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Many women consume alcohol to relax, feel good and feel good, but new evidence suggests skipping that a glass of wine daily is a better way to strengthen their mental health.
Women who have stopped drinking have improved their mental well-being, researchers reported this week in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). The study comes as many Americans experience a life without alcohol as part of the "sober-curious" movement.
"Our findings suggest that moderate alcohol consumption could improve health-related quality of life," said Herbert Pang, one of the co-authors of the study and assistant professor at the University of Toronto. School of Public Health at the University of Hong Kong, TODAY.
"The risks and benefits of moderate consumption are unclear."
Stopping drinking may be a better way to feel calm and peaceful, added co-author Michael Ni in a statement.
For this study, researchers analyzed the consumption patterns and mental health levels reported by over 10,000 people in Hong Kong; and more than 31,000 people in the United States were excluded from the analysis.
In both groups, men and women who abstained all their lives – those who did not drink at any point in their lives – reported the highest levels of mental well-being.
When the others were followed over time (about two years for the Hong Kong group and about three years for the US participants), the dropping of alcohol was associated with a more favorable change in the property mental being of the two groups, but not of the men. .
In fact, women who stopped drinking almost reached the highest levels of mental health reported by non-voters in the last four years. It's unclear why, but abstinence may eliminate alcohol-related brain damage or reduce the stress of life, such as family conflict, the study noted.
Try the motion "sober-curious"
"When people become sober, they often feel calmer, their anxiety decreases and their irritability decreases. They just say, "Wow, it's a better place to be," said Dr. James C. Garbutt, professor of psychiatry at the Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies at the University of North Carolina, who did not participate in this study.
He observed the beneficial effect in men and women.
Alcohol relieves anxiety early, but it also helps activate brain systems that aggravate anxiety later, resulting in a "I need more alcohol to relieve anxiety" cycle. which aggravates my anxiety. Garbutt added.
Over time, alcohol can also be a factor of depression, irritability, lack of sleep and sensitivity to stress.
Like the authors of the study, Garbutt explained that it was difficult to say why women's mental health, in particular, could improve after dropping alcohol. Women tend to have higher rates of depression than men and to have more adverse physical effects related to alcohol consumption that occur faster, at lower levels, than men, which could be a factor, he noted.
Nevertheless, the increasing consumption of alcohol among women has become a public health problem in recent years.
Some are now enjoying sobriety in movements such as Dry January or the "sober-curious" trend that has prompted bars and alcohol-free events to appear across the country. In a culture of heavy alcohol consumption like the United States, such a change in perspective is positive, Garbutt said. Sober and curious participants are not usually addicts and may not be looking to avoid alcohol forever, but they wish a break.
"We really want to have more spaces and occasions where drying is something encouraged and quite casual," said Lorelei Bandrovschi, founder of Listen Bar in New York, where the full menu is without alcohol when it opens once a month. "Alcohol really has a monopoly on how we socialize."
Beyond mental health, the impact of alcohol on physical health has been under scrutiny in recent years. Studies have shown that a daily consumption of alcohol could shorten life, although some researchers still think that moderate alcohol consumption helps to help people live longer.
But Garbutt was skeptical.
"The idea that a little alcohol is good for your longevity is not really considered the message for the moment," he said.
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