How much beer do you have to drink to be "excessive"? What percentage of alcohol is in beer? Ethyl alcohol in beer.
For some reason, historically, in Russia, beer is not considered alcohol. There was even a term - non-alcoholic beer industry - that is, no one dared to call beer non-alcoholic, but its production was not attributed to the alcohol industry. In addition, beer is now actively advertised on television as a fashionable, and even healthy drink for young people. A paradoxical situation has arisen. Due to the preservation of post-Soviet traditions, in fact, an alcoholic drink, beer continues to be considered as non-alcoholic, with the ensuing consequences. Regulation of taxation and advertising differs sharply from those for alcoholic products. Of course, this situation looks extremely attractive for foreign investors, and the beer industry begins to develop rapidly. In fact, capital flows here both from the traditional alcohol industry, which cannot advertise its products as actively, and from the brewing industry of Western countries, where the legislation classifies drinks as non-alcoholic not by name, but by alcohol content.
The State Sanitary and Epidemiological Supervision summed up the sad result: we have a country with a northern type of alcohol consumption. And the favorite cocktail of Russians was "ruff": "vodka without beer - money down the drain."
The monitoring of the quality of beer, carried out by the sanitary services, shows that on our shelves in the assortment an increasing share is made up of varieties with an alcohol content of more than 6%. Simply put, beer alcoholism has become almost the norm.
The State Sanitary and Epidemiological Supervision decided to fight this phenomenon. The chief sanitary doctor of Russia, Gennady Onishchenko, believes that the concept of "alcohol policy" should be developed in the near future.
Even in winter, a bottle of beer is a must-have for urban teens looking to impress each other, and all too often it ends up badly, from cold toes to the comatose state they find themselves in after a night out in the cold.
Many Russian vodka drinkers still have the same distorted view of beer as Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, who authorized the construction of a Turkish beer factory on the outskirts of the capital. "Beer," he said, "is the best medicine for alcoholics." A non-drinking mayor can be completely forgiven for his mistake, but many people think so, so let's still figure it out: what is beer?
What is beer made of
Beer is a natural alcoholic drink that contains a large amount of compounds formed during the fermentation process and supplied to it from plant materials. The main components of beer are water (91-93%), carbohydrates (1.5-4.5%), ethyl alcohol (3-7%) and nitrogen-containing substances (0.2-0.65%). Other components are designated as minor.
Beer carbohydrates are 75-85% dextrins. Simple sugars (glucose, sucrose, fructose) account for 10-15% of the total amount of carbohydrates. And only 2-8% of carbohydrates are represented by other, complex sugars (polysaccharides, pectin fragments, etc.). Let us explain that dextrins are oligosaccharides, that is, they contain several molecules of simple sugars - more than in glucose or fructose (where one molecule is monosaccharides), sucrose or maltose (where two molecules are disaccharides), but less than in starch or fiber (where there are many molecules - these are polysaccharides). Dextrins can be seen when frying potatoes. It is their color that determines the golden crust, and they are formed during the thermal destruction of the starch that makes up the potato. Probably dextrins and their amount affect the color of the beer.
Alcohols. Ethanol, which enters the body with beer, does not have a dehydrating effect, due to the high water content in this drink, in other words, when drinking beer, unlike vodka, you cannot inject a lethal dose of alcohol into yourself.
The mechanisms of toxic action of ethyl alcohol and other components of beer are interrelated. At the same time, ethanol is able to modify or enhance the toxic effect of a number of minor compounds and vice versa. In this regard, it should be noted that recently a new variety of beer with a high alcohol content - up to 12% (strong beer) has appeared on the market of alcoholic products. The use of such beer in the same amount as usual, of course, entails a chain of negative consequences due to the combined toxic effect of alcohol and other biologically active compounds.
During fermentation, higher alcohols (propyl, butyl, amyl), esters (ethyl formate, butyl acetate, etc.) are also formed. These substances affect the taste and smell of beer, but they are also the components from which vodka is purified. The content of higher alcohols is 50 - 100 mg/l.
Is it true that beer is healthy because it contains a lot of vitamins, minerals and organic substances?
Mineral compounds enter beer from malt, other raw materials and water. Biologically significant amounts of beer contain ions of potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sulfur and chlorine. Beer differs from wine in its high potassium content. It should be noted that with the massive use of beer, an excess intake of potassium and water dramatically increases the formation of urine and enhances the excretion of sodium and chlorine by the kidneys, ultimately leading to demineralization of the body. According to the content of calcium (about 80 mg/l), magnesium (about 80 mg/l), phosphorus (about 140 mg/l), as well as iron, copper, zinc and others, the content of which does not exceed 1 mg/l, beer does not has special advantages.
vitamins enter beer mainly from malt rich in B vitamins. However, in the process of making beer, the concentration of vitamins inevitably decreases, and as a result, the content of vitamin B1, or thiamine, is 0.005-0.15 mg / l, and vitamin B2, or riboflavin - 0.3-1.3 mg/l. Thus, drinking beer with a maximum concentration of vitamin B1 in the amount of 10 liters per day can provide 100% of the daily requirement for this vitamin.
In beer there is other vitamins. The high content of vitamin C or ascorbic acid (20-50 mg/l) is often due to the fact that it is added to beer during the production process to prevent spontaneous oxidation of other components. Beer also has high concentrations of nicotinic (5-20 mg/l) and folic acid (about 110 µg/l). Beer contains small amounts of vitamin B6, pantothenic acid and biotin.
Phenolic compounds. The content of polyphenols in beer is about 10 times lower than in natural grape wine and ranges from 150-300 mg/l. The consumption of beer and spirits is associated with an increased risk of developing malignant tumors in the lower urinary tract, which is associated precisely with a low content of polyphenols.
bitter substances come into beer from hops and give the drink a specific bitter aftertaste. These substances are divided into low- and high-resinous. Depending on the technology of preparation and storage of beer, they can undergo polymerization, oxidation and, accordingly, change their original properties. Low-resin substances, which are especially abundant in beer, consist of a-acids, or humulons, b-acids, or lupulines, and a group of as yet uncharacterized compounds.
The bitter substances of beer, along with other extractive substances of hops, belong to the category of psychoactive compounds. They have a sedative, hypnotic, and in large doses and a hallucinogenic effect. In addition, they have bactericidal, bacteriostatic properties and have a stimulating effect on the secretion of gastric juice. The latter underlies the individual intolerance to beer, which in people with hypersensitivity to the action of gastric secretion stimulants causes discomfort in the stomach and a reflux reaction.
Biogenic amines have been found in beer relatively recently. They immediately attracted attention because of the ability to have a pronounced biological effect. It has long been known that beer is contraindicated in patients taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors. The meaning of these recommendations became clear after cadaverine, putrescine, histamine and tyramine were identified in beer. When drinking in large quantities, biogenic amines provoke the development of hypertension, cause headaches and can lead to kidney damage.
Phytoestrogens are plant analogues of female sex hormones and also get into the drink from hops. Their content in hops reaches significant values - from 20 to 300 mg per 1 kg of plant mass. There are fewer of them in beer (1 - 36 mg / l). However, this amount is sufficient to provide a distinct hormonal effect on the human body. It is very likely that changes in the endocrine status (feminization of men and masculinization of women) in beer abusers are mainly associated with the effects of phytoestrogens.
