Spirits are the most likely alcohol type to illicit feelings of aggression, while red wine most likely to make people relaxed, a new study shows.
Drinking alcohol can make us act in ways we wouldn't normally, including being angry or aggressive. Experts believe the reason some people become aggressive when drunk is due to the way alcohol affects the brain.
The direct effects of alcohol are the same whether you drink wine, beer or spirits. There's no evidence that different types of alcohol cause different mood states.
"The sugar content makes some people aggressive ... it's just like when you give a child red cordial,'' she said.
Spirits are the most likely alcohol type to illicit feelings of aggression, while red wine most likely to make people relaxed, a new study shows.
The results, published in the British Medical Journal, revealed that drinking spirits, like gin, were more likely to induce negative feelings than any other type of alcohol. Over half the respondents in the study claimed that after drinking spirits they were more likely to feel aggressive, restless or tearful.
Alcohol increases irritability and decreases inhibitions. With this combination, there is a chance you could be more mean or aggressive toward others. Alcohol clouds your judgment and leads to communication problems. This is especially true if the other person is also under the influence.
First off, it was found that men feel happy when they drink wine, cocktails, and IPAs (in that order), while women feel happy when they drink cocktails, wine, and vodka.
The effect of alcohol on our mood
But lower inhibitions can also make us say or do something that we may come to regret. And this can lead to arguments. Alcohol interferes with the brain, reducing our ability to think straight or act rationally, it can cause some people to become angry.
The Angry Drunk – The angry drunk is infamous for turning unpredictable and unsafe after getting drunk. They usually have a few drinks and immediately turn too aggressive for the given setting. They also take the slightest offense or insult and immediately turn things into an altercation.
Some of the most common symptoms of alcohol abuse are: Experiencing temporary blackouts or short-term memory loss. Exhibiting signs of irritability and extreme mood swings. Making excuses for drinking such as to relax, deal with stress or feel normal.
While the triggers for each person may vary, Moore said there are some common causes of pent-up anger, such as feeling unheard or unappreciated, lack of acceptance of a situation, or unmet needs. Some people may also experience anger when they're hurt.
'For centuries, the history of rum, gin, vodka and other spirits has been laced with violence. This global study suggests even today consuming spirits is more likely to result in feelings of aggression than other drinks,' says study co-author Professor Mark Bellis.
But, the most important question here is - do drunk people mean what they say? The simple answer to that is, yes, they do. Alcohol is not a mind-altering substance, like some others. It doesn't put in an alternate state of mind where we hallucinate, or experience extreme moods.
Everclear – This type of grain alcohol is 190 proof in its purest form, making it the most dangerous kind of alcohol a person can consume. Even two shots of Everclear can land a person in the emergency room – easily.
The people we polled said that certain forms of alcohol were more likely to give them different feelings. Men told us that wine, cocktails, and India pale ales (IPAs) made them happiest when they drank, while women said that cocktails, wine, and vodka left them with the most positive emotions.
However, if you are going to drink, having red wine in moderation is a healthier choice than other alcoholic drinks. This is due to its high levels of antioxidants called polyphenols, which have been linked to better heart and gut health.
Excessive drinking can impact one's personality by altering their moods and emotions. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), alcoholism can alter one's personality because of its effects on an individual's brain function especially when there is too much alcohol intake.
Drinking alcohol clearly has important effect on social behaviors, such as increasing aggression, self-disclosure, sexual adventuresomeness, and so on. Research has shown that these effects can stem from beliefs we hold about alcohol effects. Less is known about how alcohol itself affects these behaviors.
Because alcohol causes the prefrontal cortex to shrink, it decreases self-control and increases anger. As a result, people who drink are more likely to display aggressive behavior when under stress or angry than those who don't drink as much or at all.
So I went digging to find where this widespread and seemingly nonsensical gin myths came from. Gincredibly, I found that there absolutely no basis for the myth that gin is any more a depressant than any other spirit.
Gin has less sugar and fewer calories than some other liquors. If you already consume alcohol, gin may be a slightly healthier option. Be careful with mixers, however. They can make the sugar content of your drink skyrocket.
As more women became hooked on gin between 1720 and 1757, this led to the mistreatment of their children and a rise in prostitution. Women became more addicted to gin than their male counterparts – gaining the juniper-based spirit the nickname 'Mother's Ruin'.