Has this episode left a meaningful impression on you? Tell us how.
TV Program
For years now, America has been fighting a war on drugs, which have taken an awful toll on so many people. But while we have been waging this war, there is still one drug that is perfectly legal and it is devastating American families all across the continent.
As a pastor, I have seen a lot of heartbreaking things. I have been close to many families that have suffered terrible tragedies, some of those tragedies caused by drug use. And, of course, drug use is illegal. But did you realize that one of the drugs that causes the most damage here in North America is still perfectly legal and readily available?
This drug is alcohol, and it breaks my heart as a minister of the gospel to go into homes and see how many people hardly have enough to put food on the table for their children, and yet the liquor cabinet is full. Marriages break up over alcohol use. Domestic violence erupts because of the bottle. This drug is causing untold damage to our homes and to our children.
Did you know that in 2001 more than a half a million people were injured in crashes where the police reported that alcohol was present? Three out of 10 Americans are going to be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some point in their lifetimes. Of course, some of those people won't be involved, they will be one of the victims of those who were using this drug.
Police records tell us that 40 percent of crimes that are committed in this country involve alcohol. Which means that four out of 10 crimes wouldn't take place if people weren't using this drug.
There is much to discuss when it comes to alcohol. There is a lot of damage that has taken place in our society. To help me sort through this issue is Dr. Fred Hardinge, a specialist in health and nutrition.
INTERVIEW
SHAWN: Dr. Hardinge, I'm just really glad that you are here with us today.
FRED: It's a privilege to join you, Shawn.
SHAWN: This is a big subject. I don't think there is a single family out there watching today that hasn't been touched by alcohol use at some point in their life. Somebody is dead, somebody is in jail, a marriage has ended, a child has been beaten, or abused because of this. How big is the problem? What are the percentages today of Americans who could be labeled "alcoholic?"
FRED: Well, the official statistics at the present time are that about nine percent of Americans males are alcoholic, and four percent of American women are. On average, it's about eight percent of all Americans.
SHAWN: That's nearly one out of 10. That's a remarkably high number.
FRED: It is and it's scary. But we have to recognize that moderate drinking, recreational drinking, and binge drinking in particular, that's really abusive drinking. It's not what is classified as alcoholism, but it is involved in a lot of the accidents that cause trauma to families.
SHAWN: I've heard many people try to describe moderate drinking as one or two drinks. What is a drink, first of all? What do we count as a drink?
FRED: A drink is considered to be one half ounce of alcohol. So it's about 14.2 grams of alcohol.
SHAWN: Okay, so how does that translate in street usage?
FRED: Twelve ounces of beer is one can of beer. Five ounces of wine, or one ounce of some spiritous liquor, 80 proof, approximately.
SHAWN: Okay, so now we have the definition of a drink. What is moderate drinking? We have defined alcoholism, eight percent of the whole population. What is a moderate drinker?
FRED: Today a moderate drinker is defined as one who drinks no more than one or two alcoholic beverages per day.
SHAWN: Okay, one or two a day, which to some ears listening today is still going to sound high. They'll be surprised that it's one or two drinks a day for a moderate drinker. Let me ask you a question. I have heard some people say that we all ought to be moderate drinkers because there are all kinds of health benefits to be gained from drinking moderately, these one or two drinks a day. Have scientists really found health benefits to moderate drinking?
FRED: Well, that's a very good question, Shawn. And there have been over 100 studies in scientific literature that have been published in the last 20 years that are suggesting that one to two drinks may reduce the risk of myocardial infarction in adult humans.
SHAWN: Okay.
FRED: This is particularly in those who are over 50 years of age. It's interesting that one to two drinks, or this so-called moderate drinking, in the younger generations, actually increases the risk of death by accident.
SHAWN: So, what is the younger generation, under 30?
FRED: Under 50.
SHAWN: Under 50?
FRED: Under 50.
SHAWN: Oh great, under 50. There is actually a higher risk of accident, so whatever health benefits might be gained, there's a counter risk that's worse than the benefit.
FRED: That's correct, and alcohol is also associated with several common cancers. So it's really an interesting mixed bag of data. In the media you read a great deal about the importance of this moderate drinking for the benefit of reducing heart disease risk. But nobody says anything about the risk of increased cancer, as well as the impact of abuse and family-related social issues.
SHAWN: And do we know what kinds of cancer we are talking about? What are some of these diseases or cancers, for example, that alcohol supposedly causes or that studies seem to indicate alcohol causes?
