Drinking one beer a day is GOOD for your gut – ‘slashing risk of silent killers’
A BEER a day could keep the doctor away, according to a study.
Blokes who drink a bottle of lager with dinner each night have a healthier gut and wider range of good bacteria.
Scientists said this could help them fend off serious illnesses.
A trial on 19 blokes by Nova University Lisbon in Portugal found the daily tipple boosted antioxidants that also give wine its health kick.
Writing in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, lead author Professor Ana Faria, said: “Results from this study show that drinking beer increases gut bacterial diversity without significantly changing body weight.
“Lower bacterial diversity has been associated with diabetes and heart disease.”
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Men in the study were given a 330ml bottle of 5% Super Bock lager or a non-alcoholic swap to drink each day.
Experts said other research has proved wine and 0% lager can be good for you – but not boozy beers.
Blood tests and faeces checks revealed the alcoholic lager had the same benefits.
They revealed boosted levels of nutrients called polyphenols and other chemicals which prevent harmful cell damage.
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Prof Faria added: “Beer is the main and probably only source of hop polyphenols in the human diet.
“Hops also contain xanthohumol, which studies suggest lowers the risk of chronic diseases including obesity and diabetes.”
Diabetes affects more than five million Brits and heart disease causes one in four deaths, with more than 7.6m sufferers.
The men in the study were all aged between 23 and 58, were regular drinkers and had no serious health issues.
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NHS bosses say people should drink no more than six pints a week, so the study’s suggested bottle-a-day was inside official safe limits.
Prof Faria added it is important to keep alcohol in check because too much could wreck the beer benefits and make health worse instead.
Prof Simon Gaisford, at University College London, said: “This study is interesting because it suggests having a beer a day is nourishing your gut bacteria and that’s a good thing.
“The alcohol won’t kill the bacteria because it gets absorbed quickly by the body and doesn’t make it to the large intestine, where the bacteria live.
“This is a small change so drinking beer is not going to help with symptoms if you are already ill – but it could benefit your overall health, which is tentatively good news.”