Moderation > abstinence in most things.
After a few drinks, the value of socialization drops considerably and a lot of it is just hanging around because you don't want to go home and feel the effects of the alcohol.
The way we discuss health today is different from even 50 years ago. The debate about alcohol isn't new, but things like fitness trackers and smartwatches are. People can now prove it to themselves in real time that "feeling like shit" is not "all in their head", and that it's not a matter of "just drink water" or "eat something".
On the flip side, this cultural step forward comes with a step back. There's a lot of money to be made with this health anxiety.
I'm not really anti drug or alcohol, but I am absolutely anti "substance use is the only way to truly live", even in moderation
I spent my twenties drinking moderately, and I barely drink at all in my 30s. I don't miss it even a bit and I'm way more alive now than I was then.
Two drinks sounds moderate to me. Averaging two drinks a day does not.
https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohols-effects-health/alcohol-to...
(Search for "Prevalence of Past-Month Heavy Alcohol Use")
Some interesting stats in there. Like only 85% of adults have drank ever in their lifetime.
Not more than 1 unit an hour, don’t average more than 2 units a day over a week, and never exceed 3 units a day.
The caveat here is that a unit is much less than a regular serving size. A pint of beer is usually closer to 2 units.
So the recommendation was to not average more than a pint of beer a day, and to never drink more than about 1.5 pints in a day.
It’s much more stringent than people imagine.
I don't see how that's "stringent".
Only from a perspective of "drinking any amount of alcohol daily is normal"
I realize that I'm a pretty extreme outlier in that I don't drink alcohol almost at all anymore.
Even when I did drink, drinking any amount daily would have been unfathomable to me. A couple of drinks on Friday and over the weekend was plenty. Maybe one drink after work on a weeknight if I went out with coworkers or something
I don't really get why people love it so much, honestly
I was diagnosed as celiac only a year ago. Many of my favorite meals and desserts contain gluten because I didn't know I was celiac. I can't have those things anymore. I do miss them, but I don't think I'm "not living" now that I have to avoid them
I'm just living differently and much more carefully about what I eat
Depends on your social circle of course, but it’s pretty standard to have two or three pints if you meet up with friends in a pub.
But even if it weren't so, I'm not sure what your point is. Do you have a reason for thinking that orders of magnitude is a good way to compare alcohol consumption?
And if your dinner parties really are like that, cheers friend. Fun times.