In this regard, the following story, quoted in various treatises glorifying beer, is curious: “In the 16th century, the German pharmacist Johann Casimir Saugfus recommended that women regularly smear beer foam on their faces and breasts - thus, the skin becomes extremely tender. Of interest in this regard is the story of the Prussian queen Louise (1776-1810), who suffered from her flat chest. For one reason or another, her husband Friedrich Wilhelm liked to look at the fuller figures of court ladies. The queen turned to doctors, whose advice was: "Drink beer with and after meals, leave horseback riding, massage your breasts thoroughly with beer three times a day." The course of treatment, according to the chronicle, gave the desired results.
How are beers different?
Of course, one can talk for a long time about the manufacturing features, color and chemical composition of each variety, but if beer is a drink, then the taste of beer should be the most important criterion when choosing it. It's simple, but it turns out that for beer lovers, the taste of their drink is of secondary importance.
"Tastes could not be discussed". No one has the right to tell us which drinks are delicious and which are not. However, it is interesting to explore in detail the widespread assumption that beer is drunk for its wonderful taste.
Most people recall that at first they didn't like the taste of beer, they rather found it disgusting. However, drinking was perceived as a symbol of adulthood. If a newcomer had the courage to declare that a symbol did not taste good, he was told: "Nothing, you will like it soon." But until a person forces himself to pour beer several times down his throat, he will not learn to appreciate its taste.
Many beer lovers refuse to drink non-alcoholic beer on the pretext that it tastes worse. A group from the University of Virginia decided to test this claim. As an alternative to non-alcoholic beer, a popular beer containing 5.7% alcohol was used. The test found that participants were unable to determine which beer contains alcohol more likely than by chance. A number of other studies have confirmed that regular beer drinkers have not been able to accurately determine by taste whether beer is strong, medium or very low in alcohol content. Thus, no matter how hard they try to hide it, beer drinkers drink beer not for taste, but for alcohol.
Many beer lovers believe that each type of beer has a special, unique taste, and they are willing to pay more for special beers, of course, only for the sake of their "divine" taste. However, three studies have shown that regular beer drinkers seldom rated well-known or expensive beers more favorably than others, when taste alone could be judged.
In one study, beer drinkers were served, along with others, their favorite beers. But in a blind test, these varieties were not rated significantly higher than the rest. In subsequent experiments, the varieties were designated, and this significantly affected the taste ratings.
Another study concludes: “In this experiment, beer drinkers were largely unable to taste the difference between the 3 types of beer. However, the majority of female participants stated before the experiment that they did not expect much success in identification, while the majority of men were confident that they would be able to identify each type of beer by taste. Some of the men openly admitted that they had a taste aversion to one of the types of beer, which they were then unable to identify during the experiment.
Another study found that there is still a trend towards higher ratings for more expensive strains. Interestingly, this trend showed up noticeably stronger in a follow-up study when the beer bottles were labeled correctly. Thus, even this study showed that price and cultivar name are more important in the perception of palatability than the natural difference between different cultivars.
The effect of price on subjective taste sensation was studied in another experiment. 60 beer lovers received beer of the same sort, but bottled in 3 different bottles. The bottles had labels indicating that they were different brands with different prices. The results of the experiment made it possible to show that the price has a significant impact on the judgment about the quality of the product.
In the taste test, participants were selected on the basis that they all "like beer." This test revealed great difficulty in recognizing their favorite beer. But virtually all of them described what they thought was their favorite beer as having the best taste.
Thus, it is not the taste, but the label and the price that determine the choice of beer. This fact is skillfully hidden by beer advertising, deceiving those consumers who want to be deceived.
Is beer not alcohol?
There is currently a debate in Russia about whether beer is considered an alcoholic beverage. Detailed discussions are also taking place in other countries. For example, the seminal World Health Organization publication on alcohol, Alcohol Policy and the Public Good, states: “Such a false assumption is the convenient illusion that our favorite alcoholic beverage is not really “alcohol” but an important dietary ingredient or an emblem of national virtue. (beer or vice versa wine is often treated in this way in some countries).
Of course, beer is not alcohol, but vodka is also not alcohol, but its 40% solution. In beer, the alcohol content can be different and vary from 0 to 10 percent or more. According to the standards of Soviet statistics, the average alcohol content in beer was 3.5%; Western alcohol statistics assume that beer contains 5% alcohol. This means that when drinking a bottle of vodka or 8 bottles of beer, an equal amount of alcohol enters the body. And if, as a result, the policeman determines that you were driving while intoxicated, you can shout as much as you like that beer is not alcohol, but this cry will not affect the device. And it is no coincidence that beer advocates recommend that drivers drink only non-alcoholic beer.
In all developed countries, beer is classified as an alcoholic beverage, and the debate is only about at what alcohol content beer can be classified as non-alcoholic (or, more precisely, low-alcohol) drinks. In most countries of the European Union, this limit is 1.2% alcohol (it was this limit that was proposed in the already mentioned decision of the chief sanitary doctor), and in Sweden and Finland - 2%. For beer where the alcohol content exceeds the established limit, all restrictions for alcoholic beverages apply: a ban on sale to minors, restrictions on hours, days and places of sale, excise taxes, etc.
The alcohol industry of all countries considers beer as their product and includes it in their calculations. There are no serious contradictions and competition between the producers of beer and, for example, whiskey, in any country, and in the fight against public health advocates, they, as a rule, act as a united front. Such a term as "beer and soft drinks industry" is a specifically Soviet phenomenon, and in the world companies involved in the production of soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola or Pepsi, consider it commercially unjustified to commit themselves to the production of beer.
In some countries, beer is the main component of alcohol consumption by the population. For example, in the Czech Republic 75% of alcohol is consumed in the form of beer, in the UK - 65%, in Germany - 60%, in Belgium - 55%, in New Zealand - 45%.
WHO documents, such as the European Action Plan on Alcohol Consumption, clearly indicate that it is the total consumption of alcohol that needs to be reduced:
Alcohol cannot be treated like other commodities whose level of consumption is determined by market forces. Alcohol is a special substance, as it is addictive, and its use leads to serious problems.
Countries with the highest levels of alcohol consumption have the highest levels of alcohol-related problems. These problems place a heavy burden on family life, health and welfare systems, transportation and policing, and production.
The stark correlation between a country's average per capita alcohol consumption and the number of heavy drinkers suggests that the main policy goal should be to reduce levels of alcohol consumption in the general population, as well as to prevent particularly risky behavior.
In all countries, the level of per capita consumption is strongly associated with the health, social and economic problems caused by alcohol: when consumption levels increase, most problems increase, and when they fall, problems decrease. At the individual level, there is a dose-response relationship: the risk of health problems increases with consumption.
At the same time, beer, if it differs from other alcoholic beverages, is not for the better. The book Alcohol Policy and the Public Good states:
In most cases, the substance thought to be the cause of alcohol problems is ethyl alcohol, whether it is found in beer, wine, or spirits. There are, however, a number of examples in which certain types of beverages are associated with certain pathologies. For example, beer consumption may be associated with colon cancer.
Where do they come from and who needs strong beers
A hypothetical answer to this question has already been formulated in the section on beer brewing technology.
Apparently, there are three ways to increase the strength, that is, the alcohol content in beer.
First, complex sugars can be added to the mash, that is, a mixture of barley malt with water, usually molasses, from which malt enzymes form simple sugars, usually maltose, from which brewer's yeast subsequently forms alcohol.
Secondly, enzymes can also be added there if their amount in the malt seems to be insufficient. Then simple sugars are formed more, and, accordingly, more alcohol.
Thirdly, pure alcohol can be added to the finished beer. It can be assumed that such beer will be better stored and deteriorate more slowly, that is, its commercial properties will improve.
In response to the question of who needs it, a number of hypotheses can also be made.
