GOOD NEWS! - Alcohol sharpens your brain, say researchers

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/08/01/nalco01.xml&sSheet=/portal/2004/08/01/ixportal.html ^

[HangFire]

Whew, you don't know how much better I'm gonna sleep tonight;-)

[N. Theknow]

I have been on the Sum Beach Wino Diet for several years now: A Gallon of muscatel a day and eat the brown paper bag for roughage.

As an additional benefit, the older brain cells have been destroyed and replaced with new more vibrant ones. But, the newer ones have a tendency to wet their gurds up mixed until they have been suphoshely...surficantly...sefticiantly...*sigh* properly trained.

[ahayes]

Oh dear. Someone did tell you that you don't get new neurons because they don't divide, didn't they? Or did you get this advice from your bartender? ;-)

[tjwmason]

Defending and rationalizing one's drug use is very common.

I see that you are rationalising your caffeine consumption then...

My point is quite simple, alcohol has been a constant part of the human diet for several thousand years, to place it on a par with heroin, L.S.D., or even cannabis is just plain silly.

[HankReardon]

Tell that to the thousands of lives and families ruined and lost each year because of the habitual, addictive use of the drug alcohol. Now how does this compare with caffeine? Some people use alcohol addictively the same manner other drugs are used. They hide it, they lie about it, they cheat and steal for it. This compares to caffeine in what way? If you use the drug alcohol, you are a drug user. Caffeine has nothing to do with it, a way of rationalizing to protect and defend one's drug of choice.

[tjwmason]

Tell that to the thousands of lives and families ruined and lost each year because of the habitual, addictive use of the drug alcohol. Now how does this compare with caffeine?

What about people who develop rheumatoid arthritis, heart-disaease, ulcers, and women who have an increased risk of still-birth?

All drugs, including alcohol and caffeine, have bad effects if taken in excessive quantity. However, they also have positive effects in the right doses. You are not comparing like with like, to compare a reasonable coffee drinker with an alcoholic is a nonsense; compare a normal coffee drinker with a normal alcohol drinker, and in both cases all is merry (though caffeine would appear to be slightly more dodgy).