Beer: A medical miracle tonic?
While sitting around the patio table with my usual group of friends talking and enjoying a very tasty IPA, one of them brings up that after multiple beers you are unable to get salmonella from raw chicken. Don’t ask me how this random conversation started, because I have no idea. According to “the internet”, my friend says, “alcohol kills salmonella”. To prove this point he picked up a raw chicken leg and took a huge bite. He called me the next morning and was just fine. I was impressed… disgusted and impressed. I also hear that a small amount of beer consumed daily is good for your heart. This got me to thinking...
What else can beer do for my health?
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19 Comments:
With a wink and a nod to the all-Holy Guinness, I've heard that it's recommended that a woman who has just given birth should have a pint of the brew to build up her iron.
juliebugsmama at 3:13PM on 09/24/09
well
pooch at 3:19PM on 09/24/09
not every piece of chicken is infected with salmonella.... so you may not want to go by your friend taking a slug out of a raw chix leg. i give him credit, though, it took well, uh hum....
i believe alcohol kills germs.... so perhaps there is some truth to this... it might be nature's own pesticide for the human species. who knows. wouldn't it be nice if a vodka a day kept the doctor away!
pooch at 3:22PM on 09/24/09
well - was a mistake.... well... what a stu-nada i am!
pooch at 3:25PM on 09/24/09
Yes, what pooch said about the chicken not necessarily having salmonella (beat me to it).
I remember reading something about alcohol consumption and foodborne illnesses... it seems to me it was suspected to be due to the alcohol's tendency to increase GI acidity??? I also think they said something about needing highly alcoholic beverages (e.g., hard liquor) or highly acidic ones (e.g., wine), both of which would pretty much rule out beer.
Personally, I think the people who drank didn't get food poisoning because they (1) ate less of the food in question, due to being too drunk to eat, and/or (2) threw up the offending food before the bacteria could do much damage (also due to being drunk)!
:-P
RouxTheDay at 3:30PM on 09/24/09
I always feel much better after a couple of beers.
chazmo at 4:03PM on 09/24/09
Beer is good for your hair... I rinse with it in the shower every now and then, and it makes it all shiny and bouncy.
Stop looking at me like that.
GirlFromJetCity at 4:35PM on 09/24/09
"Stop looking at me like that."
Who said I was look'n at you?
You wouldn't be one of Happyeats drinking buddies would you? :>)
tusti at 4:49PM on 09/24/09
beer's alcohol content (4-10%) isn't high enough to kill bacteria.
most effective ethanol percentage is 70%, but still doesn't kill like bleach does. and I wouldn't drink anything that instantly kills germs :-P
hmw0029 at 5:04PM on 09/24/09
@GirlFromJetCity.... Are you serious? That is the coolest thing I have heard today.
The smell of warm beer all steamy in the shower... yummy. Do you smell like a bar after?
happyeats at 5:14PM on 09/24/09
Well, as the t-shirts, bar signs and bumper stickers say: "Beer- Helping white people dance since the 1860s" so i guess it has it's usefulness.
dozertx at 5:21PM on 09/24/09
I love beer sooo much.
I'm not a calorie-counter but I'm a calorie-aware...uh...er
I saw Bob Blumer live a week on Guiness so it must be okay, right?
LOL
Here's a general guide of excuses to ask your bartender to POUR ANOTHER PLEASE!!!
hungrychristel at 6:05PM on 09/24/09
"Drinking Beer Can Help Women Ward Off Osteoporosis
Aug 12, 2009 ... The study found that women who drink beer regularly have strong bones that means they are less likely to suffer from osteoporosis."
www.womenhealthzone.com
Yay! an excuse for me to drink beer!
orlandodrknmnky at 6:30PM on 09/24/09
I'm going to New Orleans in a few weeks and I think that I'm going to be sick at the Abita Springs Brewery:-)
@orlando I had a dexsa scan recently and at 55 the dr. said my bones were 'incredibly dense'...maybe she meant my head though...
janaatwg at 6:36PM on 09/24/09
I'm not a Doctor, but I would guess that beer is extremely good for helping build a strong liver... My Doctor says
I could drive an iron spike through a railroad tie with mine!
Pavlov at 9:19PM on 09/24/09
@janaatwg Abita is our gem! Glad to hear you will be visiting.
pearl at 11:16PM on 09/24/09
Love the hair tonic, do it myself that's if I don't drink it by the time it's time to rinse with it. I like beer to include beer with almost everything, cooking, pairings, health purposes and of course drinking.
pjracz10 at 11:56AM on 09/25/09
@pearl I love, love Abita Amber on draft. Course, I love everything about NO and all the areas around.
janaatwg at 5:17PM on 09/25/09
@janaatwg Also, be sure to try NOLA Brown and NOLA Blonde ales if you are in the city. Only on tap, but both are delicious.
pearl at 6:33PM on 09/25/09