On the one hand, it seems to be unprofitable for brewers to produce beer with a high alcohol content, since when the alcohol content reaches 8.6%, the excise tax increases by more than three times, and no manufacturer likes high excise taxes, but in fact, beer with with a strength of more than 8.5% is difficult to manufacture, and dangerous. According to experiments, the alcohol content in the drink begins to be clearly felt only from the level of 8%, and up to this level, the consumer can slip beer with any strength.
Obviously, a higher alcohol content in beer can be beneficial for only one reason - to form a consumer's addiction to alcohol, so that he becomes a regular consumer of any alcoholic product, be it beer or vodka. And here the interests of different parts of the alcohol industry - vodka and "beer and soft drinks" are clearly converging.
Can you become an alcoholic by drinking beer?
In some laudatory materials about beer, you can read a link to some WHO study that in those countries where they drink a lot of beer, the level of alcoholism is lower. This assertion is patently false for several reasons.
According to WHO, the word "alcoholism" does not have an exact scientific meaning and therefore alcoholism is not included in the latest edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). The WHO does not conduct studies on the "level of alcoholism", as it is not known how to measure it. The number of registered alcoholics in any country covers a minority of those who could be diagnosed with such a diagnosis, and mainly reflects the national characteristics of the organization of drug treatment.
At the same time, the WHO documents clearly state:
"The stark correlation between a country's average per capita alcohol consumption and the number of people drinking heavily suggests that the main policy goal should be to reduce levels of alcohol consumption in the general population, as well as to prevent particularly risky behavior."
European Action Plan to combat alcohol consumption:
“The increase in per capita alcohol consumption is followed by an increase in aggregate consumption among the entire drinking population and an increase in the number of people who abuse alcohol.
The goal of alcohol policy should not be reduced to "alcoholism" or alcohol abuse. Preventive measures that affect most drinkers will also have an impact on heavy drinkers or problem drinkers. The drinking population as a whole behaves more like a single system than like several different parts. An increase or decrease in total consumption is thus the result of a shift in all levels of consumption and will have an impact on heavy drinkers.”
In other words, the less alcohol in general and beer in particular are drunk in a country, the less alcoholics there are in that country.
One gets the impression that beer alcoholism is formed more slowly than vodka ... It is difficult to consider this as a rule. Perhaps it is formed more imperceptibly and deceptively. In Germany, where beer is traditionally consumed, it is precisely beer alcoholism that suffers. Excessive consumption of beer dramatically reduces productivity. There is harm even from the so-called "non-alcoholic" beer, since alcohol is still present in it, although in very small quantities. For example, it is not uncommon for people who are addicted to alcohol to start their next drinking bout with a glass of beer, non-alcoholic beer. It is worth noting that a person suffering from chronic alcoholism, the transition from vodka to beer will also not give much benefit. The body will still require its “equivalent”, that is, it will force quality to be covered by quantity. One patient of the narcological clinic, having made such a “transition”, drank at least a bucket of beer a day. But in other cases, beer is used by alcoholics either to get out of hard drinking, or in the third stage of alcoholism, when the body's tolerance to alcohol falls. But the treatment of beer alcoholism requires the same as vodka and wine. First of all, you need to stop drinking beer forever.
Moderate alcohol and health
Proponents of brewing, and indeed of alcohol in general, like to make arguments related to supposedly improving the health of consumers of moderate doses of alcohol. Most often, we are talking about reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases, primarily coronary heart disease in moderate drinkers. However, many studies refute this view. So, in a study published in 1999 in the British Medical Journal, conducted by Scottish scientists for 21 years on a group of 5766 men, it was shown that moderate doses of alcohol (up to 14 units per week, that is, about 140 g of absolute alcohol, which corresponds to 14 glasses of beer or wine or 350 ml of vodka) did not show any changes in mortality from certain diseases compared to non-drinkers. For the same group of men who consumed more than 35 units of alcohol per week (7 liters of beer with a concentration of 5% alcohol per week), the death rate from stroke was twice as high as for non-drinkers.
It has recently been discovered that alcohol can lead to fainting spells. Even social drinking can sometimes make you feel weak and dizzy - not because of the intoxication, but because of the way alcohol disrupts the body's ability to constrict blood vessels.
It was found that under the influence of gravity during standing, blood flow to the brain decreases. This is one of the reasons why some people get dizzy if they get up too fast. Normally, blood vessels constrict to regulate blood pressure.
Alcohol, on the other hand, relaxes the walls of blood vessels, and they no longer regulate blood pressure when the body moves. In addition, alcohol can lower blood pressure, even with moderate intoxication.
“We were surprised by the effect,” says Virend Somers, a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic, who co-authored the study on which these findings are based.
During the study, the effects of moderate intoxication on fourteen healthy young people, whose average age was 26 years old, were studied. Blood pressure was measured before drinking, after drinking, and also in the process. It turned out that systolic blood pressure fell by 14, and diastolic - by 8 mm Hg.
Somers said some people who experience frequent vasodilation may be vulnerable to even small amounts of alcohol.
Is beer good for the heart?
Supporters of beer argue that the carbon dioxide contained in it expands the capillary vessels of the mucous membrane of the digestive organs and contributes to a faster flow of fluid into the blood. And that, they say, is a virtue. However, when beer is quickly absorbed into the body, it overflows the bloodstream, with a large amount of alcohol consumed, varicose veins and expansion of the boundaries of the heart occur. Radiologists call this phenomenon "beer heart" syndrome or "nylon stocking" syndrome. If beer is abused, the heart sags, becomes flabby, and its vital motor functions are lost.
Almost all authors who analyzed the relationship between the risk of developing diseases of the cardiovascular system and beer consumption agree that it increases the likelihood of developing coronary heart disease. Similarly, a study of the effects of various alcoholic beverages on vascular tone found that beer consumption was associated with higher levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
Some chemical additives can also contribute to the deterioration of the function of the heart muscle. For example, some beer manufacturers add cobalt compounds to beer to increase foaming. Being a chemical analogue of calcium, cobalt takes its place in the heart muscle. However, cobalt cannot perform the functions characteristic of calcium during excitation and contraction of the myocardium. This contributes to a decrease in the contractility of the heart muscle, an increase in the volume of the heart, the so-called heart failure.
Beer for the gut
Recently, reports have become more frequent about what bad habits can protect against bowel cancer, and it turns out that you need to drink wine, and even smoke. However, this is reminiscent of the arguments about Alzheimer's disease (this is a variant of senile dementia) in smokers, that, supposedly, this pathology almost never occurs among smokers. Of course, the conclusion is that smoking somehow protects against Alzheimer's disease. But, in fact, everything is simpler: most smokers simply do not live up to this, as they die earlier from other diseases caused by tobacco smoke, most often from cardiovascular diseases and cancer.
And this analogy is not given here by chance. Even supporters of beer cannot keep silent about the fact that “German doctors found carcinogens in beer that pass into it from hops,” but they immediately stipulate that “subsequent studies by Japanese scientists indicate the ability of beer to remove carcinogens from the body. They are known to be present in smoked and fried foods, which, however, no one is going to refuse.
What substances in hops are carcinogenic? Brewing technologists write about the so-called bitter substances of hops, classified into general, soft and hard resins. If we recall tobacco again, then it is the resins in it that contribute to the development of cancer in smokers. Unfortunately, no matter what healing properties are attributed to hops, its resins inevitably do their detrimental work.
The WHO materials indicate that the consumption of beer significantly increases the risk of developing colon cancer.
