Good afternoon! Day four!!

Lesson 4: stop mutating!

Now for some scientific jumbo jumbo. If you want to quit abusing alcohol, "News flash, news flash read all about it!!" Google is a godsend. Look up anything you want that you are curious about drinking too much alcohol. Or scare yourself by looking up some YouTube videos.

These mutations are entertaining and sometimes hot: http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/watch-new-trailer-for-x-men-days-of-future-past-brings-back-the-first-class-more-20140313

This mutation is like losing your virginity, but not in a good way: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131126123931.htm.

Here is a less-than five minute video on alcohol abuse: http://www.cdc.gov/CDCTV/BingeDrinking/

Then these stunts are just plain dangerous and stupid (warning, some of this content is quite disturbing): http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2554417/The-deadly-teenage-drinking-craze-fuelled-Facebook-Terrifying-online-fad-sees-young-people-pints-spirits-mixed-car-polish-Viagra-live-goldfish.html NOT SAVVY AT ALL.

According to sciencedaily.com, Researchers discovered a gene that regulates alcohol consumption and when faulty can cause excessive drinking. That's just common sense. Who has never had an alcoholic beverage in their life and said, "Oh I HAVE to have a drink I've been so stressed today!" What did you do in that situation before you drank? Probably you threw a tantrum, cried, done some retail therapy, gone swimming, got out your crayons, called a friend, made a sandwich; but you didn't drink. Then you got over it most likely. "The study showed that normal mice show no interest in alcohol and drink little or no alcohol when offered a free choice between a bottle of water and a bottle of diluted alcohol. However, mice with a genetic mutation to the gene Gabrb1 overwhelmingly preferred drinking alcohol over water, choosing to consume almost 85% of their daily fluid as drinks containing alcohol -- about the strength of wine." When you start to drink you like the feeling, it raises dopamine and you feel goooooood. This also happens when you eat raspberry-dark chocolate frosting or go for a run. But drinking....ooooh now that's great because you don't need to make any effort, just drink and you get buzzed! Alcohol pounds and pounds away at your cells then you need more to feel good. After all it's party time!! Then the not-so-good thing is that after your hopes get high, they get dashed. Your judgment gets impaired and then your real feelings come out, 'un-corked' as I used to call it. You cry anyway, or pick a fight with someone, or email that DLB (the hubs taught me that one, Dirty Little Bitch) telling him or her what a real A-Hole they are. Then worse than that, you kill brain cells, or warp them into these Gabrb 1s or p53 mutations that get into your lungs that make you conditioned to want more or even give you cancer. Now go rent What The Bleep Do We Know, which has a chapter on cell mutation that first grabbed my attention. It's entertaining and scary at the same time!

They say it takes 21 days to quit a habit. You know what?? A study in 2004 from scientists at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill proved that new brain cells develop after quitting alcohol completely! WOO HOO there is hope! In that time why don't you re-condition yourself to find pleasure in something else? Remember what did you do to make yourself happy before you drank. Now, what I did but not choose to for the moment because I want to be fit, skinny, and savvy for my wedding reception later this Spring, is to have a lovely dinner with one glass of red wine. UNO. That way I thoroughly enjoyed different foods moderately and felt great afterwards, my endorphins even went up and I didn't have to drink the bottle to enjoy myself or get rid of those stresses, if I had any. I remember going to a new swanky Mexican restaurant and the chiles were so smokey and hot that the capsaicin pumped up my dopamine so much, that killed any physical and emotional pain! It's an oxymoron, the pain is scientifically proven in peppers to kill pain, as in headaches. I didn't need that glass of red to be honest with ya. Chiles should be the next drug. Plus they rev up your metabolism, and who doesn't want that!

Now you read how a 5-ounce glass of red wine is good for you, and I believe it can be, however more than that will have adverse effects. I and some other girlfriends of mine are walking proof that binge wining will make you bloated. Beer ain't the only culprit! It will also give you memory loss, a crappy attitude, bruises from falling, a car wreck, mutated cells, cancer, or even death. NOT sexy.

So do your own research and google away! What are you curious abut binge drinking? It may save your life and at least make you smarter. And smart is definitely sexy.

Love, peace, and James McAvoy,

The savvy Sobergirl