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M$2.00  Funded By Mahalo ? |  April 22, 2009 06:00 AM

So I've heard that alcohol makes you dehydrated. What ratio of water to alcohol keeps you hydrated?

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April 22, 2009 09:12 AM
There is not going to be an exact answer to this because people vary and their rate of water loss will vary with circumstances and their alcohol metabolism will vary and how quickly it is absorbed varies etc.

However, in general it can be said that wine and stronger will tend to dehydrate you while beer (of average or less strength) will hydrate you. I know this through much personal experience. Doctors always play it safe and say don't drink alcohol when you are out on hot days; but, the reality is that beer is an excellent beverage and the water in it outweighs the alcohol.

The percentage of alcohol in beer runs 4% to 6% for most beers. For most wines the percentage of alcohol is 8% to 10%. So, to answer your question as best as you are likely to get without a research grant, it's about 5%. That works out to 19 parts water to one part alcohol.

Again, this can vary by person and by circumstances. Drinking the alcohol in a form other than beer is more likely to be unhealthy because the carbonation and the other constituents of beer (lots of complex carbohydrates in good beer) make it a drink that is hard to drink too much too fast.
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• Thanks again for the info.


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April 24, 2009 12:55 PM
Thanks for the answer. I was inspired for the question by my standard (read cheapest) drink in Japan: Shochu and water.
Shochu is similar to sake but distilled and about 20-25% alcohol.
So I wondered if I drink a glass of half shochu and half water, am I hydrating or dehydrating.
Please do a $2 research project and let me know the result.

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April 24, 2009 12:56 PM
Shochu for those interested:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shochu

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April 24, 2009 01:17 PM
You would be dehydrating if you drank shochu and water half and half. I am talking about drinking it over a period of hours in hot weather, it would not affect you having a couple at a bar.
For outdoor summer festivals, if that is relevant to you, you should try hoppy at a ratio of 1 part shochu to 5 parts hoppy. That should keep you hydrated. That ought to be almost as good as drinking beer.
"According to the official Hoppy website, a drink consisting of one part shochu and five parts Hoppy will have a 5% alcohol content."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoppy_(beverage)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Hoppy.jpg/250px-Hoppy.jpg

Now you have me wondering what the stuff tastes like. They import shochu here but I don't think hoppy.

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April 24, 2009 01:46 PM
For the most part, I stick to in-door shochu consumption, chu-hi for outdoor (something similar to Zima in a can without the embarrassment of being seen with it in hand.. at least in Japan) As for Hoppy, I've seen it before, but there are plenty of beer alternatives here so I've never experimented with a Hoppy/Shochu mix. I think that pretty much answers my question (at least as much as a $2 research grant is going to reveal)
Thanks again

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April 22, 2009 06:10 AM
Alcohol dehydrates the body and draws from it vitamins and minerals. Drink water, soda or better yet -fitness water such as Propel to reduce the effects of alcohol. Drinking a 1 to 1 ratio of non-alcoholic to alcoholic beverages is a good policy -that's one serving of water for every serving of alcohol. It is preferable to have a greater ratio of non-alcohol to alcohol.
Source(s):
http://www.wikihow.com/Drink-Responsibly


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April 22, 2009 06:28 AM
I would add that drinking alcoholic beverages without added sugar (nothing red or purple) will help. This does not exempt you from the aforementioned 1-to-1 ratio.
Try vodka soda with a lime.

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April 23, 2009 02:43 AM
Red or purple? What does that have to do with anything?

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