Beer and procreation
Another quote from beer lovers: “Almost all the authors of the old books on beer recommend drinking beer even for nursing mothers and infants, seriously arguing that beer is the most suitable food for children after mother's milk. Even the "teacher of the peoples" Jan Amos Komensky did not exclude beer from the diet of children.
Alas, some delusions are realized only after centuries. Although one can also cite quotes concerning more modern iconic figures: “Austrian brewers are not strong enough, how proud they are that one boy from the city of Graz drank their beer in childhood. The boy grew frail, sickly and all that. And they recommended him, in addition to milk, to drink beer. Now the boy has grown up. Who it? Arnold Schwarzenegger." Of course, it looks like a beautiful fairy tale, very useful as an advertisement.
Serious modern doctors completely deny the advisability of recommending beer to children and pregnant women. This is reflected even in the rules of trade:
St. Petersburg, 28.08.2000: new trade rules - pregnant women should not sell beer. It turns out that at the counters where they sell beer and alcoholic beverages, “information on contraindications to the use of alcoholic beverages” should hang in a conspicuous place. New trade rules oblige citizens to be informed that intoxicating drinks are especially harmful to pregnant and lactating women, adolescents under 18, heart patients, hypertensive patients, kidney patients, liver disease, etc.
Beer fans write: "Our ancestors knew that beer increases male potency."
In fact, alcohol has a harmful effect on the testicles and ovaries. At the same time, both frequent intoxication and the systematic intake of significant amounts of alcohol are equally harmful. Under the influence of alcohol abuse, fatty degeneration of the seminiferous tubules and proliferation of connective tissue in the parenchyma of the testicles are observed. Beer has a particularly pronounced toxic effect on the glandular tissue of the testicle, which, much easier than other alcoholic beverages, penetrates the hematotesticular barrier - an obstacle between blood and testicular tissues, causing fatty degeneration of the glandular epithelium of the seminiferous tubules.
Along with the direct toxic effect of alcohol on the testicles, the development of alcohol-dependent impaired liver function and its ability to destroy estrogen is of known importance. It is known that with cirrhosis of the liver, the amount of estrogen increases significantly in both men and women, which leads to inhibition of the gonadotropic function of the pituitary gland and subsequent atrophy of the gonads. In addition, it is worth remembering the already mentioned phytoestrogens. As a result, female sex hormones begin to accumulate. The pelvis becomes wider, the mammary glands grow, from which colostrum begins to stand out. For three days a month, a man's nasal mucosa swells and nosebleeds are noted. The ambulance, which is usually called in such cases, is unable to help, because doctors do not know the true causes of this bleeding. It happens when a man, a big beer lover, develops a malignant tumor of the breast.
It should be pointed out that when alcohol is abused, sooner or later, depending on the individual characteristics and endurance of the organism, sexual potency is also impaired, which is associated with a decrease in conditioned and unconditioned reflexes, due to an inhibitory effect on subcortical centers.
In women, disorders of the regularity of the menstrual cycle are observed, in proportion to the beer they drink, the likelihood of getting breast cancer increases. It is dangerous to drink beer to a mother who is breastfeeding. The baby may have epileptic convulsions, and over time, epilepsy may occur.
Due to the toxic effect on the adrenal glands, alcohol inhibits the production of androgens in them, which determine sexual desire, retribution for abuse is a decrease in libido, and in advanced cases, secondary frigidity may develop. When taking alcoholic beverages during pregnancy, teratogenic properties are detected (that is, a tendency to cause deformities in the fetus), it is possible for the unborn child to develop a genetically determined hereditary tendency to alcoholism.
According to the International Herald Tribune, a study by the American Centers for Disease Control found that a 20-cent tax increase on beer reduced teens' incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, particularly gonorrhea, by almost 9%. Study author Harrell Chesson explains this phenomenon by saying that drinking affects judgment, and teenagers under the influence of beer tend to have sex, including with multiple partners, without using condoms.
Is beer a youth drink?
Typically, beer proponents list many of the virtues of beer that make it particularly suitable as a drink for young people. Here, there is a low alcohol content, and the alleged ability of beer to evoke a benevolent attitude towards others, and the ability to drink it “on the go”, without a pompous feast, for which young people often do not have money.
However, research results show that adolescence is characterized by a particularly intensive development of the brain, which is sensitive to external factors. And alcohol consumption, which usually begins in adolescence, can damage certain brain structures that are primarily responsible for memory functions. Adolescents who experiment with alcohol, unlike those who do not drink alcohol, experience difficulties in reproducing new information.
The offer of beer to the market as a youth drink turns out, in the long run, to be profitable not only for producers of beer, but also for producers of stronger alcoholic beverages. The fact is that beer creates, as it were, an easier way to enter alcohol consumption. Young people who buy beer for their parties consider it something like lemonade, harmless and social. However, the alcohol contained in beer, with its frequent use, contributes to the formation of alcohol dependence, which at some stage is manifested by an increase in tolerance, that is, the need to consume large doses of alcohol to achieve the same degree of intoxication. And it was then that expressions like: “Beer without vodka - money down the drain!” Cocktails come into play, then beer can become either a drink at the beginning of drinking, or a “hangover” drink, and, therefore, alcoholism is already evident. And then something stronger becomes the main drink, in the CIS it is usually vodka. And the former young viewer of beer advertising becomes a reliable consumer of products of the alcohol industry.
How do athletes feel about beer?
Beer proponents, of course, report how great it is to drink beer: “At the Institute of Sports Medicine in Rome, athletes of various categories were given beer for a month as the only drink (other than water). And it was found that drinking 1 liter of beer per day does not affect body weight, heart rate, pressure and muscle performance.
However, there have been many experiments that have shown that even small doses of beer reduce athletic performance. For example, skaters and swimmers who drank a liter of beer lowered their swimming and skating speed by about 20%. Therefore, all athletes whose results are measured objectively go to the start completely sober. For the brain of chess players, alcohol can have disastrous consequences, and it is no coincidence that Garry Kasparov completely refused to drink any alcohol. In team sports, the consequences of beer consumption are not so noticeable, and therefore cases of "violation of the sports regime" are known. Outstanding coaches of the past, such as Anatoly Tarasov, fought very hard against beer consumption, as they knew many examples of how beer ruins a sports career. Of the recent examples, two Dynamo Kyiv players, Viktor Leonenko and Sergei Rebrov, can be named. Leonenko was the leading forward of the team, but he believed that he should definitely drink beer after matches. As a result, Dynamo soon abandoned his services, and he got lost in third-rate teams. After an unpleasant experiment in childhood, Rebrov basically does not drink beer. As a result, Dynamo received several million dollars for this striker from the English club Tottenham.
There are even more illustrative examples of the attitude of football players to beer abroad. In 1994, Ringness was granted the right by the Norwegian Football Association to produce a beer poster featuring the Norwegian national team. Team captain Rune Brasset immediately issued a statement: "If Ringness does not remove these posters, I will not play in the US World Championship." This situation was not new for the teetotaler Brasset. When he became captain of the German Werder team, he insisted on removing the emblem of the beer company "Beck" from the team's T-shirts. Brasset's protest was supported by Norway goalkeeper Jan Fiortoft. When Brasset was asked why he was so principled, he replied: “We are an example for children and youth. Therefore, to associate yourself with Ringness is a disaster. Immediately after this statement, a meeting was held between the leaders of Ringness and the Football Association. It was decided to immediately stop the beer advertising campaign. A complete victory for Rune, but also for the press, which supported the football player.
