Got Booze? How Beer Does a Body Good
Wine's been hogging the limelight for too long as the guilty pleasure that also has benefits. Now it's beer's time to shine as the drink of choice for helping to prevent osteoporosis. A study published in the June issue of the Journal Nutrition, found that women who regularly drank beer had a higher bone mass than women who did not consume alcohol or who drank wine.
The subjects in the study were 1697 women with an average age of 48. The participants were classified as moderate drinkers (110–280 g/wk), light drinkers (<110 g/wk), and nondrinkers. They were also grouped according to the kind of alcoholic beverage they consumed and then tested using an ultrasound to measure the density of the bones in their fingers.
Surprisingly, the women in the moderate beer drinking category had the highest bone density. Before you drop everything and run off to happy-hour, keep in mind that high quantities of alcohol consumption have been shown to actually decrease bone strength. Just like everything else, moderation is key.
So what is beer’s secret? Researchers believe that hops and hop products contain powerful phytoestrogens—plant compounds similar to estrogen. These phytoestrogens come from the female flowers of the hop plant and have long been used as an additive and flavoring agent in beer. These compounds are what provide beer its mysterious bone protective effects. I don’t know about you, but beer definitely just went up a few points in my book.
What are your thoughts on beer and bone health?
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Comments
Date: 11/05/2009 - 12:07 pm
It's like everything else--in moderation. When I'm watching myself, I drink Sam Adams lite and I don't have more than one. It's why I prefer wine, not just for taste but calories. A dry red has 70-75, dry white has 60-65 calories per glass on average versus a beer's 120 or more.
Date: 10/26/2009 - 04:58 am
Light beer can be a relaxing beverage at the end of the day, but watch out. It has the tendency to make you careless of what you eat....so it's not the beer that makes you gain weight, but the food you consume when your inhibitions and judgement center are impaired, even slightly so.
The saying can be true, "There's a pork chop in every beer"....so when imbiding, be diligent with the caloric intake.....and enjoy. This is great news for women!!!!
Date: 08/27/2009 - 10:25 am
I drink beer about one day per week, maybe every two weeks, depends on the activties I attend with the opportunity to drink a beer or two. I recently attended an activity where I was on my feet for approximately four hours and my back became very painful; I took 1/2 of a pain pill, which after about an hour---did nothing to relief the pain so, I took the other half. Still, after about another hour, the pain only slightly went away; only added some lower back stretching. About that time, I thought of and decided to have a beer. I swear, within 1/2 hour after drink about half the bottle, the pain in my lower back was nearly gone. It ached somewhat, but I could stand and walk around without the extreme pain I had been doing. I believe, probably along with the pain pill, that the beer is finally what "relaxed" the tension/muscle pain in my back; so, I had another and went home to eat and go to sleep.
So, I believe the idea of beer being a relaxant, actually.
Date: 08/26/2009 - 07:09 pm
Wow,Who Knew What A Wonderful Discovery This Could Be For Us Healthnuts!