Finally this book finishes up with a section on how to identify if you or a loved one has a problem with alcohol and what tactics and tools you can use to beat addiction. Early in the second half of the book, Professor Nutt relays some social the history of alcohol. One interesting part discussed how "...ancient Persians would only finally make a decision after the issue at hand had been discussed both sober and drunk," since being drunk brought out one's creativity. And though I knew alcohol was ancient, I didn't know that "It's only been in the last millennium that it has been banned by some religious groups, for example in Islam." [The irony isn't lost on this reader that modern "Persia" now Islamic.] Alcohol affects more than 200 different diseases. Alcohol is one of the top five causes of disability and disease in Europe. In the UK alcohol is a leading cause of death of men between 16-54.

Drink? : The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health

David Nutt is an English neuropsychopharmacologist who’s research has primarily focused on the (mostly harmful) effects of drugs (including alcohol and nicotine) on the brain. It seems really hard to have a good social life and not drink. It is such an accepted part of life. People don't really understand the effect it has on our bodies and our lives. Of course people do understand at the extreme of becoming an alcoholic, but short of that, what's the big deal? Everyone should educate themselves on why it could be a big deal, so we can all make better informed decisions around drinking, and this book is an excellent introduction to this.Nutt identifies alcohol as one of the most, if not the most harmful drug (legal or illegal) in common use. Parts of this was laughable. Long chapters about different ways to talk about alcohol use, just very clumsy kitchen psychology and mundane. Kinda wish this focused more on psychosocial vs physical aspects. Also wasn’t a huge fan of the writing style but did learn some things which is always good. But just how bad is alcohol? Well Nutt dives into the brain and bodily science to describe it's implications in over 200 diseases. Nutt evens names alcohol as the most damaging drug to society. Drinking while driving is a huge cause of death. In the US we have a .08% limit, which is actually not even that safe. Many countries in Europe have .05%, and many in Scandinavia have .02% (basically sober).

Drink?: The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health

Most data are as reliable as the counter argument you hear on TV. Too much reliance on correlations and how alcohol contributes to all the diseases. Very little causation type sources stated.

Irrelevant to which part of the book some of his suggestions appeared, a few concerned me. Although one section is subtitled, "Hangover Cures: What's the Evidence," implying he's presenting information and not recommendations, since this is a self-help book, I might assume that most readers aren't processing the "What's the Evidence" portion of the heading and merely focusing on the promise of "Hangover Cures." a view popular with conservative politicians, that addiction is fun and addicts enjoy getting drunk...." I realize this has turned into more of a critique than a book review. You may just want to read the first three and last three of the following paragraphs if you want the short version of my review. Alcohol is a huge dopamine stimulant, which is in part why it feels so good, and why we might crave it when stressed.

Drink?: The New Science of Alcohol and Health - Harvard Book

Still: it had good stuff in it, here and there. And if you know nothing about the subject, maybe you can start with this. David Nutt discusses alcohol in the same kind of context that a drug harm reduction NGO would inform about any substance, by framing it as: drinkers should mindfully find the minimum required dosage, for the pleasurable effects they seek. Very interesting to hear about how health risks increase exponentially with overconsumption and an in depth explanation of what actually happens to the brain and its decision making capability. Two days in a row of drinking is extremely bad for you as your body doesn't have time to recover and you don't sleep well, it's a downward spiral. Avoid this if at all possible, and go light the second day if you decide to drink.Ultimately, I was satisfied, but it was a bit bland. Maybe it wasn’t the target market. I’ve never been a frequent drinker. In my younger days, maybe something like 4 drinks per week would’ve been common. These days, 1 drink per week is a lot. The author frequently talks about 14+ units per week, so this all felt a little out of touch You can die from alcohol poisoning, it is the leading cause of death in young people according to the WHO. Review The Flavor Equation: The Science of Great Cooking Explained + More Than 100 Essential Recipes I think that some further information on counterfactual opportunity cost, based on time/money spent related to alcohol, could have been a helpful addition to this book, albeit difficult to acquire overly didactic data on such factors.