At the following 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, the beer advertising scandal broke out at a higher level. Since 1991, France has strictly banned advertising of alcohol on television, in youth magazines and in sports facilities. The American beer company Anhauser-Busch knew this when they decided to be one of the top 12 sponsors of the World Cup. She demanded that the European Commission declare the ban on beer advertising during the championship illegal. But they received a firm "no" from the French government. Health Minister Bernard Kutschner said: “Young people, who are many among football fans, are particularly exposed to sports-related advertising. It is absolutely unacceptable for a stadium or television to serve as an advertisement for a brand of alcohol.” Anhauser-Busch stated that she paid $20 million to FIFA for the sponsorship, but sports minister Marie Buffay replied that: "The French government does not bear any responsibility for the contract between FIFA and the beer company." As a result, Anhauser-Busch was forced to sell her sponsorship rights.
It is not only football leaders who are so strict about beer advertising. Most recently, renowned Norwegian skier Lasse Cues was fined $1,000 by the Norwegian Ski Association for appearing in a beer commercial. The leadership of the ski union did not like the athlete's participation in promotional activities, and the display of the commercial was discontinued. In addition, in addition to the fine, the Norwegian Ski Association will receive all the money that Cues earned from this advertisement.
The following case convincingly shows what the presence of beer advertising at sports competitions can lead to.
In Berlin, at the semi-finals of the World Handball Championship, which is not usually associated in the public mind with mass violence, two Danish fans were fatally injured by a drunken German spectator. A quarrel broke out between one of the Danes and a German who took out a knife and hit the interlocutor, and then another Dane who came to the aid of his compatriot.
The German beer manufacturer, Krombacher, was the main sponsor of the German Handball Association and the World Cup. Bottles of Krombacher were everywhere in the foreground during the championship and its press conferences, and even with surprising indifference, at the press conference that took place immediately after the tragic incident.
In response to the deaths, the sale of alcohol was banned at the handball championship final. And German officials have said that the sale of alcohol at sporting events, which was not previously regulated by law, is now being considered by German lawmakers.
Of course, there are athletes who are happy to take money for advertising beer. But the beer companies are more than returning this money at the expense of young sports fans who themselves do not notice how beer is tightly entering their lives.
"Beer makes them lazy, stupid and powerless."
Advertising specialists argue that advertising allows the consumer to choose from a set of equals the product that best satisfies his consumer needs. And this is true for some products. For example, about washing powders we are told at what temperature or for what types of fabrics they can be used, about detergents it is useful to learn about their ability to launder grease, and so on.
When it comes to alcohol or tobacco, nothing like that happens. Unlike milk, beer advertising does not tell us how much and what vitamins we will consume with a liter of this drink. The explanation is very simple: none of these products is able to satisfy the real needs of buyers. Therefore, all advertising that we see in relation to beer (as well as other alcohol and tobacco) is of an image nature. That is, we are told how cool we can become if we purchase the offered product.
And it really effectively affects the potential consumer.
Studies have been conducted in adolescents and young adults, and all have found a small but significant relationship between viewing alcohol ads and higher levels of consumption reported by participants, as well as related attitudes towards alcohol. Beer advertising has been found to increase beer consumption among teenagers and young adults. According to one study, a five-minute increase in alcohol ad viewing corresponds to an increase in consumption of five grams of ethanol per day. For example, in a study of young adults, those who reported frequently viewing beer ads drank an average of six liters of beer per month, compared with a group of non-advertisers who consumed an average of three liters of beer.
Survey data was also used to study the impact of alcohol advertising on non-drinkers. A recent study focused on US children between ten and fourteen years of age. Children who were able to correctly understand most beer promotional materials had more positive beliefs about alcohol consumption and said they were going to drink more often as adults.
One recent long-term study examined the relationship between the amount of alcohol advertising retained in memory and alcohol consumption later in life. Here, a relationship was found between the amount of alcohol advertising that thirteen-year-old New Zealand boys recalled and their beer consumption, which they self-reported at age eighteen. The frequency of drinking at eighteen years of age was not correlated with the amount of advertising, but those who recalled more commercials (in most beer television commercials) reported drinking more beer during drinking occasions.
Thus, it becomes clear why the fuss around Russian beer flared up. It is clear that the stumbling block of the dispute is advertising budgets. Now beer, despite the alcohol content, is advertised on television along with soft drinks. If chief physician Onishchenko wins, brewers, as well as vodka producers, will lose TV advertising that dramatically increases sales. At the same time, not only businessmen of this market were indignant, who in this case would have to pay more taxes. They also found support among the consumers of their advertising products, television people, in whose advertising revenues "beer" money is about 15%.
Of course, in addition to television, there are other types of advertising. But in the surveys of the population, advertising in the print media is practically not mentioned, billboards and audio clips are hardly remembered. In general, when talking about advertising, the respondents mostly mean bright, memorable TV commercials. It is for her that they fight. But, ultimately, it is the consumer who has been deceived by them who pays for advertising both brewers and TV people.
Let's take a look at some of the beer commercials that have become so boring.
A man lies on the beach and comes to the conclusion: “Beer is better in your hand than a girl in the distance!” A comforting conclusion for the impotent.
Three young people need to meet so often that there is no time left for work. A brilliant start to the career of an alcoholic exposed from work.
Or let us remember another gentleman who, judging by some signs, was about to say some special and important words to his lady, but decided, as usual, to take beer for courage and either the lady ran away from him, or hallucinations began. Everyone can interpret this in their own way.
Or another plot. Remember Santa Claus, who arrives at the intended team instead of the New Year by March 8? And when asked where he was, he answers: “I drank beer!” And another time, the same fat man forgets so much about the passage of time that his car grows into the asphalt and is covered with a flower garden. Problems with brain functions are evident.
1. Such advertising can hardly be directed to sensible adults. If it is aimed at an adult viewer, then, most likely, at someone who is medically an alcoholic, but, of course, does not consider himself such. Remember the words of Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov: “Beer is the best medicine for alcoholics!” At the same time, it is worth remembering that Luzhkov himself is a teetotaler with experience.
With the help of such advertising, it is possible to suggest to the systematic consumer of alcohol that it is time for him to buy another portion of beer.
2. But advertising the behavior of alcoholics can be directed at young viewers who do not yet quite know how to properly confess to girls in love, or how to behave on the beach, or how to watch football matches - with or without beer, and how many mugs to take with myself.
And such advertising is really dangerous for the future of the society that watches TV programs advertising Fat Man, Proper Beer, Krasny Vostok. If behavior that is perceived by many as marginal, asocial or otherwise, is shown on TV every day, people wean from its abnormality, it may suddenly turn out to be socially acceptable and desirable. That's what a simple question means - a question about advertising beer on television.
Any advertising should pay off at the expense of current and future consumers. And in the case of beer, the bulk of current consumers are people with signs of alcohol addiction, and future consumers are teenagers.
Developed countries: how to get rid of excess beer?
The executive director of the brewing JSC "Vena" Sergey Khudoleev said that European countries are increasing the production of beer in order to reduce the consumption of strong drinks. (Report from the press conference of the brewers of St. Petersburg on January 11, 2001).
Supporters of beer constantly emphasize that we still drink little “creepy (sorry, liquid) bread”, but in developed countries there is more than enough beer. And it turns out that they are right, they really take away beer there. The latest edition of the alcohol industry's World Drinking Trends guide, among other things, lists and ranks beer consumption in many countries. And it turns out that in those countries where they drink the most beer, its consumption is steadily declining (see figure). For example, in the period from 1980 to 1998, they began to drink less beer in New Zealand - by 30%, in Belgium - by 25%, in Canada - by 20%. Even in Germany, beer consumption fell by 13%.
