Dr. Jean and I bought a wine tasting trip to Sonoma Valley, CA with some friends at a Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation auction with a couple of dear friends that each have a Type 1 diabetic child. We recently completed the trip and it was a wonderful time albeit a weird trip for me. Anyone that knows me well, knows I don’t drink alcohol. This isn’t a judgement against anyone that does but because of my upbringing I feared I’d be too good at it.

I grew up with a father that was an alcoholic and a sister who battled the same issue. I was fortunate that my family members were able to go through AA to recover and thrive. In fact, at my fathers funeral, I was stunned by how many strangers came up and shared how my father helped save their life as a sponsor. That is how you turn a lemon into lemonade!

When people ask me about drinking this is what I tell them from a health perspective. In moderation it is a safe and might even have some health benefits. Ah, but what the hell is “moderation”? Well in Napa Valley our wine guide Charlie presented us with a glass that could hold a whole bottle of wine! So saying one glass won’t give you a clear understanding will it?

Moderations is probably less than you think.

5 oz of wine, one beer, or a couple ounces of liquor is moderate. A little more or less isn’t going to hurt but here is my mantra: it is fine to have a drink every day but if you need your drink, you probably shouldn’t have your drink. When there is a dependence on alcohol it can be a sign there may be trouble brewing.

You have read or heard my rants on sugar and alcohol is loaded with sugar. This can be a big problem for your health for other reasons besides dependency if you don’t maintain moderation.

My solution for this is it’s fine to have a drink a day but I would take:
one day off a week
one week off a month
and one month off a year.

This allows you to have control and will help you steer clear of addictions. It also allows your liver and other organs to repair from the damage the alcohol and sugar can bring to the table. Taking GI Adsorb also helps your liver detoxify after indulging. Just make sure to take it an hour before or after any other medications or supplements.

So cheers to moderation! Enjoy your drink but make sure you do so with balance.

And how can I not lead into our SP Detox at the end of this information?! We will be doing the detox challenge again post holidays. Its a great way to reset your whole body not just your liver.

More info to come this week Wednesday, November 20 for the part 2 of the Detox discussion on Facebook and Instagram at 12:30.

Read past blog posts here