Agreed. I think the bottom line is that alcohol is certainly not required by the body, and does nothing good for it.
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I generally agree but I also accept the human biology is complicated and varies considerably across populations so we get some variation in outcomes.
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There are benefits in drinking beer in moderation. There is plenty of independent academic research to back this up. Start by searching āModerate Consumption of Beer and Its Effects on Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health: An Updated Review of Recent Scientific Evidenceā.
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I said relatively high, and the point being 4% is not considered low alcohol, far from it!. Yes Barley Wines at upto 12% or so are considered very high strength.
But for a range of traditional bitter beers 4% is considered relatively high with many session beers below that strength. 3.8 is considered a popular mid strength āsessionā beer, above that you start to move into Best Bitters, or Special Bitters or Ales. There is a whole world of naturally fermented lower alcohol beers in the UK well below 3.8 % (and I am not referring to the recent āzerosā which are 0.5% or less ). I was at my favourite festival yesterday, and yes there were local cask conditioned beers from across East Anglia of different strengths. I think there was only one beer above 4% from memory and that was a porter. Plenty of ciders above 4%
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There are a whole raft of fine quality ciders . We seem to have gone a long way from Strongbow , Woodpecker or some disgusting scrumpy. These days firms like Dunkertonās produce high quality ciders. Even French and Italian cider producers on the shelves of Tesco.
Much as I love cider, red wine, Calvados I am enjoying being teetotal ( since the āincidentā in May) the only alcohol I have touched is hand sanitiser .
10 kilograms dropped off in weight . Target to drop at least another 10 kgs hopefully I will exceed that
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Good luck with you being off the source Ian.
Yes there are some awful cheaply manufactured ciders with high alcohol. In short I suspect a cheap way of simply getting drunk.
But yes across much of the British Isles there are fantastic cider traditions and cultures going back centuries and I am sure on the Continent as well. A wonderful heritage, and each region has its specialty ciders, however you wonāt see the smaller producers on the shelves of a supermarketā¦ with the possible exception of supermarkets that focus more on small scale local produce such as the Coop.
Traditional production, and mass production donāt usually go well together, and many of big supermarket chains can be very demanding on producers, and some small scale producers tell me itās not worth the hassle supplying them.
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I hope you do get away, and you can sit watch the world go by - with or without a drink.
Best wishes
Ian
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Good luck to you buddy, i saw my dad and brother drive heavily and i swore Iād never go down that route and never have, only drink about 1 bottle of lager a week if that, Iām 75 mentally i feel 25,But i just have to listen to my body now 
lol
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I was very fond of a tipple many years ago. Aside from my wilder uniā years (which I admit I did have a serious problem at that time), I drank responsibly and predictably. A pint of bitter with dinner; Campari on the rocks whenever the mood struck and maybe a well aged rum to unwind on the first and last nights of a vacation. Mrs. FZ and me, being young and childless in the early years enjoyed ācocktail hourā at home each evening and we each gravitated to our drink of choice after a while. But around 2006 I started having serious liver problems (non alcohol related - complications from a viral infection) and in 2011 I had to give up completely due to scarring. Sadly my liver is knackered and doesnāt function very well.
So I spent 14 years tea total now and my decompression routine is no longer involving alcohol but usually a cup of tea and a slice of cake at a jazz cafe while I read the news (or the forum). And Iām very happy with that state of things. Honestly, I rarely miss it at all.
In fact my doctor gave me the green light for one beer (no spirits) a week last year but after so many years not drinking, my palette has returned to that of a 8 year old. It actually tasted horrible. I fared a lot better with a bitter or stout but not enough to bother with a one drink a week routine. Easier to just stay tea total.
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Yeah, but moderate alcohol consumption still comes with risks. So do the risks outweigh the benefits? For most I doubt it does.
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Hi Daniel,
Sending you some positive vibe man, it sounds like your intuition is leading you and allowing you to take the next step in your journey. Iāve quit it completely shortly before my son was born, about 10 years ago. Years before I had felt I donāt really need not want it in my life anymore. Itās one variable less, and am enjoying all the benefits ever since. This includes enjoying live and recorded music from a fascinating perspective. Enjoy the ride mate.
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It is good. Tried a number of these and I always come back to this one.
DGā¦
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I find a glass or two to be one of the better ātweaksā to any system. So thereās that. 
But, like many, Iām working on moderation. An ongoing project to say the least.
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Iāve never ever drank ant sort of alchol in my Life. Unfortunately over the last few years, iām getting a little too much dependant with this
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Well done! Iām with you.
I stopped drinking about ten years ago - not that I was ever a heavy drinker.
I still very occasionally have a glass of quality red wine - no plonk!!! - or one (only) very cold, quality IPA beer; but months go by between drinks.
I came to the conclusion that 99% of life is better without alcohol.
But Iām still happy to let weddings and rare celebrations break the drought, occasionally.
No need to get too militant about itā¦ nobody will thank you.
(Perhaps your liverā¦)
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I never said beers up to 4% were low alcohol. I said beers up to 4% were lower in strength and that is why the cut off from Best to Best Bitters was around that abv. You challenged my comment earlier on and I challenged your challenge. Moving on from angels on pin heads, the growth of the independent produced brewery conditioned beer has meant that there are some excellent no and low ABV beers now available.
Thatās not for you (or I to say) as we are individuals making our own decisions. In the same way I choose to moderate rather than abstain my consumption. What is that Bananarama song?
I was referring to the original comment that someone enjoyed low alcohol beers at 4% .. my point was and is 4% is relatively high, and there are many beers to enjoy below 4% ā¦ asserted as a lapsed CAMRA member.
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Fresh-pressed apple juice used in non industrial ciders, naturally leads to a higher (~6%) alcohol content. Itās why I encourage festivals to offer third measures rather than halves and pints.