Does drinking alcohol help sexual performance? Is medicinal liquor good for the body? The truth is...

Author: Wang Bingyuan, Chief Physician, First Affiliated Hospital, China Medical University

Vice Chairman of the Fatty Liver Expert Committee of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association

Reviewer: Shang Zhanmin, Chief Physician, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital (West Campus), Capital Medical University

Class reunions, birthday parties, friends’ weddings…there is always one thing that is indispensable on the dinner table, and that is “wine”.

Some issues about "alcohol" are also often discussed in daily life, such as people who blush after drinking can drink more, medicinal liquor will not harm the body, drinking can improve sexual performance, etc. Is this really true?

1. People who blush when drinking can drink more?

After alcohol enters the human body, it will turn into acetaldehyde under the action of alcohol dehydrogenase, and acetaldehyde will turn into acetic acid under the action of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. The main component of edible vinegar is acetic acid.

Some people have abundant alcohol dehydrogenase in their bodies. When they don't drink much, the acetaldehyde produced by alcohol metabolism can be quickly converted into acetic acid. However, some people lack acetaldehyde dehydrogenase in their bodies, and the normal metabolism of alcohol will be affected.

According to statistics, about 50% of Chinese people have insufficient acetaldehyde dehydrogenase in their bodies. People with insufficient acetaldehyde dehydrogenase are prone to getting a red face when they drink alcohol.

Figure 1 Original copyright image, no permission to reprint

About 5% of the population has basically no acetaldehyde dehydrogenase in their bodies. These people may react to alcohol disinfection or even faint.

For these people, acetaldehyde is more likely to accumulate after drinking, which will cause damage to the human body.

Therefore, don't force yourself to drink at a party. Especially for those who blush when drinking, try not to drink.

2. Medicinal wine is not alcohol, so it will not cause harm to the body ?

The medicine is soaked in wine. It is medicine, but it is also wine.

We need to use drugs to treat diseases, such as arthritis, skin diseases, or cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, but for patients with these diseases, abstinence from alcohol is also very important.

Many patients say that they do not drink alcohol, but if you ask them if they drink medicinal wine, they will say yes.

Although medicinal wine has certain pharmacological effects, the alcohol in it is still harmful to the body. So we cannot assume that medicinal wine will not harm the body.

3. Is it true that you can’t drink alcohol on an empty stomach?

There is a layer of oil on the surface of the gastrointestinal mucosa to protect it. This protective mucosa can be dissolved by alcohol, which will destroy the balance of gastrointestinal flora and affect human health.

When drinking on an empty stomach, the gastrointestinal mucosa comes into direct contact with the alcohol, which dissolves faster and the alcohol is absorbed faster, which means you get drunk faster.

If you drink alcohol after a meal or during a meal, the damage to the gastrointestinal mucosa caused by alcohol will be relatively small.

Therefore, it is recommended that you do not drink alcohol unless necessary. If you must drink, do not drink on an empty stomach.

4. Drinking alcohol only hurts the stomach and has little effect on the liver?

When drinking large amounts of alcohol, the acetaldehyde produced by the alcohol is highly toxic and destructive, and can create a gap between tightly connected cells.

Alcohol, acetaldehyde, some bacteria and their metabolites in the gastrointestinal tract, and even necrotic tissue of the gastrointestinal mucosa will leak into the blood vessels through these gaps, and then run along the blood vessels to the liver, thereby damaging the liver.

When the damage is mild, it will lead to fat deposition in the liver, causing alcoholic fatty liver. In severe cases, it can develop into alcoholic hepatitis, alcoholic cirrhosis, and may even lead to liver failure.

Therefore, alcohol can cause great damage to the liver, and everyone must pay attention to this issue.

5. Is it true that drinking alcohol can improve sexual performance?

Drinking a small amount of alcohol can indeed have a mild anesthesia and delay ejaculation, and has certain benefits for premature ejaculation. However, it is difficult to control how much to drink. Drinking too little will not have any effect, and drinking too much will lead to impotence.

In addition, long-term drinking will aggravate prostatitis and prostate hyperplasia, causing a decrease in male testosterone, an increase in estrogen, a decrease in muscle mass, an increase in fat, and worsening sexual function, and even affecting fertility.

Therefore, the idea that drinking alcohol can help with sexual performance is very wrong.

6. What symptoms may people who drink alcohol for a long time experience?

Drinking alcohol not only hurts the stomach, liver, and sexual function, but also affects the health of the whole body. If the following symptoms occur, it often means that excessive drinking has caused serious damage to the body:

First, fatigue. The most common symptom of liver disease is a feeling of lack of energy.

Second, pain and distension in the liver area. After being tired or not getting enough rest, it is easy to have pain and distension in the liver area, sometimes accompanied by a low fever.

Third, muscle atrophy. The gamer looks fat, but his muscles are soft and weak when you pinch them. He feels weak in the legs after climbing a few steps. This situation is also likely caused by drinking.

Fourth, diarrhea. If you have diarrhea after drinking alcohol, especially cold beer, you should also consider that it is caused by alcohol damage.

Figure 2 Original copyright image, no permission to reprint

People who drink heavily for a long time should pay special attention to whether these symptoms appear in their bodies.

Finally, I would like to emphasize again that if you can avoid drinking, then don’t drink. For the sake of your own health and the happiness of your family, it is recommended that you actively quit drinking and live a healthy life.