According to the logic of those who believe that the less people drink beer, the more they drink vodka, these countries should have drowned in vodka. However, in all these countries, the consumption of spirits fell over the same period, from 24% in Denmark to 52% in Belgium. What did the inhabitants of these countries replace beer and vodka with? The handbook gives a clear answer to this question as well. In all these countries, the consumption of juices, mineral water and other non-alcoholic beverages has risen sharply. For example, in Germany people began to drink three times more juice during the same period. In Belgium, they now drink more mineral water than beer, although in 1980 they drank almost 3 times more beer. In the US, the consumption of soft drinks (such as cola) in 1980 was only 40% higher than the consumption of beer, and now it is 2.5 times more.
Of course, it would be unfair not to point out that beer consumption is growing in some European countries. During the same period, they began to drink more beer in Portugal, Greece, and Ireland. However, the consumption of spirits in these countries remained generally stable. In other countries (Norway, Spain, Italy), beer consumption stabilized in the 1990s, while the consumption of strong drinks decreased. Thus, in developed countries, beer does not rather replace vodka, but complements it. Long-term changes in beer consumption are usually positively correlated with spirits consumption, although this relationship is not rigid and the opposite trend is occasionally observed. In general, between 1990 and 1998, total alcohol consumption in the 15 countries of the European Union fell by an average of 7%, and increased only in Greece and Ireland, both of which saw increases in beer consumption.
The fact that the consumption of beer and alcohol in general is observed in the two least developed countries of the European Union is quite typical. The growth in beer consumption in developing countries (eg Chile, China, India, Thailand, Turkey) was accompanied by an increase in the consumption of spirits.
Thus, current trends in the consumption of beer and strong alcohol in countries of different levels of development clearly show that the growth of beer consumption in Russia will either not affect vodka consumption in any way, or, more likely, will lead to an increase in the overall level of alcohol consumption.
The representative of the Vena factory owned by the Danish company Carlsberg is right only in the sense that some European countries are increasing beer production (although in Switzerland, Hungary, Great Britain, Belgium, France, Germany, beer production decreased in the period 1980-1997). But there are interesting contradictions associated with this increase in production. In the Netherlands, beer consumption in the same period decreased by 10%, while production increased by 56%, respectively, in Denmark they drink less by 7%, and produce more by 12%. Even in Germany, consumption falls by 10%, and production by only 1%. Where does the excess beer go? What, remember advertising all sorts of Heinekens and Tuborgs? That's right, excess beer is poured into underdeveloped countries, such as Russia. It is now becoming unfashionable to drink beer in developed countries, because in the world of modern technology, even small amounts of alcohol can lead to a computer error that will cost thousands of dollars. And Western beer companies are forced to look for new markets for their less and less required products.
Is it advisable to introduce any restrictions on the beer trade?
It all depends on what you mean by expediency. If the main thing is the profits of the brewers, then any restrictions are, of course, harmful. If we want to reduce the consumption of alcohol by the population and the negative consequences associated with it, then, as the experience of many countries shows, such restrictions are quite justified.
Iceland was the first country in Europe to introduce a total ban on alcohol in 1912. Wine and spirits were later legalized, but beer was banned until March 1, 1989. For many years, beer was considered more dangerous than vodka in Iceland. Surveys conducted before and after the lifting of the beer ban found that beer was added to men's total alcohol consumption but replaced wine and spirits in women. Allowing the trade in beer had little effect on the consumption of hard liquor. The increase in beer consumption was significant and increased the total volume of alcohol trade by one-quarter in 1989 and one-fifth in 1990 compared to the total volume of alcohol sold in 1988.
In Finland, the sale of medium-strength beer in all grocery stores and cafes began in 1969. Recorded alcohol consumption increased by 46% in 1969, and this was entirely due to the increase in consumption of medium strength beer. At the same time, there was a significant increase in the number of alcohol abusers, as well as an increase in overall consumption.
In an experiment conducted by the Swedish Alcohol Board, strong beers (more than 3.6% alcohol by weight) were sold in grocery stores and bars in two districts in 1967. The experiment was terminated in 1968 six months earlier than originally thought, as it led to serious consequences. In the counties where the experiment was conducted, the consumption of strong beer increased very sharply, and the consumption of medium-strength beer decreased, while there was no change in the consumption of wine and spirits. Total alcohol consumption increased by 5%. At the same time, the level of hooligan attacks increased by 32%. The change in the availability of beer had the strongest impact on adolescents aged 15-17. It is in this age group that the rate of violent crime has increased the most. The experiment was aborted in July 1968 in response to citizen complaints and reports of excessive and unacceptable levels of strong beer consumption, especially by young people.
At the same time, no negative medical or criminal consequences of restrictions on the availability of beer have been recorded in any country.
Drinking beer - is it to support a domestic producer?
Recently, more and more often you can see advertisements for beer brands with Russian names. For some patriots, a tear drips into the beer foam from pride in a domestic manufacturer that has forced out imports from their native pubs. But the foam on the mug hides more than just the beer...
Of the 296 breweries in Russia, the 30 largest account for today up to 70% of all beer produced in Russia. Almost all of these plants are controlled by foreign capital.
The leader in the Russian beer market is the concern Baltic Beverages Holding (VVN) Baltika, almost wholly owned by the Scandinavians. Baltika, which controls 4 large breweries in St. Petersburg, Yaroslavl, Rostov, and Tula, accounts for 24% of the Russian beer market. VVN recently announced the acquisition of the Krasnoyarsk Pikra plant.
Second place goes to the Belgian group Sun-Interbrew. owning factories in Klin, St. Petersburg, as well as Perm, Ivanov, Kursk, Volzhsk, Yekaterinburg, Omsk and Saransk. It controls 17% of the Russian market.
The Danish firm Carlsberg gained a foothold in the Russian market by acquiring a controlling stake in the Finnish company Sinebrychoff, which owns the Vena brewery in St. Petersburg, which produces Nevskoye beer and has recently started producing Danish Tuborg beer.
The Turkish beer concern Efes owns the Moscow-Efes brewery. In addition to their own brand "Efes Pilsner", Turkish producers also produce local beer "Old Melnik".
The St. Petersburg company with Icelandic capital Bravo International produces beer of the Bochkarev brand. Bravo currently spends 2-3% of its turnover on advertising, next year it will increase to 5-7% of its turnover.
The South African company South African Breweries (SAB) has two Russian divisions, Kaluga Brewing Company and Transmark LLC. Recently, this company and the German Holsten-Brauerei AG announced the conclusion of a license agreement for the production of Holsten beer in Russia. This year, Transmark began brewing beer in Russia under three foreign brands at once - Holsten, Miller (USA) and Staropramen (Czech Republic). In addition to imported varieties, South Africans are quite actively promoting the so-called local brand, Golden Bochka, on the Russian market.
With such an abundance of investors, it is not surprising that the beer industry operates 70% on imported raw materials. Domestic agriculture provides only 10% of the industry's needs for hops (about 9 million tons are required annually) and approximately 50% for brewer's barley (total demand is 1.2-1.5 million tons). The main suppliers of malt to our market are Germany, Denmark, France, Finland. Hops came from Germany and the Czech Republic.
So when watching television beer ads, you need to remember geography well. Let's repeat. Holsten is Germany, Nevskoye is Denmark, Miller is America, Stary Melnik is Turkey, Tolstyak is Belgium, Bochkarev is Iceland, Zolotaya Bochka is South Africa. Hops from the Czech Republic, malt from France. And what about Russia? Rubles. Your rubles.
