I
t’s fascinating how effortlessly we can convince ourselves that our desired beliefs are true. Take, for instance, a recent headline that caught the attention of numerous news organizations: “Moderate alcohol consumption may lower stress, reduce heart disease risk, study finds.” Excited drinkers, amidst a sea of health warnings, cling to such words like shipwrecked sailors clutching to their capsized boat’s hull.
They choose to overlook the details of the story. However, even the headline itself, with its usage of “may” and “study finds”, implies that this scientific discovery isn’t an unequivocal confirmation. Once the study’s methodology and conclusions are examined, it becomes evident that the findings fall under the category of “quite interesting” rather than “groundbreaking.” But who needs that level of specificity? If I want to, the headline alone provides enough information to support my long-held belief about the benefits of drinking. “I always knew it! I told you so! Drinking helps me cope with stress, which in turn eases the strain on my heart, leading to a longer and happier life.” I’ll store this fact away, just like the one about red wine being a health elixir.
The problem arises when drinkers, industry PRs, and vehement anti-“nanny state” advocates resurrect this story in discussions for years to come. “Don’t you remember the study that showed…” etc, etc. And mind you, the aforementioned headline was moderately responsibly written. Many others are not. A quick search for similar content produced some real gems from mainstream media in the past year. How about: “Beer is GOOD for you! Scientists claim two pints a day may slash your risk of dementia”? As an added bonus, just below that, we stumble upon this overly dramatic statement: “Drinking two pints a day slashed risk of the memory-robbing condition by a third.” Memory-robbing condition? Seriously?
Another noteworthy title: “Cheers! Drinking beer makes you happier and healthier than if you are teetotal, scientists confirm.” Notice the word “confirm.” No “may” or “claim” to maintain any semblance of honesty. But the winner, without a doubt, is: “Drink ‘thousands of varieties of wine’ to boost immunity and improve mental health.” Excuse me, what? “Professor Tim Spector claims wine enhances gut health due to the high concentration of polyphenols, a group of natural defense chemicals.”
Ah, Professor Spector. An exceptionally intelligent man, to be sure. I once had the opportunity to interview him about his book on how individuals process different types of food. All very fascinating stuff. However, I couldn’t help but feel that he belonged to a different breed than the rest of us, being both wise and sensible, not to mention slim. I couldn’t imagine him indulging in excessive eating, and I made this observation to him. He countered, claiming occasional overindulgence in cashew nuts. Cashews? I rest my case.
So what was the deal with his advice about drinking thousands of varieties of wine? Had he lost his mind? No need to worry; the story quickly deflated the headline’s grandiosity. It turned out that consuming more than a small glass or two in one sitting negated any potential benefits for gut health. At Professor Spector’s rate of intake, it would take him decades to sample enough wine varieties to truly test his hypothesis. So, Prof, lay off the cashews, and maybe you’ll live long enough to achieve that goal.
We live in an era where studies on any and all topics generate copious amounts of data that are readily available. It’s almost guaranteed that you can find evidence to support any belief you hold dear. Alcohol is good for you, alcohol is bad for you; Brexit is beneficial, Brexit is detrimental; the climate is in crisis, the climate is just fine; the Earth is round, the Earth is flat. The supporting data is out there somewhere. And, to make matters even more convenient, there’s always a news story with a captivating headline that you can screenshot and immortalize.
Alcohol, burdened by societal norms, massive commercial interests, and its addictive nature, is an ideal subject for these headline-driven fallacies. However, if you review the news stories on alcohol over the years, you’ll find, similar to the climate crisis, an overwhelming consensus: alcohol is genuinely detrimental to your health, period. The few contradictory narratives appear almost comically desperate. There’s the highly improbable “Heavy drinkers healthier and happier in later years,” and the decidedly puzzling “Alcohol ‘has benefits for older drinkers but young should go teetotal.”
On the other side of the argument, the public health campaign takes a progressively stricter stance. The World Health Organization now claims that no amount of alcohol consumption is safe. While this statement may be technically accurate, it’s also somewhat absurd. As highlighted by David Spiegelhalter, the former professor for the public understanding of risk at Cambridge University, when England’s chief medical officer made a similar pronouncement in 2018: “There is no safe level of driving, yet the government doesn’t recommend abstaining from driving. Come to think of it, there is no safe level of living, yet nobody would advocate for total abstinence.”
Within this discourse, there must be a simple, practical truth that can be universally accepted and understood. Something along the lines of Michael Pollan’s famous dietary advice: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” In that same spirit, I propose the following when it comes to alcohol: drink if you must, if you enjoy it, but do so in moderation. And above all, disregard the sensationalist headlines.
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Adrian Chiles is a celebrated broadcaster, author, and columnist for The Guardian. His book, The Good Drinker: How I Learned to Love Drinking Less, is now available in paperback.
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