Five Ways Beer Can Benefit Your Health and Appearance

A couple of years ago, my husband Bill and I were living in Germany, a land where beer brewing and drinking is an art form. Germans really take their beer seriously. Every area has its local brew and I don't remember being disappointed in a single one I tasted over the two years we lived there.

Next door to Germany, to the east and the west, are the Czech Republic and Belgium, two other countries that really take their beer seriously. In fact, the Czech Republic even boasts a beer spa, which Bill and I had the immense pleasure of visiting over Valentine's Day weekend two years ago. It was during our visit at the Chodovar beer spa that I really started thinking about how beer can impact one's health. Sure, we've all heard about the potential negative consequences of drinking too much beer. But how much have we heard about the health benefits of a good brewski?

At Chodovar, clients pay to soak in vats of beer while they sip glasses of Chodovar's brew. I actually had the pleasure of experiencing a real beer bath at Chodovar. My husband and I, each in our own pewter tubs full of warm, sudsy, mineral water and dark bathing beer, marveled at how relaxing the experience was. Afterwards, I noticed that my hair was absolutely gorgeous. It was soft, full, and very shiny. My skin practically glowed as well. A substance that does such nice things to my skin and hair can't be bad at all. So here are five ways beer can benefit your health and appearance.

1. Beer is good for your hair and skin.

When I was a child, back in the late 1970s, there was a shampoo on the market called Body On Tap. I remember the television ads for the shampoo, mainly because the perky women who pitched it always advised viewers not to drink it. Body On Tap was made of beer and many people swore by how good it was. Sadly, Body On Tap eventually went off the market.

Many years later, Bill and I went to Chodovar and soaked in beer baths. While we were at the spa, we purchased beer cosmetics made from Chodovar's beer. I had to admit the stuff was good and I was sorry when I ran out of it and had to move back to the States.

Since then, my husband started brewing his own beer. He recently made a batch that got infected with wild yeast. The yeast made his beer very sour, but gave it the odd aroma of toasted strawberry Pop-Tarts. Though the beer is drinkable, I decided to wash my hair with it. So far, two bottles of my husband's brew have been sacrificed in the interest of making my locks shine. I soak my hair with it, let it sit for a couple of minutes, massage in some shampoo, and rinse the whole thing out. It always works like a charm!

2. Moderate beer drinking can help lower your blood pressure.

We've all heard the saying "an apple a day will keep the doctor away". Could the same be said for beer? Studies have shown that for some people, moderate beer drinking can actually lower blood pressure. Moderate drinking is defined as one twelve ounce serving of beer, coupled with a healthy diet. It's important to get this right, since drinking too much alcohol can lead to hypertension, especially when it's combined with eating salty, fatty snacks and not exercising.

Besides alcohol, beer also contains healthy folic acid, vitamins, iron, and calcium. In a Nurses Health study, over 70,000 women between the ages of 25 and 42 were studied for a correlation between alcohol use and hypertension. The women who drank a beer had less hypertension than those who drank wine or liquor.

3. Beer can be good for your arteries.

While excessive alcohol consumption can be bad news for your blood pressure, which can also mean bad news for your arteries, moderate beer consumption has been statistically shown to lower the risk of coronary artery disease. Beer is full of folates and B vitamins, which help lower the blood levels of homocysteine. Homocysteine is an amino acid in the blood and research has indicated that people who have too much homocysteine in their blood are at an increased risk of coronary artery disease.

4. Beer can be good for your bones.

"Milk... it does a body good" was a popular slogan to get people to drink more milk. But research shows that beer can also be good for the body, particularly the bones. According to a study done at the Tufts University School of Nutrition, beer can aid in protecting bone density, because it contains silicon, an ingredient that helps bones absorb calcium and minerals. People whose diets include a great deal of silicon, which is in dark beer, tend to have stronger bone density. However, again, it's important not to drink too much beer. Overconsumption of alcohol can also lead to accidents and weaker bones. Moderation is the key.

5. Beer can be good for your mood.

Moderate social drinking can be good for you in that it can facilitate meeting and interacting with other people. Beer is a very sociable drink. In Germany, people go to fests to enjoy one of their most popular beverages. Here in America, people enjoy beer at athletic events, parties, and in public places. A little beer can be very relaxing and can help some people get over their shyness. But too much drinking can also make a person sloppy, irresponsible, and violent. Don't overdo it.

Overall

A little bit of beer in your life can be very healthy. If you choose to drink beer, do so in moderation. For maximum health benefits, doctors recommend no more than one or two beers per day if you're a man and one per day if you're a woman. Drinking more than that can counteract any health benefits you might get from your daily brew.

Sources

The American Heart Association www.americanheart.org

Chodovar Brewery www.chodovar.cz

"Beer A Health Booster?" (July 31, 2009). Retrieved from: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/07/31/earlyshow/health/main5200448.shtml

"Moderate Beer Drinking said Health Benefit" (January 13, 2011). Retrieved from: http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2011/01/13/Moderate-beer-drinking-said-health-benefit/UPI-17261294963166/

Tolley, J. (February 23, 2009). "Chodover Brewery's Beer Wellness Land: A Budget Minded Beer Lover's Paradise" Retrieved from: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1484802/chodovar_brewerys_beer_wellness_land.html?cat=54

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