Non-alcoholic

Friday

Christopher Snowdon

Activist-academics push to Make America Teetotal Again

What constitutes a safe level of drinking? For some activist-academics there is none – and they are loudly lobbying for alcohol to be treated like tobacco in official US health advice. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are under review and will be updated this year. Currently they recommend moderation: two drinks or less in a day for men and one drink or less in a day for women. Pressure, however, is being applied for a new recommendation: no safe level.But that would fly in the face of decades of evidence that has shown those who drink in moderation live longer than those who do not, mostly because alcohol consumption lowers the risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes. The current guidance from 2020 is roughly where the sweet spot is from a health perspective.

pregnancy

Thursday

Ross Anderson

Strong stuff for a Dry January

If you spent your holiday season right, you’re reading this magazine with a hangover, fueled by seasonal excesses in eggnog, wine, whisky and other alcoholic indulgences. January is the month to clean out, to convince yourself you’re going to start running regularly this year, burn off some of the holiday fat and detox your thoroughly tox’d body. However, just because you’re having a dry January doesn’t mean it should be a dreary one — and there are some great drinks to fuel you through it. So most of this month’s drinks will be mocktails; fortunately the non-alcoholic scene is not what it was a few years ago.

mocktails