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I grew up in Europe and wine was always part of the evening meal.
I think it keeps my cholesterol down.
Anything in excess is of course bad for you.
Not taking meds but if I were I would certainly consult with my physician.
Did not realise that red wine does thin the blood.
So does fish oil, aspirin etc.
One has to be careful not to overdo it especially when blood thinner medication is part of your prescription regiment.
I'm a Diabetic II and take a metformin med twice a day, morning and evening. One night, just after I was diagnosed Diabetic II and started taking metformin, I had a beer with a meal and took the med. I wound up with stomach cramps that night. Since then, if I have a beer or any other kind of alcohol beverage, I don't take the med in the evening. My blood glucose does go up some, but that's better than getting the darn stomach cramps. The metformin is the only prescription med I take.
After turning 50, my tolerance for drinking decreased sharply, so even two glasses of wine would affect my sleep that night. I rarely drank before retiring and drink even less now. In fact, I think the California primary election in 2008 was the last time I had more than two drinks in one evening.
I'm a boomer, retired 3 years. I have actually reduced my drinking substantially. I had a stressful job, and found a couple of glasses of wine in the evening helped relax me, and more on weekends when we were out in bars listening to live music. Now I try to keep it down to a couple or three glasses a week, although I do indulge more if we're on holidays. And when we're in Florida, we live in a great beer town, so I have to watch that--my husband loves beer, and I like it too, but I try to avoid it since it makes me fat. When we go to listen to music in bars, I don't drink at all now.
Last edited by Wwanderer; 06-21-2011 at 08:19 AM..
Excellent point. Most meds and alcohol don't mix and can be dangerous. For me, red wine is a blood thinner so I do have a glass each evening. Anything taken to excess is not so good. And, alcohol acts in different ways on different people. There are other relaxing ways to enjoy retirement too.
That is fine as long as you also don't mind the rise in blood pressure effect of wine at the same time. Those with low blood pressure it has long been recommended tho.
It's funny--lately I've been going to a lot more parties where drinks are served than I did in my 30s and 40s. And my friends and I spend a lot more time joking about drinking. Yet in reality nobody I know really drinks that much. One foo foo cocktail can last all evening. Variety of reasons we all seem to be cutting back, I suppose. Medicine, weight loss programs, etc. Plus at our age we don't need to get drunk to feel dizzy or forget things, we can do that all on our own.
Yes! Now I don't have to worry about having a hangover the next day. However, I recognize how dangerous (and expensive) alcohol can become. So I may have 2-3 Crown Royals one day, then nothing for a few days, then some wine another day. So it depends on what I'm eating for dinner, if friends come over or if I just want a fun night by myself with a slight buzz and dancing all over the place. I figure it's no worse than being addicted to M&Ms or something.
Are you drinking more now in retirement than during your working years? I like to keep my brain function going, so a glass of wine per day should be a positive, besides I love wine. Going out with friends, knowing I do not have to get up early in the morning I indulge a bit more.
So I guess my intake has increased a bit but not a lot.
Yes! Now I don't have to worry about having a hangover the next day.
Good point!
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