Anyone who tries to bring up for discussion the effects of alcohol on the human body is sure to invite controversy. This is because a discussion on this topic almost always stirs up prepossessions and emotions, and our lack of thorough cognizance of the subject compounds the situation. More serious is the fact that this subject carries moral and social implications.
But braving all these, we often find ourselves asking that very question of what the effects of alcohol on the human body really are. Specifically, we want to know if alcohol is both a food and a drug. Of course the alcohol referred to here is ethanol, the intoxicating ingredient in alcoholic beverages.
Does alcohol qualify as a food? To answer this question, we must have a complete accord on one specific definition of "food": a substance which, when ingested, provides the body with energy, essential components of the cell environment, or building blocks for the manufacture of body parts. Obviously, any amount of alcohol obtained by drinking the substance cannot be considered a vital or valuable constituent of the body's internal environment; neither can it supply the building blocks necessary for the manufacture of body parts.
But alcohol qualifies as a food in that it can be burned, as it is so burned during the process of digestion, producing energy which the body can use. It has long been established in numerous studies that consumption of alcohol in moderate quantities can add to the body's fat storage and make the person gain weight. This fact, however, is not due to alcohol being converted into fat. Rather, it is because the instance of burning of alcohol relieves the body of the need for burning all the fat and carbohydrate ingested, storing some amount in the process.
It must be made clear here that alcohol is not ordinarily used because it is a food. As a matter of fact, ranged against glucose in terms of providing the body with energy, alcohol does not have any advantage at all, especially since it cannot be stored in the body.
But braving all these, we often find ourselves asking that very question of what the effects of alcohol on the human body really are. Specifically, we want to know if alcohol is both a food and a drug. Of course the alcohol referred to here is ethanol, the intoxicating ingredient in alcoholic beverages.
Does alcohol qualify as a food? To answer this question, we must have a complete accord on one specific definition of "food": a substance which, when ingested, provides the body with energy, essential components of the cell environment, or building blocks for the manufacture of body parts. Obviously, any amount of alcohol obtained by drinking the substance cannot be considered a vital or valuable constituent of the body's internal environment; neither can it supply the building blocks necessary for the manufacture of body parts.
But alcohol qualifies as a food in that it can be burned, as it is so burned during the process of digestion, producing energy which the body can use. It has long been established in numerous studies that consumption of alcohol in moderate quantities can add to the body's fat storage and make the person gain weight. This fact, however, is not due to alcohol being converted into fat. Rather, it is because the instance of burning of alcohol relieves the body of the need for burning all the fat and carbohydrate ingested, storing some amount in the process.
It must be made clear here that alcohol is not ordinarily used because it is a food. As a matter of fact, ranged against glucose in terms of providing the body with energy, alcohol does not have any advantage at all, especially since it cannot be stored in the body.
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