FRED: There are quite a number of them. Breast cancer in women, for one, is increased with alcohol. In most cancers we see a slight to a significant increase in their risk among those who regularly use alcohol.
SHAWN: What about these tests I've heard about? They say, "Hey look, you can lower your cholesterol by drinking wine." I'm talking about the French wine studies and so on. Tell me a little bit about that.
FRED: These studies were called the French Paradox, now more commonly referred to as the Mediterranean Paradox. Because those living in France, Spain and Italy tend to drink red wine very commonly, almost on a daily basis. But they also eat quite a few fruits and vegetables. Their diet is a little different, but their fat intake, especially in France, is significantly higher. And it was observed by some that they had less heart disease than Americans even though they ate more fat, and it was purported to be the red wine that was the beneficial property reducing that risk.
SHAWN: What do we know about that now? I mean, is this really true? Is it the alcohol that's doing this?
FRED: Well, initially it was thought that it was the polyphenols that were very high. These are phytochemicals found in the dark grape juice or in the red wines that are made from those grapes. And the reality is that we know that niacin, which is a vitamin, will actually reduce the risk of heart disease more than one or two glasses of red wine a day.
SHAWN: So in other words there are better ways to get the same benefits.
FRED: There are probably better ways of doing it. We also know that the reduction in the tendency for the blood to clot is improved significantly by half of a baby aspirin or half an aspirin a day. So there are what I call drug-like effects of alcohol, and yes there have been some observational studies, and I think we need to point that out. It is very important. There are no long-term clinical studies that have demonstrated the benefit of alcohol. And if you read the literature, contrary to what is said in the media, you will see there is a significant hesitancy on the part of scientists to recommend that those who don't drink take up moderate drinking.
SHAWN: Right.
FRED: All the studies that have shown benefits of moderate drinking have done so with those who already drink. These observational studies show associations, but they do not prove causality. And the scientists recognize that. So while we see the popular literature recommending this moderate drinking, we see the scientists saying, yes, there are a number of studies that have shown that those who drink moderately (as we have defined it) have lower heart disease risk, but we still are not convinced enough of the evidence to tell those who don't drink to begin drinking. And I think that's an important message that needs to be understood.
SHAWN: In a few minutes, we are going to go to the Bible. Obviously, this is It Is Written and we want to see what God's counsel is on the whole issue. But before we get there, let's talk about those who don't drink who might listen to a study like that and say, you know, I ought to take up a glass or two of wine a day. Or maybe I should buy a case of beer and keep it there in the fridge and just have a little now and then. Why wouldn't they want to become moderate drinkers? What are the possible undesirable side effects of that?
FRED: Well, in my opinion, the most significant problem with a person who is not drinking alcohol beginning to drink alcohol for health's sake, is that we have no way of predicting who will become an alcoholic and who will not. And I think that is one of the reasons scientists are cautious in recommending drinking for the potential health effects.
We also know when we look at this French Paradox, that in France there is more cancer, higher incidents of cancer than we have in the U.S. And so maybe you have a choice here. Do you want to die from cancer or do you want to die from heart disease? But I think there is an even better way. We need to recognize that there are some significant impacts of moderate drinking and one of them is alcohol abuse. We know that excess alcohol use causes severe malnutrition, but what about moderate drinking? Does it affect the nutritional status of those who drink two drinks per day? Alcohol use disturbs the absorption of folate or folic acid, which is one of the important B vitamins.
SHAWN: Right, I remember that when my wife was expecting, she was encouraged to get lots of folic acid.
FRED: And when there is too little folic acid, or it gets tied up in some way, or it isn't absorbed, then a compound (homocysteine) found in the blood rises, and when we have excessive levels of homocysteine in the blood, we have a greater risk of heart disease. Homocysteine is now looked at as a very significant predictor of heart disease risk. In 2001 a very interesting study was published by a group in Germany that took 60 normally nourished individuals and for six weeks they were given either mineral water or 30 grams of alcohol, and 30 grams is what we consider moderate drinking.
SHAWN: Okay.
FRED: Two drinks a day. The moderate drinkers, homocysteine levels significantly went up, and that was with moderate drinking, which would indicate that moderate drinking may actually increase the risk of heart disease through this modality. And in those drinking mineral water, the homocysteine levels did not go up.
SHAWN: Very interesting. So even moderate drinking has some impact.
