Alcohol
What Way Are You Damaging Your Liver?
"What causes liver disease?" Ask anyone this question and 99 percent will say, "It's imbibing in too much Cabernet Sauvignon or other alcoholic drinks". But today the liver can be injured by a host of less known, but equally hazardous habits. So how are you doing unfriendly things to your liver? And what can we learn from the "Mayflower" that carried Pilgrims to this continent in 1620? The football-sized liver is an amazing organ. Every day it performs hundreds of functions. But today, as never before in history, its most important challenge is changing toxic substances we ingest into products that can be safely by removed from the body. And although the liver has great power to regenerate, never think it's...Read More
Alcohol
Alcohol in Pregnancy – Suppose This Woman Had Been My Mother
It's an ideal way to write a column. I'm attending a medical conference while cruising the Caribbean sea. But don't think I'm goofing off. I'm spending long days listening to a variety of international speakers. But as a former ship's surgeon I also love being at sea. One speaker, Dr. George Carson, Director of Fetal Medicine at the University of Regina, reported on the use of alcohol in pregnancy. Some authorities have a simple solution for the tragic habit of drinking alcohol during pregnancy. Dr. Christine Lock, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of British Columbia, says it's a myth that only irresponsible derelict mothers cause serious birth defects. Her blunt message, "If we drink in pregnancy we place our...Read More
Alcohol
Health Ad Forbidden in Beer Case
What's in a bottle of beer? 99.9 per cent of my beer-drinking friends didn't realize that beer contains health benefits. A Canadian brewer agreed that distributing information about the contents of this popular drink in beer cases would be beneficial. He also agreed that it must be stressed that excessive alcohol consumption causes serious health problems. But he soon learned the government forbids beer companies to claim any health benefits of any kind. It's an asinine law. The government allows food companies to promote all sorts of junk foods that trigger a variety of degenerative diseases. It does nothing to stop pharmaceutical companies from advertising medications that are often not needed and that can kill. I agree that excessive alcohol can destroy...Read More
Alcohol
We Need A Boar’s Head Pub In Every Hospital
How about opening an English style pub in your local hospital? Just mention this idea to a hospital board and it will question your sanity. Readers may also conclude that I've gotten into the sauce while writing this column. But 25 years ago I visited the Boar's Head in Toronto's Sunnybrook Veteran's Hospital and left convinced that it helped patients cope with medical problems better than most medications. Today hardly a week goes by without hearing that a common drug is causing heart attack, stroke or some other serious complication. Look at any medication and its literature lists potential complications as long as your arm. Alcohol, on the other hand, is one of the oldest drugs known to man and a...Read More
Alcohol
Drinking Mothers Commit A Cardinal Sin – Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Destroying yourself slowly with alcohol has never made any sense. Even worse, destroying an infant physically and mentally before birth is maternal madness. But year after year alcohol-riddled babies are born suffering from fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Alcohol is now known to be the leading preventable cause of mental and physical birth defects in North America. It's an immense medical and social tragedy. Most people believe that Down Syndrome is the most common cause of mental disability. But FAS is twice as common as this problem. Health Canada estimates that nine in every 1,000 babies born in this country have some form of FAS and one in three of these babies will suffer from the severe form, with wide-set eyes, thin...Read More
Alcohol
Cabernet Sauvignon To Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease
What can you do to decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease (AD)? It's a question that has eluded scientists for years. Some researchers believe that Alzheimers is due to an excessive amount of aluminum in the brain and we should try to decrease its intake. But would a glass of Sauvignon each day stop the cerebral ravage of this disease? A study directed by Dr. Jun Wang and his colleagues was reported recently in the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. And it may help to put a cork on what's causing Alzheimer's Disease. Dr. Wang, a psychiatrist at New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine, studied female mice with genes that order the production of amyloid-beta protein. This protein...Read More
Alcohol
What You Don’t Know About Sleeman Beer
In my medical column I've written for years that beer, used in moderation, provides health benefits. Many beer drinkers don't know that Sleeman beer contains no sugars, a huge benefit in fighting obesity. Beer does not contribute to heart disease as it contains no fat, cholesterol or triglycerides. Also its alcohol content increases the good cholesterol that removes cholesterol from the blood. And it greases blood platelets making them less likely to stick together, forming a fatal blood clot. And let's not forget the relaxing effect of beer on the mind. Sleeman beer contains only 25 milligrams of sodium compared with 900 milligrams in a cup of soup, and 3,270 mg in a Rueben sandwich. The greater the amount of salt consumed...Read More
Alcohol
Why I’m Not A Teetotaler
What's the first thing I do after seeing patients all day? I take a 20 minute walk home, greet my wife, open up the bar and enjoy a drink while watching the evening news. Some evenings a glass of wine with dinner. There are 10 reasons why I consider this a healthy habit. One - I enjoy life and want to live longer. The American Cancer Society recently studied the drinking habits of 500,000 Americans. They found that one alcoholic drink a day in middle age decreased the risk of premature death by 20 percent.The reason is that wine contains antioxidants which eliminate free radicals, believed to be associated with aging, heart disease and cancer. And if you like Martinis don't...Read More
Alcohol
New Year’s Red Wine Headache
"Oh my aching head! Why did I drink so much last night?" That's a question many people will ask on January 1, 2006. Some headaches will result from too many Martini's, beers or scotch-and-sodas. That's a hang-over. But you've magnified the odds of a blistering headache if you recklessly imbibed in too much red wine. What is it about red wine that carries such a blow to the head? Recently I spent an evening with friends which included dinner and wine. "Should I order red or white wine?" I asked. One of the females replied, "Red wine gives me a headache". This made the choice easy, a Chardonnay. Few dispute that the red wine headache (RWH) is a reality. But the causes...Read More
Alcohol
Sorry, James Bond, But You’re Wrong!
Why would I disagree with James Bond? He's ordered dry martini's for years and never seems to age. Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, supported the use of alcohol. So did Jesus. After all, He transformed water into wine. And I never forget that, through the ages, polluted water, not alcohol, killed millions of people. That's why I never feel guilty about a pre-dinner drink. But is it actually the alcohol that helps drinkers live longer? A report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition casts a shadow over the alcohol longevity connection. It's researchers claim they've discovered the real reason why drinkers live longer. Dr. John Barefoot of the department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences at Duke University in Durham , North...Read More
Alcohol
Why I’m Not A Teetotaler
What’s the first thing I do after seeing patients all day? I take a 20 minute walk home, greet my wife, open up the bar and enjoy a drink while watching the evening news. Some evenings a glass of wine with dinner. There are 10 reasons why I consider this a healthy habit. One – I enjoy life and want to live longer. The American Cancer Society recently studied the drinking habits of 500,000 Americans. They found that one alcoholic drink a day in middle age decreased the risk of premature death by 20 percent. Two – Regular consumption of alcohol lowers the risk of heart attack by 30 to 50 percent! Alcohol dilates blood vessels and increases high density lipoprotein, (HDL)...Read More