(Published with abridgements)
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Beer is a low-alcohol drink with a long history, in addition, it is the most popular in the world. There are many varieties of alcohol, they all differ in production technique, as well as in strength, that is, the percentage of ethyl alcohol.
This is a foamy drink that is made on the basis of malt wort (from barley), with the help of brewer's yeast and hops. The average alcohol content in beer is 3-5.5%. The creation of foam is a complex technological process, which includes the production of beer wort - malt is brewed with hops for several hours, yeast is added, and it matures. The duration of ripening depends on the brand, and can be from several days to several months. Next, the foam is filtered, preservatives are added, and it can already be consumed. In the finished foam are formed: alcohol, phytoestrogens, carbon dioxide, fusel oils.
The best and highest quality is traditional foam, which contains nothing but: barley, hops, yeast and water. In some varieties, barley is partially or completely replaced by wheat, rice, corn and rye grains.
Bottom-fermented foam is the most popular and main product on the market, accounting for 90% of the total sales turnover. It is customary to call it a lager, and the production has the same name - camp. Bottom fermentation occurs due to special yeast, and for a long time due to low temperature of 5-10 °C. The taste becomes very intense.
The duration of top fermentation is much shorter. Occurs at a temperature of 15-20 ° C due to top-fermenting yeast, and takes little time. Varieties of this method are referred to as ale and porter.
The indicator on the hop label indicates the lower limit of the ethanol content in it. The manufacturer does not have the right to indicate the number of % or revolutions lower than it actually is. Therefore, the real figure is often higher.
In Russia and Europe, alcohol is measured in volume percentages (% vol.). Therefore, if we say that beer is 5%, it means that in 100 liters of beer there are 5 liters of pure alcohol. In America, it is customary to calculate ethanol in weight fractions (% wt.). Knowing that the specific gravity of alcohol is 0.78, you can calculate how much pure ethanol is in beer. To do this, you need to divide the specified percentage by 0.78.
For example, if the fortress is 3.5%, then in volume percent it will be 3.5: 0.78 = 4.5%. If, for example, the figure 6% (in weight fractions) is indicated, again this figure must be divided by 0.78, and we get 7.7%.
If it is important for the buyer to know how much alcohol is in the drink, you need to look at the country of origin on the label. If it is America, then pure ethanol will be higher than stated on the label, due to units of measurement. And don't forget that in most cases the % is always slightly higher.
Types of beer by strength
The percentage of ethanol depends on the technological production. Main types:
- Non-alcoholic. Contains 0.5-0.7% alcohol.
- Light - up to 2% ethanol.
- Classic. 3.5 - 7%.
- Strong 8-14%.
- Very strong - from 14%.
During the manufacturing process, after fermentation, classic beer usually contains 3.5 - 4.5% ethanol. After filtering, the percentage decreases. This process is needed to remove the remaining yeast. Some filtration methods destroy the microflora of beer, thereby extending its shelf life. Exposure to high temperatures can also reduce the number of revolutions. Alcohol is heated to a certain temperature, as a result of which part of the alcohol evaporates.
To increase the percentage of alcohol in the drink, sugar is added and frozen. Usually a high percentage of hops is directly related to the calories it contains. Strong beer drinkers, obese, type 2 diabetics, and weight watchers need to consider this fact.
Excess weight is affected not only by calorie content, but also by the phytoestrogens contained in the intoxicating - these are substances similar to sex hormones. They affect the weight and appearance of a person. In men who abuse foam, the figure begins to change according to the female type - there is an increase in the mammary glands and hips, as well as the abdomen. In women, excessive vegetation appears on the body and the voice coarsens.
Nonalcoholic beer
A soft drink still has a small amount of turnover, this figure ranges from 0.15 to 0.7%. To preserve the usual taste and aroma, manufacturers use standard ingredients, but stop the process before full fermentation, and the filtration in this production is special to filter out ethyl alcohol. But it’s impossible to filter it 100%, so “non-alcoholic” intoxicating has momentum.
Particular attention should be paid to people who are struggling with alcohol addiction, including those who are coded. Even such a low percentage of ethanol can provoke cravings for alcohol. In addition, all other components are contained in the drink in standard quantities, especially phytoestrogens. As with the use of a seemingly harmless drink, the load on the liver, kidneys and cardiovascular system is high.
Strong intoxicating
For the preparation of strong foam, special yeast is used, since in standard production the fortress does not exceed 5%. The technology is also different - alcohol is repeatedly frozen to reduce the liquid, as a result of which the degree rises.
What percentage of alcohol in beer is the most popular strong:
- Hakusekikan Brewery - "Hurricane", 15%. Produces Japan. Feature - aging on barley wine.
- Bruery - "Chocolate Rain", 19.5%. Belgium. A high percentage is achieved through fermentation in a whiskey tub.
- De Struise Brouwers - "Five Squared", 25%. Scotland.
- Schorschbräu - "Schorschbock" 43% and "Schorschbock Finis Coronat Opus" 57%. Germany. It is made with multiple freezing.
- Brew Dog - "End Of History", 55%, Scotland.
- T'koelschip - "Start The Future", 60%. Netherlands.
- Brewmeister - "Armageddon", 65%. Scotland.
- In 2013, the strongest beer in the world was released by the Scottish company Brewmeister, called "Snake Venom" and its strength reaches 67.5%.
When it comes to very strong beer, of course, the classic taste is out of the question. Manufacturers have to sacrifice taste for high numbers.
Beer has about 1000 different varieties around the world, all of which differ in taste, color, density and strength. On the modern market, you can find intoxicating drinks for every taste, from non-alcoholic to those whose degree exceeds strong alcohol. It is beer that remains the most popular drink in the world (after water and tea). However, it should be used with caution and in moderation. Because, like any other alcohol, it is addictive.
One of the most popular alcoholic beverages around the world is beer. Foamy, light, with a pleasant taste, the drink has not lost its relevance with the advent of various cocktails and occupies a leading position in the market.
Watching football, hanging out with friends, going out into nature on a hot summer day is rarely complete without a bottle of beer. Drink manufacturers today offer an impressive number of varieties, replenishing the range with something new every year.
Ale, lager, wheat, lambic are the most popular types of beer today. Having bought a bottle of a drink, not every one of us thinks about what alcohol content in beer and in what doses it can be consumed without harm to health. This will be discussed in this article.
How to find out the amount of alcohol in beer
Almost all alcoholic beverages contain ethyl alcohol. Beer is no exception.
Ethanol - it is a rather dangerous psychoactive substance that destroys the central nervous system and causes addiction. You should always remember this and do not overdo it with the use of strong drinks.
Beer consists of 90% water, the remaining 10% is ethyl alcohol in tandem with carbohydrates and minerals. The strength of the foamy drink is closely related to its energy value.
What does it mean?
Alcohol - it is a kind of energy source, quickly absorbed in the body. Have you noticed that in the cold season a person quickly warms up from drinking alcohol, but also quickly starts to freeze? This is due to the rapid extraction of the received energy.
How much alcohol is in beer?
Alcohol in beer is traditionally measured by weight percent. Other spirits are measured by volume percent. Let's look at this statement with an example. A liter bottle of vodka contains 400 ml of pure alcohol, the mass of which is 320 grams. Thus, it is calculated how many percent of alcohol (by volume) is contained there.
Weight percentages indicate the presence of a certain amount of alcohol in beer per 100 grams. It would seem that the same thing, but it is not. The specific gravity of the liquid is 0.78%.
