8 excuses to drink BEER

Greeting the season with a toast? Some research indicates that moderate beer consumption may be good for your health. There have been eight excuses.

1. When compared to other alcoholic beverages, beer is healthier.
Beer has just as many antioxidants as wine, despite frequent claims to the contrary. Even though the flavonoids in grapes and barley are different from those in hops, antioxidants are still beneficial. Protein and vitamin B levels in beer are higher than those in wine. Better yet, beer has nutrients including fibre, calcium, iron, and phosphates.

Beer consumption may lower your risk of acquiring kidney stones. A recent study found that moderate beer drinkers, both men and women, had a 41 per cent lower chance of acquiring kidney stones. Beers with a high hop content, such as pale ales, are full of phytochemicals that support kidney health.

4. Beer lowers bad cholesterol.
Beer’s soluble fibre can aid in lowering LDL, or “bad” cholesterol. Numerous health advantages come from increasing your consumption of soluble fibre, including the support of normal blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Alcohol can, however, impair the body’s capacity to burn fat deposited in the body because it prevents the body from absorbing vitamins and minerals.

5. Beer makes your bones stronger.
Due to its high silicon content, beer may help to build stronger bones. Dietary silicon in the soluble form of orthosilicic acid (OSA) may be important for the growth and development of bone and connective tissue and help reduce the risk of osteoporosis, a bone-thinning disease.

6. Beer helps reduce stress.
Researchers found that two glasses of beer a day can reduce work-related stress or anxiety. However, routinely turning to alcohol to help cope with stress may do more harm than good. While alcohol may help with stress reduction at the moment, in the long run, it can contribute to feelings of depression and anxiety, making stress harder to deal with.

7. Beer may help improve memory.
Hops have a secret ingredient that can help improve cognitive function – Xanthohumol. It’s a flavonoid that helps slow down the degradation process of memory. The chemical could help protect brain cells from oxidative damage associated with dementia.

8. Beer helps cognitive function.
In middle-aged subjects, increasing levels of alcohol consumption were associated with better function. These findings do not suggest we encourage increased alcohol consumption, but moderate alcohol consumption* has been proven to increase cognitive function.