Interestingly, my taste buds became more active after I stopped drinking alcohol. The reason, says gastroenterologist Dr. Alan Desmond, is that alcohol reduces our ability to taste food, causing cravings for salty and sugary foods to appease the restrictions on our taste buds. As for my gut health, it was pretty clear.
Ethanol increases heartburn and weakens the gut barrier (the cells that line the intestines), causing what’s known as “leaky gut,” which in the long run leads to inflammation, a known driver of the disease, says Dr Desmond. “Drinking just two or three alcoholic drinks a day increases your risk of bowel cancer by 25 per cent, according to a peer-reviewed study from 2020,” he warns. The good news is that within a few days, you should resume a healthy appetite and enjoy healthy, nutritious food. While inflammation and gut microbiota can recover within weeks, depending on what you feed them, Dr Desmond recommends a plant-based diet free of highly processed foods.
what happens to your brain
But unfortunately, the brain is slower to respond. “Our brain imaging work at Amin Clinics shows that people who drink heavily tend to have reduced blood flow to the brain. Reduced blood flow is associated with poor concentration, brain fog, depression, and an increased risk of memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease.
“Research suggests that drinking one or two glasses of wine a day is linked to atrophy of the hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for memory and learning. Excessive drinking also reduces the production of new brain cells, according to studies,” explains Dr. Amin.
“When we compare SPECT brain scans before and after binge drinking, we can see significant improvements after just two months of abstinence, provided that this is combined with healthy lifestyle changes,” he adds encouragingly. “Quitting alcohol is likely to lead to improvements in brain function after one month. This improvement will continue after three months, six months and beyond.”
An alcohol-free future?
Looking back on the pivotal decision I made last May, when I promised myself I would abstain from alcohol until my 50th birthday in December, I had no idea whether I would stick to it after that.
I didn’t. I had three glasses of champagne at my fiftieth wedding anniversary dinner, not because I missed alcohol, but because I was curious. I was curious to see if I could still have it and drink it—a glass here and there on special occasions. I decided I could, and had a glass of wine with dinner over Christmas, only to resume my alcohol-free path once Dry January began.
I haven’t vowed to go completely alcohol-free and I may decide to celebrate the next big occasion with a good glass of wine, but for the foreseeable future I will live my life without alcohol. Alcohol has been a good friend to me, but it’s toxic and I no longer need it to improve my mood or reduce anxiety. I have real friends for that, and we laugh until our sides hurt, whether I’m drinking or not.
