The earliest evidence of residue of an alcoholic beverage—made from rice, honey, and grapes and dating between 7000-6600 BCE—has been traced to a Neolithic village in China’s Yellow River Valley. So we can say with certainty that people have been using alcohol to celebrate successes, mark life’s milestones, and drown their sorrows for millennia.

But just because it’s been a tradition since time immemorial doesn’t mean it’s good for us.

Current U.S. guidelines recommend no more than two drinks a day for men, and one drink or less a day for women, to minimize the inherent risks of alcohol consumption. These same guidelines identify heavy drinking as four or more drinks a day, or eight or more per week for women; and five or more drinks a day, or 15 or more per week for men. Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD), according to the DSM-5, combines........

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