Is Beer Good For Health: Side Effects And Health Risks Of Drinking Beer

Nothing seems complete without beer, whether it’s a weekend, a party, or a celebration. Right?
You may have heard about the potential health benefits of this third most popular drink in the world, after water and tea. But it’s equally important to recall that is drinking beer good for your health. Just because of its short-term benefits, one must not forget about its side effects.

Drinking beer can be hazardous to human health, especially if consumed in excess. This article is all about beer, types of beer, and side effects of beer. Let’s read everything about it and figure out is it really good for your health or not.

What Is Beer?

Beer is naturally fermented and one of the oldest alcoholic beverages. It is usually made from malted cereal grain like barley, flavored with hops, and brewed by slow fermentation. It is an essential part of any celebration if you know what we mean.

Moreover, the word “brewing” is directly associated with beer, like leavened bread, as it is the product of starch-based yeast fermentation. 

Types Of Beer: Beer comes in different varieties. Below listed are the popular types of Beers:-

• Lager Beer
• Draught Beer
• Pale ale
• Mild Ale
• Ginger Beer
• Wheat Beer
• Bock
• Stout
• Porter

How Beer is Made?

Beer is made by a process called brewing. The purpose of brewing is to convert the starch source into a sugary liquid called wort and to convert the wort into the alcoholic drink known as beer in a fermentation process affected by yeast. Usually, hops are added at different intervals to extract aroma, flavor, and bitterness resulting in different types of beer. About 93% of the content is water, constituting to major of its weight.

Beer And Weight – The Relationship

• Beer is high in empty calories. So, consuming too much beer can lead to weight gain and obesity. And later on, it can lead to a variety of health problems. Drinking excessive beer can put you at risk for heart disease, liver disease, and alcoholism.
• As we already said, Moderation is the key. Excess beer can cause weight gain, resulting in the deposition of fat around the abdominal area, known as the “Beer Belly”. Due to the higher calorie and fat content, it is a major cause of unhealthy weight gain or obesity.
• The ingredients used in making beer release toxins that are responsible for the accumulation of fat around the body despite them being all-natural. As it contributes to increasing your hunger, you tend to eat more and are particularly unhealthy. So, what do you think, is beer good for health?

Beer Side Effects And Potential Risks

Drinking beer in excessive amounts can be harmful to your health and can cause heartburn too. There is a potential risk of liver damage as well as other health risks too, so don’t overdo it. For instance, anything in excess will be disastrous to your health.

Nutritional deficiencies can be created, when you drink too much alcohol, especially Beer.

There is a condition called Potomania also called Beer Potomania or Beer’s Drinker’s Hyponatremia. It can happen when you drink alcohol excessively in the form of Beer and don’t eat a proper diet.

     Poto – Drink, Mania – Too Much

Is beer good for health? Here you will find the answers:

1. Beer Can Cause Liver Damage

One of the major risks of drinking too much beer is liver damage. Drinking too much beer can affect the liver to a greater extent. Therefore, the chances of developing fatty liver can be high.

2. Depletes Your Electrolytes And Leads To Hyponatremia

Hyponatremia is a condition that indicates low sodium in your blood. Its symptoms are:

• Dizziness
• Weakness
• Seizures
• Headaches
• Inability to think
• Confusion
• Nausea

These symptoms are related to hangovers, right. So a lot of Hangovers occur because of electrolyte deficiency. If someone is drinking a lot of beer and they are outside in the sun. They are sweating so they are going to be losing a lot of sodium.

So, if we combine this:

• If someone is drinking a lot of beer and they are outside in the sun. They are sweating so they are going to be losing a lot of sodium.
• Also, if someone drinks so much and vomits out. Then also they are going to lose a tremendous amount of sodium and other electrolytes.
• Apart from this, if they are consuming carbs which are also going to deplete your electrolytes.
• If the person is on diuretics or they are diabetic, both of these conditions end up with severe electrolyte deficiencies.

3. Affects Your Brain

Over time, drinking heavily damages short and long-term memory functions thereby causing trouble in learning and remembering. Cognitive functions get affected if it is not consumed in the right manner. You can also expect a bad hangover after a night out binging on beer.

4. Can Lead To Alcohol Addiction

There is a potential danger of addiction and alcohol abuse which in turn leads to several health diseases. This is by far the most serious side effect of beer. So, Be mindful, and however, if you drink a light to moderate amount and you’re healthy, you can probably continue as long as you drink responsibly.

6. Beer Can Affect Blood Sugar Level

• People with diabetes should restrict the intake of beer, as it affects blood sugar levels.
• To summarize, alcohol in the drink can increase your hunger pangs.
• Then later, you will end up clogging on more food, which could lead to a higher level of sugar in your blood. You lose fluid both through urine and sweat in such situations. 

7. Affects Male fertility

Heavy consumption of beer also affects male fertility, resulting in decreased libido. It can also lower testosterone levels, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, and raise estrogen levels, which reduce sperm production. For this reason, reduce its intake to avoid its side effects.

8. Beer Affects Heart

Drinking excessive beer can harm the heart, resulting in complications such as:

• Stretching and drooping of heart muscles.
• Irregular heartbeats
• Stroke
• High blood pressure

9. Alcohol Causes Cancer

According to scientific evidence, “Alcohol consumption causes a variety of cancers. The National Toxicology Program of the US Department of Health and Human Services identifies alcoholic beverage intake as a known human carcinogen.

Yummy Recipes From Our Kitchen

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Bottomline: Is beer good for health?

So, what do you think? Is beer really good for your health?

The key is to limit your consumption to once a week. However, if you realize that you are developing serious health concerns, you should avoid them as much as possible. We would suggest you do not develop a habit of drinking regularly, once in a while is sufficient.

On the other hand, if you don’t drink alcohol, you are not missing out, and it is certainly not recommended that you start. Thus, Celebrate Mindfully !!

Fun Fact

Chakna Lovers! Missing your chakna in the weight loss journey. No need to. We have come up with healthier and low-calorie swaps. Here these are. Choose wisely, and Be mindful.

Contact Us Today

Your search to find the right guidance to be a part of all those fat to fit stories ends here. So, Contact us today if you are looking for a Diet Plan with cheat meals. Also, we will discuss how we can help you in achieving your weight loss goals.

Disclaimer

All recipes from Fitelo’s kitchen are devised to suit specific needs. And what may suit one condition may not be applicable to the other. Hence, always consult your nutritionist or dietitian before adding these recipes to your diet.