On the question of whether diabetes can drink alcohol or not, has been one of the more concerned about many sugar lovers, today this article will talk to you about diabetics can drink alcohol, is not what wine can not drink.

Objectively speaking, diabetics are not completely unable to drink, but do not recommend, do not recommend, do not advocate the diabetic drinking, after all, from a health point of view, sugar lovers drink alcohol far more harm than good.

The effect of alcohol on diabetics

Alcohol intake, although it does not directly cause a sudden rise in blood glucose (except in the case of alcoholism), can have other adverse effects.

Effect 1: Alcohol destroys the health of liver cells.

We should know that the role of the liver in the body is mainly metabolism, detoxification, in which the liver cells also has an important function, is involved in the sugar metabolism regulation of blood glucose, which can be both lowered and raised blood glucose. And this normal regulatory function is easily affected by the influence of alcohol and damage, especially long excessive drinking, or often drink a large number of high number of alcohol, this situation on the liver cells is very big.

If the liver is damaged, then it is easy to affect the normal glucose metabolism, which is detrimental to blood glucose control. At the same time, the liver is the metabolism and absorption of a variety of essential nutrients, such as proteins, etc., so liver damage will also increase the risk of malnutrition.

Effect 2: Alcohol affects gastrointestinal health.

Alcohol can directly stimulate our gastric mucosa, thereby increasing the risk of gastrointestinal diseases, and at the same time, alcohol will inhibit the absorption of vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B12 and other vitamins, and these nutrients are closely related to the body's health, especially if the sugar users if the lack of vitamin B, will lead to an increased risk of neurological disease, the prevention and control of diabetic neuropathy. prevention and control of diabetic neuropathy is unfavorable.

Effect 3: Alcohol destroys pancreatic islet cell function.

Alcohol will not only affect the health of the liver and gastrointestinal tract, but also have an adverse effect on pancreatic islet cells. Ethanol, a metabolic substance of alcohol, will affect the function of pancreatic islet β-cells, destroying the health of the pancreas and disrupting its own glucose metabolism, thus affecting the level of fasting blood glucose and the overall control of blood glucose.

Impact #4: Increased risk of other chronic diseases.

Alcohol is caloric,generally every gram of alcohol produces 7 kilocalories of energy, which means that drinking alcohol means extra energy intake. And often out drinking, in order to stomach not so difficult, we tend to eat a lot of food as well as staple food, which inadvertently increases the calorie intake, especially the restaurant cooking, oil more sugar.

And for diabetes, daily meals to control the overall calories is very important, long-term calorie overload, will not only lead to weight gain, and obesity will aggravate the problem of insulin resistance, the control of blood sugar is not good, but also increase the risk of dyslipidemia, gout, hypertension and other chronic diseases.

There is also a part of the sugar lover, because there is diabetes, so very consciously in the drinking of very little food dishes, to control the calorie intake. But in fact this is even worse, because not eating food or eating less food when drinking alcohol can lead to hypoglycemia, and even cause coma and other serious consequences (the specific mechanism later added in detail).

Let's take a look at the authoritative guidelines for diabetic drinking:

In the 2017 edition of the Chinese Dietary Guidelines for Type 2 Diabetes, it is also clearly stated that drinking alcohol is not recommended for people with diabetes. The main reasons for this are: first, alcohol increases the risk of hypoglycemia in some patients who take oral hypoglycemia. Two, alcohol increases the risk of liver injury, gout, and cardiovascular disease.

Screenshot from the Chinese Dietary Guidelines for Type 2 Diabetes

Maybe some of my friends will ask, "Then why didn't my blood glucose go up after drinking alcohol, but instead went down?

Patients with diabetes who drink alcohol on an empty stomach, or who are using sulfonylureas (glipizide, etc.), insulin, and other diabetes, are likely to experience hypoglycemia first,because the metabolism of alcohol requires the consumption of glucose, and alcohol will also inhibit the process of hepatic glucose isomerism as well as excessive consumption of a variety of enzymes involved in glucose metabolism, which is when patients with diabetes who are on an empty stomach or who are on blood glucose-lowering medications, are not stored in the body's organs in excessive amounts. The body does not store too much glucose in the organs, it is easy to appear hypoglycemia, for sugar lovers, hypoglycemia is more dangerous than hyperglycemia.

At the same time, alcohol-induced lowering of blood glucose is not a constant state of maintenance, but first low and then high, and large fluctuations in blood glucose, for diabetes, not only unfavorable to sugar control, but also increase the risk of complications.

I have heard that red wine is beneficial, is it possible for diabetics to drink red wine?

It's true that red wine has slightly higher levels of beneficial components compared to other alcohols, such as resveratrol, polyphenols, potassium, magnesium, and other trace minerals, but even so, there is no research or guideline recommendation that suggests that there are benefits for diabetics to drink red wine.

While some studies suggest that moderate alcohol consumption may improve heart health to some extent, there are many more studies showing the potential effects and harms of alcohol consumption, such as the adverse effects of alcohol on diabetics mentioned above, and at this stage, there is a bit more research supporting the non-drinking of alcohol, and a bit more research supporting the consumption of alcohol without the purpose of health promotion is more widely recognized.

Additionally, after all, red wine also contains alcohol, and those beneficial components we can get from other foods are not unique. If you weigh up the pros and cons, you'll understand how to choose.

So, as long as it is based on the health point of view, it is not recommended to sugar lovers to drink alcohol.

If you must drink, then please pay extra attention to the following three points: Remember not to drink on an empty stomach, especially prone to hypoglycemia. Strictly limit the amount of alcohol consumed, alcohol intake should not exceed 25 grams for men and 15 grams for women. Drinking between meals, the same attention to food intake, do not accidentally eat too much of the next drink, while it is recommended that after drinking alcohol, pay attention to monitoring blood glucose, pay attention to its changes in a timely manner to cope with.