinking can also mean that we take the lives of others into our hands, not just our own i.e. drink driving comes to mind ...

I am with Dee, gosh if I fall off the face of the earth tomorrow, the last 12 + months have been great - not just for me but for my family and those that love me