[user104658]

Originally Posted by Kizzy

You may not like this but I think your experiences have coloured your perception.
Addicts and kids of addicts don't see alcohol as others do, I truly believe that.
Someone may have one glass, they don't need one glass... there lies the difference.

I agree that my perceptions are coloured, but not totally. I am capable of acknowledging healthy, social alcohol use... I'm not someone who thinks alcohol is the root of all evil. However, if it's being used as self-medication (and yes, that includes drinking small amounts in the evening to alleviate stress) then it has the potential to become a problem. Not always, and not for everyone, but it's not a healthy use of the substance.

Also, having encountered this in more situations than just my own personal experiences, and discussed ( / argued) the point with a fair few people... I think you'd find that many of those people who "don't need" that one glass have a suspiciously strong inability to actually not have it when pushed.

I find that there's a strong misconception that alcoholism is only alcoholism when it becomes problematic and starts to affect someone's work and personal life, if they can't go a day without a drink, etc... But that isn't the case. The world is absolutely full of functional, successful people with unacknowledged low-level alcohol dependancies.

[DemolitionRed]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

I find that there's a strong misconception that alcoholism is only alcoholism when it becomes problematic and starts to affect someone's work and personal life, if they can't go a day without a drink, etc... But that isn't the case. The world is absolutely full of functional, successful people with unacknowledged low-level alcohol dependancies.

Spending half our life in France means new wine is as cheap as a loaf of bread during the wine season. I used to have a glass of wine with my meal every evening and thought nothing of it. I considered a good meal wouldn't be the same without my glass of wine.

When my partner suggested I was a wino I protested; one glass a day does not make a wino does it? He then asked me if I was prepared to walk a mile in the rain for a bottle of wine and although I told him I wouldn't, the reality is, I would. Coming off that one glass of wine was actually quite difficult but once I realised it had become a need and not an occasional indulgence, I knew I had to stop.

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by DemolitionRed

Spending half our life in France means new wine is as cheap as a loaf of bread during the wine season. I used to have a glass of wine with my meal every evening and thought nothing of it. I considered a good meal wouldn't be the same without my glass of wine.

When my partner suggested I was a wino I protested; one glass a day does not make a wino does it? He then asked me if I was prepared to walk a mile in the rain for a bottle of wine and although I told him I wouldn't, the reality is, I would. Coming off that one glass of wine was actually quite difficult but once I realised it had become a need and not an occasional indulgence, I knew I had to stop.

I started a thread about this haha... Is every French person an alcoholic if they have a glass with their evening meal, or is is a cute cultural custom?

[DemolitionRed]

Originally Posted by Kizzy

I started a thread about this haha... Is every French person an alcoholic if they have a glass with their evening meal, or is is a cute cultural custom?

The French drink wine because like bread its seen as a necessity!
They rarely drink it without food though but that's why their meals go on for hours and hours

[user104658]

Originally Posted by Kizzy

I started a thread about this haha... Is every French person an alcoholic if they have a glass with their evening meal, or is is a cute cultural custom?

Not EVERY French person obviously, some can have a drink with every evening meal as part of the meal (I've heard people bang on about how it interacts with flavours and such... dunno, I don't like wine!) and they're not using it to destress.

That said... Apparently, whilst binge-drinking is a much bigger issue in the UK than in France, France does actually have a higher incidence of classic "drunk every day" alcoholism. One of the highest in the world, I think, or at least it was at one point.

[Kizzy]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

Not EVERY French person obviously, some can have a drink with every evening meal as part of the meal (I've heard people bang on about how it interacts with flavours and such... dunno, I don't like wine!) and they're not using it to destress.

That said... Apparently, whilst binge-drinking is a much bigger issue in the UK than in France, France does actually have a higher incidence of classic "drunk every day" alcoholism. One of the highest in the world, I think, or at least it was at one point.

And so it is here, not everyone drinks to excess and not everyone who drinks regularly but in moderation is an alcoholic.
Same with sweet drinks, there are those who drink a can once a week maybe, some who have 2 or 3 a week or a litre or two a day! They are having similar reactions occurring in their livers due to the sugars just with a caffeine buzz and not an alcohol one.