FRED: Well, we believe it does. And that's from the nutritional side. When we drink alcohol, much of it gets absorbed through the stomach. It's one of the few things we eat that goes through the stomach wall, and it all ends up in the liver. Now, the liver is the major organ to detoxify this toxic substance, and the first compound that it is transformed into is acid aldehyde. And acid aldehyde is a very reactive, highly toxic substance.
SHAWN: Okay.
FRED: And even moderate amounts of alcohol become acid aldehyde. Acid aldehyde in the body may actually do damage to the brain, may actually do damage to the heart, and it certainly does damage to the liver. And so I have a question as to whether it is really appropriate to recommend a toxic substance that does damage to the tissue even in moderate amounts. Do we really want moderate damage done to our bodies?
SHAWN: If I'm doing something for health benefits, it seems I ought to find the one that doesn't cause other damage or put me at risk.
FRED: You are absolutely right. And that is one of the problems with some of these 100 or so studies that have looked at moderate drinking and its potential benefit to myocardial infarction (which is a heart attack). Because they've not only been observational, but they don't all show the same results, and they don't necessarily control other lifestyle factors.
And so we are not 100 percent sure that it's even the alcohol that raises the HDL levels in individuals. There are other more potent ways of doing that, which don't involve alcohol. Exercise and a good diet that's rich in vitamins and minerals may reduce the risk of heart disease, because those things tend to lower the amount of fat in the diet.
SHAWN: So, there really is no firm, conclusive evidence for drinking alcohol, even moderately, for supposed health benefits.
FRED: No, there really isn't.
SHAWN: But if we did, let's suppose, just for the sake of an argument, we did. It would seem to me that using alcohol for health benefits is kind of like swatting a mosquito with a nuclear warhead. It's overkill. You are doing a lot of damage in the process of doing the supposed good, and exercise would have been better.
FRED: You are absolutely right. Daily exercise, reduction of animal fat, eating an abundance of fruits and vegetables, and managing stress wisely go a long, long way in reducing the risk of heart disease as well as cancer, and they make for a healthier life as well.
SHAWN: Now, you have also mentioned before some of the undesirable social effects of moderate drinking. Why don't you share those with us?
FRED: Well, not only are there accidents that are associated with drinking, and it's a significant number as you mentioned earlier in this show. Violence, violence at home, violence in other venues, is significantly associated with the use of alcohol. Not only just large amounts of alcohol, but there are individuals who become very belligerent with moderate drinking and lose their ability to control themselves.
SHAWN: That's a very important issue and what brings us into the spiritual realm is that we ought not to be yielding our self-control.
FRED: Absolutely, and when we ingest alcohol, it lowers our inhibitions. It's very interesting to look at some statistics that are available today on the use of alcohol among teenagers, and premarital sex.
SHAWN: Yes.
FRED: They go hand in hand.
SHAWN: Right.
FRED: I believe that God has placed within us certain inhibitions that protect us from doing some of these foolish things. But when we ingest a little bit of alcohol, inhibitions are lowered, and those kinds of actions become more likely. In the sexual abuse of children, alcohol is very commonly found, in relatively moderate amounts, to be a factor. So I think we are really on dangerous ground to be recommending moderate drinking because of its social implications.
SHAWN: Now we've talked about it from a scientific point of view, we've looked at the studies, let's get back to what God actually said in the beginning, because I think it validates all the studies. What does the Bible say? Should a Christian be drinking alcohol? We have looked at inhibitions and so on, but what should a Christian be doing?
FRED: Of course, there are those who would say that the Bible says you should drink. And we've all met people and had discussions with Christians who do that. But it's very interesting to me that when God calls a person in Scripture to a special task, he tells them not to use alcohol.
Samson in the Old Testament was called to a special work, and his mother was told that he should not drink alcohol. And it wasn't until he began using alcohol that he fell, and he was not able to carry out the full mission that God had given him.
John the Baptist, who was called to prepare the way for Jesus Christ, was given an alcohol-free lifestyle, it was directed by God to his mother. And I believe that as Christians, we who are living in this day and age, are called to a special work of proclaiming the Second Coming of Christ. And again, we are called to an alcohol-free lifestyle to carry out that mission effectively.
SHAWN: You know, some of the issues we have been talking about, I have actually found in the Word of God. There is one passage that has become one of my favorites. I have not always been a Christian and I've given this subject a lot of study since I have become a Christian. Proverbs chapter 23 labels a few issues that you and I have talked about. Proverbs 23 and verse 29, the Bible says (Proverbs 23:29):
"Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who hath contentions? Who hath babbling? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine. They that go to seek mixed wine."