Therefore, if the bottle indicates that its strength in weight percent is 4.3%, then this indicator should be divided by the specific gravity of alcohol. 4.3 / 0.78 = 5.5. Moral: The alcoholic drink is a little stronger than what it says on the label.
Types of beer and the number of revolutions in them
The technology for making a foamy drink affects how many degrees the beer contains. According to the method of fermentation, the composition of the initial components and the color, alcohol is divided into many varieties.
The manufacturing process is divided into several stages, each of which has its own characteristics. To begin with, malt, which has undergone special processing, is taken and mixed with purified water in a container designated for this.
In order to achieve fermentation, brewer's yeast is added to the resulting mixture. The last step is the addition of hops to the resulting alcohol. Hops give unique, soft and special taste to alcohol.
In recent years, non-alcoholic beer has gained unprecedented popularity. This is not surprising, it is practically not inferior in taste to ordinary beer and contains from 0.4 to 0.7 degrees.
For the first time this variety appeared on the shelves in 1970 and was intended for people who drive a vehicle or suffer from any disease and are forced to completely abandon alcohol.
The technology for making a soft drink includes the complete suppression of fermentation. As a component for fermentation, yeast is added to the resulting mixture, which does not ferment maltose and alcohol.
Conventionally, beer can be divided into:
- light beer contains no more than 2% alcohol;
- classic varieties include from 3 to 5% alcohol;
- strong varieties (depending on the brand) have from 5 to 27% alcohol.
As for strong beer, many believe that it is produced by adding a large dose of ethyl alcohol to the finished liquid. This is fundamentally not true.
The strength is achieved through a special fermentation technology. The most alcoholic varieties undergo a process of freezing out moisture, which reduces the initial amount of liquid by several times.
Is drinking beer good or bad?
Beer liquid contains B vitamins, magnesium and silicon. But in order for a person to receive the necessary daily dose of vitamins, you need to consume at least 12 bottles, which is comparable to two bottles of vodka. Naturally, irreparable harm is done to health.
Abuse of this drink is fraught with the development of alcoholism. It has been proven that it is beer that contributes to the rapid addiction to alcohol.
It should be noted that the drink has some positive properties. Doctors say: foam has a beneficial effect on blood vessels, expanding them. Being inherently a diuretic, the drink is used even in dietetics.
Today on the Internet you can find hundreds of diets that include drinking beer. Of course, in reasonable doses. In addition, the drink contains antioxidants that reduce the risk of diabetes.
But men should be more careful about the drink. It contains phytoestrogens - substances similar to the female sex hormone. For fans of barley, the stomach increases in volume, the shoulders are rounded, and the chest grows. Accordingly, male representatives have significant problems with potency, which can lead to infertility.
It is worth remembering that beer is an alcoholic beverage. Therefore, do not abuse alcohol, so as not to harm your health.
It is believed that alcohol is added to Russian beer at the production stage, especially in strong varieties, for example, Baltika 9. In 2009, the chief narcologist of the Ministry of Health and Social Development Yevgeny Bryun confirmed this assumption, which caused indignation among the brewers, who immediately refuted his words. Next, I will tell you whether domestic and foreign manufacturers add ethyl alcohol to beer.
Classical beer is made by yeast fermentation, so the drink initially contains a certain amount of alcohol. Most varieties contain 3.5-5% pure ethyl, the manufacturers indicate the strength and density of beer on the label. There are also stronger types with 8-12% alcohol.
In the smell of strong varieties, there is an alcohol scent, because of it, the myth of adding ethanol to beer appeared. But in practice, this is unprofitable, since the fermentation itself can achieve an alcohol concentration of up to 12% in beer (then the yeast dies).
To get a strong beer, most manufacturers simply increase the length of its fermentation. It makes no sense to pour in expensive pure alcohol, changing the technology, when the yeast can do everything themselves. If you have a beer with an ABV of less than 12%, it is most likely brewed in the traditional way.
Adding alcohol to beer is prohibited by the laws of all developed countries, world-famous producers will not do this, they are afraid of being exposed, which will ruin their reputation.
Alcohol is not added to real beer. Pure alcohol in beer is found only in dubious breweries. True, due to other chemical additives, the product that they offer cannot be beer in principle. But, this is a completely different question.
Conclusion
The statement that all producers add ethyl alcohol to beer is nothing more than a myth, as it is economically unprofitable and can destroy the brand's reputation. Only dishonest pseudo breweries violate the technology, which use chemicals instead of malt and hops.
Beer is perceived by many as a harmless invigorating hop. In fact, after its use, the concentration of alcohol in the blood rises sharply. One 0.5 liter bottle, depending on the strength, adds from 0.29 to 1.1 ppm. In terms of the alcohol equivalent, one liter of blood circulating through the veins contains from 0.14 to 0.5 mg of ethanol.
Drinking beer while driving is risky. The dose may be much higher than the maximum allowable. Moreover, the same addiction is formed to it, as to wine and vodka. There is such a thing as "beer alcoholism".
What volume of beer corresponds to a bottle of vodka?
Beer has two indicators: gravity and strength. The first characterizes its taste. The higher it is, the greater the concentration of nutrients. The second is indicated in volume percent, it does not coincide with the labeling of other alcohol.
To understand the indicators, let's take a forty-degree liquid. 40% correspond to 40 g of ethanol in 100 g. For conversion, we find the volumetric weight of alcohol, it is equal to 790 kg / m3. It turns out that forty-degree alcohol contains 40x0.79 \u003d 31.6 volume percent of alcohol.
Beer is produced in different strengths: light, classic, strong. Calculate the percentage concentration in each of the varieties.
Comparative assessment of the volume and weight concentration of alcohol in beer
Comparative assessment is given in the table:
The figures confirm that beer is not as healthy as marketers claim. With all the taste advantages, it contains a decent amount of ethanol. This is convincingly evidenced by the weight indicators of the alcohol content adopted in our country. By the way, in Soviet times, a bottled unfiltered drink contained a minimum amount of ethanol.
Fashion for beer came from abroad. But Europe has a different drinking culture. They spend the evening there for a pint, while in our country the drink is consumed by the liter. In the West and the countries of America, a standard mug contains no more than 20 g of alcohol, this is 50 ml of whiskey or brandy, an incomplete glass of wine. When a visitor orders two servings at once, they begin to be treated with caution. Going to the bar more than once a week is frowned upon.
Weak varieties are promoted at beer festivals, and the reception is accompanied by fatty foods, which slow down the absorption of ethanol into the bloodstream.
In Russia, few people think that in a liter of 5% of a classic drink there is half a glass of forty-degree liquid. Our brewers pack their products in 1.5 liter containers, like lemonade.
How much vodka is in beer?
Comparative assessment of the content of forty-degree alcohol in containers:
A one and a half liter bottle of strong hops is larger than a standard bottle of vodka.
A can of classic beer contains 100 grams of vodka.
Even in a light drink, a fair dose of alcohol.
Your narcologist warns: beer forms alcoholism
When drinking beer, alcohol enters the body. The nature of ethanol synthesis is not important for the liver and other internal organs: it is obtained during the sublimation of the mash or during the fermentation of the wort. The defeats are the same. The habit is formed in the same way. Everything depends on volumes.
According to statistics, there is a tendency to reduce the population by 1.2 million people per year. Alcohol is believed to be the cause of one in three deaths. Drinking alcohol is the cause of many accidents and disasters.
Alcoholism noticeably rejuvenated with the spread of beer fashion. It is drunk regardless of gender and age. It is dangerous that drinking low-alcohol drinks is not condemned by society. It does not lose popularity, continues to have a detrimental effect on the health of the nation.