BREWING THE BENEFITS OF GOOD HEALTH

Is Beer Good For You?

By Edward C. Geehr, M.D.

For many, St. Patrick's Day is a time to enjoy a pint with friends and family. Now there's an even better reason to hoist a cold, frothy one: There may a touch of virtue in your brew. New studies show beer may have some health benefits. That's some medical luck that's not just for the Irish.

Thanks to two recent studies, there is a growing body of evidence that moderate drinking may be good for your health. In an analysis conducted by the Centre for Information on Beer and Health in Spain, researchers found that when 50 former teetotaling Spanish nuns drank about 16 ounces of beer a day for 45 days, followed by 40 days of eating hops ( a grain used to produce beer), their cholesterol and triglycerides (or blood fats) dropped.

In a separate study recently published in a January 2008 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Massachusetts, found that moderate consumption of beer, wine or liquor lowered the risk of elderly patients being hospitalized for leg artery disease. Caused by a partial or complete blockage of the arteries in the legs, leg artery disease results in reduced blood flow and discomfort or pain while walking.