Some people say to me, "Hey, pastor, you know what? It says tarry long at the wine."
But look what it says in verse 31 (Proverbs 23:31):
"Look not now upon the wine when it is red, when it gives its color in the cup, when it moves itself aright."
This says don't even look at it. This is God's advice, verse 32 and 33 (Proverbs 23:32, 33):
"At the last it biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder, thine eye shall behold strange women and thine heart shall utter perverse things."
There God says exactly what you just said. Look at the inhibitions it talks about. "Your eyes shall behold strange women." You talked about the lower inhibitions among teenagers. They get involved in inappropriate sexual relationships. "Thine heart shall utter perverse things." You mentioned those who recognized they were getting involved in telling jokes and saying things they wouldn't otherwise say. God had it pegged thousands of years ago, saying, don't even look at this stuff.
FRED: Or even crimes of abuse against children that we see so much of today. It's associated with the use of alcohol.
SHAWN: No question about it. God knows that this is moving the marker. There is another passage, Proverbs 31, that talks about a king. There is advice to a king in chapter 31, verse four (Proverbs 31:4):
"It's not for kings, O Lemuel; it is not for kings to drink wine or princes strong drink, lest they drink and forget the law and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted."
It's telling us our mental capacity diminishes when we are drinking and it doesn't say here how much.
FRED: That's right. And there is no question that it diminishes when we imbibe or ingest alcoholic beverages.
SHAWN: You know, just in closing we need to sneak it, and many people have said to me, "Look, Jesus gave everybody wine."
But in the Scriptures, we know that wine could have been one of two things, right?
FRED: That's right.
SHAWN: It could have been alcoholic or non-alcoholic juice of the grape, and I have to believe when we see the advice of the Old Testament that Jesus wasn't giving out liquor at a party any more than we could picture Him giving out beer today.
FRED: I agree with you 100 percent. The wine that He performed a miracle with was the pure juice of the grape.
SHAWN: If we look at how many gallons of grape juice Jesus produced at that wedding in the small town of Cana, we know it couldn't have been alcohol. We have learned in Scripture that God doesn't give people things that lower inhibitions, to make it easier to sin. I have trouble believing it.
FRED: I have the same trouble believing it.
SHAWN: Well, you know, this is a big subject. There is a lot of heartache. I think the advice that I'm hearing from you is that scientifically and nutritionally, we know this is a bad idea. The Word of God says this is a bad idea. As Christians, what harm would it do us if we just walked away from it and never touched it again?
FRED: It wouldn't do us any harm. We would be healthier for it.
SHAWN: Listen, Dr. Hardinge, I wish we had more time. Thank you so much for sharing with me today. You've helped me understand the issues and you've given me some concrete evidence to know that our stand in the Bible is an accurate one.
Today I know that there are people who are struggling with this issue. There's not a family that hasn't been touched, and maybe today you feel like you have been chained by the bottle. You are a slave to alcohol, you'd love to quit, you'd love to give it up, but you are finding that it's irresistible. You hate yourself for it, but you keep going back. You know what it's been doing to your family, to your marriage, to your other relationships. The good news today is that bottle is not bigger than Jesus Christ. You can be free from it. You need to go to church. Talk to a pastor. Talk to somebody who can lead you through prayer to a real plan for a victory over alcohol.
Today we want to have a special prayer for you. We want to have a special prayer as well for those families that have been victimized by this terrible drug. Let's just bow our heads and bring each of you to the throne of God. Why don't we pray together?
PRAYER:
Father in heaven, today we've seen the kind of heartache the devil has inflicted on this world. I know that someone watching today has been enslaved by alcohol. They'd love to be free. Draw close to that person, assure them that you are larger than the bottle; that you can give them complete and utter victory if they would just grasp your hand.
Lord, I think of those today who have suffered heartache because of this. There is someone in their family who has an awful habit that's ruining their life. They've lost someone in an accident because of alcohol. Remind us again that Jesus is coming soon, and when He comes, He'll wipe away every tear, and we'll never have to live with sorrow, or pain, or suffering, or death again. What we want most of all, dear Jesus, is for you to come quickly to escort us into that new world. We'll never have to deal with this kind of pain again. For we ask it in Jesus' name, amen.
FRED: Amen.
Scriptures Used in “Uncorked”
"Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? Who hath babbling? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things."
—Proverbs 23:29-33
"It's not for kings, O Lemuel; it is not for kings to drink wine or princes strong drink, lest they drink and forget the law and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted."
—Proverbs 31:4, 5