Next time you find yourself groaning and saying "never again" - stop for a while to consider the harmful effects of alcohol on your body. There is a good and a bad way to drink alcohol and many of us take the low road every time! So why not kick-start your fitness makeover by following our top ten tips for "healthier" alcohol consumption? 1. Drink in the evening. Every time you take a sip of wine your body reacts as if it's being poisoned. Which of course it is. A group of enzymes (alcohol dehydrogenase) swing into action to get the alcohol toxin out of your system as quickly as possible. If you're reasonably healthy, your body can get as much as 98% of the alcohol out of your system at the rate of around 1 unit of alchohol an hour. Your body is in peak production mode for these alcohol-eliminating enzymes at 8.00 pm - so if you're going to drink that's the "healthiest" time to do it!. 2. Avoid drinking alcohol at lunch-time. Your body deals with alcohol much less efficiently during the day (those six enzymes again). Production of alcohol dehydrogenase drops during the day so middle of the day is absolutely the worst time to drink. If you've ever tried to focus on your work in the afternoon after a few drinks at lunch-time you now understand why you had a problem. 3. Make sure you aren't "tired and emotional" BEFORE you start drinking. Tiredness and hormonal changes effect your body's ability to produce those all important enzymes and one drink will hit your body like two. 4. Stay away from the ice bucket. The coldness of an ice-filled drink opens a valve at the top of your stomach - the result you tend to gulp your drink down rather than sip slowly. As the healthiest of us can only eliminate one unit an hour - your body won't be able to cope. 5. Drink a lot of water - at least a glass between each drink and more water before you go to bed. Many hangover symptoms - headache, nausea, furry mouth - are due to the effects of dehydration rather than the alcohol poisoning. 6. Eat something with your drink - preferably a meal but nibbles and snacks will help. Food slows the absorption of alcohol and delays its effects. 7. Line your stomach before you take your first alcoholic drink. Yes it's true. That old drinkers tip of lining your stomach with a glass of milk really does work. Make sure it's full fat milk though or try full fat pro-biotic natural yoghurt. Just make sure you give it time to settle on your stomach before you hit it with your first cocktail. 8. Don't try and keep up with the boys. Especially if you're a girl. Women produce less alcohol dehydrogenase than men and so the alcohol effects us more quickly. We also have more fat and less water in our bodies and so alcohol is more concentrated in our systems. Isn't life unfair? Well only if you really want to let the effects of alcohol age your skin and make you behave like Britney Spears on a bad night. Being a woman could be a very good reason to keep your drinking under control. 9. Be honest about how much alcohol you drink and keep within safe limits. Dietary Guidelines for Americans published by the US Government set the boundaries at one drink per day for women and two for men. One drink should ideally be a SMALL glass of wine, a single measure of spirits or a half a pint of beer. European guidelines are a bit more generous but the absolute maximum weekly limit for women is 14 units of alcohol and 21 for men. 10. Never go on a binge - EVER. Even if you are Britney Spears or her best friend. Consuming excessive amounts of alcohol in a very short period of time is the worst possible drinking habit you could have. Binge drinking pumps toxins into your body at a rate your major organs - specifically the liver, brain and kidneys - just can't handle. Spread your alcohol consumption out and keep it moderate - little and often is OK (and we do mean LITTLE here). Frequent binges are a recipe for alcoholism and liver damage.
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