Chugging. Guzzling. Drinking. Imbibing. Beirut. Hour of power. Century club. Forties. Sixers. Perhaps you are familiar with this lingo surrounding beer, and, then again, maybe you aren’t. Beer definitely is an ancient and interesting phenomenon. Despite giving guys (I say guys because I have yet to meet more than three girls in my entire life who prefer drinking beer) bad breath, a beer belly, and really bad gas every morning after, we continue to drink the stuff!
I think there are only a few times in your school life that you look back on and remember thinking how dumb you were. I can look back on one moment in my sophomore year of high school when I remember being very naive. One of my older friends came to me and said that he was having a party at his place on Friday night for a small group of people and that I was invited. I was excited at the invitation, but tried to remain cool when saying yes.
Then, out of the blue, he blasted me with the question “what kind of alcohol do you want?”
It hit me like an unexpected left hook. I had no idea what to say and finally he broke the silence by saying, “Hey dumbass, what do you want me to get you?”
‘Gin! I blurted out.’
‘Why,’ you ask (and so did he) would anyone say gin? I know there was a clear thought process in my head somewhere. My grandparents drink gin and Snoop Dogg drinks gin and juice. Why not me? I could see the look of disgust on his face. “I’ll get you beer” he said. “Yeah, that’s cool,” I said trying to hold back my real thoughts. I hated the taste, the smell, even the thought of making myself drink something like this. And all of it was just to be in with the “cool” guys. What makes us drink things that we don’t like and why does beer have to taste so bad? What is it made of and why can’t it taste like juice or whatever we want? How about some beer that is like Gatorade and quenches your thirst and leaves you feeling ready to go the next day? Well, I may not be able to answer all of those questions, but I will certainly provide you with some interesting details, fun facts, and things you should know about BEER!
A History Lesson
Whether you have been to church or not, I’m sure that you have seen or heard somewhere that wine is as old as Jesus. You might be surprised to know that beer has its roots in very early civilizations, too. This may sound like the start of a history lesson, and it is. But, this one is a little different than any you will find in a classroom; this one is talking about something you might just be interested in. The history of beer and parties starts right here!
Ancient Egyptians, Romans, and the monks of the middle ages drank. Great American’s -- names you have heard in history class -- have been beer drinkers. Benjamin Franklin famously stated, “Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Thomas Jefferson and the Continental Congress passed an act that provided each member of the army a pint of beer a day. The leaders of our country didn’t stop there in making beer a staple of life in this country. Alcohol was banned in the beginning of the 20th century (Prohibition) to put an end to rising crime and to slow alcohol consumption, but 13 years later President Franklin D. Roosevelt, brought an end to the ban. More recently Jimmy Carter made it legal (in the 1970’s) to produce beer in your home. Thousands of home brewing companies (known as Microbreweries) sprang up, creating unique beers with names from “Skull Splitter” to “Red Ass Ale.” And the latest addition to the beer group is designed for those who don’t like the taste of beer. The Smirnoff Ice® type of “tasty beers” have made it easy for girls (and all those who don’t like the taste of traditional beers) to partake.
Livin’ healthy and drinkin’ beer:
“Health” and “Beer.” Can those two things go together? Beautiful women, parties, and Kid Rock are always around whenever beer is present, according to beer commercials. So why wouldn’t beer be healthy for you? Your parents probably drink wine and will tell you that it is good for their heart. Well, most of the time, what you drink isn’t as important as how much you drink. Minimal to moderate alcohol consumption can be helpful in the reduction of coronary heart disease. However, when you are young this health benefit will probably not outweigh the damage to your developing brain or your liver. Just remember that moderation is the key if you are going to be drinking.
One of the questions that we got by email asked what the ‘deadliest’ drug was and to our surprise (and probably yours) it is alcohol. Now, some people may not consider alcohol a drug, but it is classified as one. More people die per year from alcohol (includes alcohol poisoning, alcohol related traffic accidents, injuries, etc.) than all the other major drugs combined! That doesn’t mean that you should start barking up the cocoa tree, because those other drugs have a LARGE number of things wrong with them (like extreme addiction, damage to major organs, etc.). However, it does mean that you need to be extremely responsible when drinking alcohol. One of the main reasons that so many people die from alcohol every year is that they don’t think that things like drinking and driving are really bad. Just remember the next time you are thinking about or see someone about to drive after drinking that there are almost always other people hurt in these accidents (the other driver, your friends and family, etc.). Don’t be selfish, be safe!
Starting to drink at an early age can have more negative effects than you would think. If you don’t believe it, check out the following:
1) People who use alcohol before age 15 are 5 times more likely to develop alcohol dependence or abuse in adulthood than a person who starts at age 21 (a report by SAMHSA claims).
2) We also looked at a recent study on the effects of alcohol on a developing young mind and after we made it through all the scientific mumbo jumbo we found that drinking alcohol when you are young and your brain is still developing can lead to long-term effects on memory, problem solving, attention, and things like depth perception. Whether you have experienced this yourself or heard someone say, “Oh, man, I can’t even remember what happened last night” after a night of drinking, it is exactly what these researchers are talking about. A “memory blackout” doesn’t only affect what you remember last night, but it could also hurt your future ability to remember.
3) Many studies have shown that alcohol use leads to other illegal drug use. You may not care about that, but there are a lot of people who get themselves into a lot of trouble by not making sure that they know their limits and how quickly they get attached or addicted to getting high. If you are using drugs/alcohol to escape from reality, or problems in your life, that should be your first clue that things aren’t right. Get help! Tell a friend, sister or brother, parent, pastor, priest, teacher, coach, or counselor. Don’t drown your sorrows, but face up to them – alcohol is not the answer.
