Is it healthier?

[W0nderW0man]

Does anyone know or have they been any articles on the question whether homebrewing is a healthier option of consuming beer?

Or has anyone experiences less hangovers after indulging in homebrews?

I am thinking of the chemical stuff they put in beers nowadays - I like to stick to German lagers although I know that the "Reinheitsgebot" isn't as clean as the name suggests but as far as I am aware, everything they might use for clearing beer etc. is being filtered out at the end. But that aside, is homebrewing a healthier way of consuming beer?

 

[geetee]

All the chemical stuff is finings most of which are natural products. I doubt if many small breweries use anything that could be classed as chemicals other than this and some use no finings at all. In strict terms that would include anything used for water treatment which are out and out chemicals which will dissolve in the beer and will not be filtered out. Things like calcium carbonate,sulphate and chloride are readily used in other foodstuffs and medicines and are only present here in nano amounts.

The Reinheitsgebot has been updated and now also allows for fining of beer so I reckon all in all there is nothing much that goes into beer eithe,r commercial or home made, that comes anywhere near the toxicity of Ethanol, a known poison if consumed in large amounts!

 

[Covrich]

I am going to unscientifically say yes I think it is..

I can happily consume by home brew fine putting aside the flavour and enjoyment factor I have what I have and wake up the next day feeling completely fine.

The other night I had a few commercial ones given to me. Whilst I woke up with something that would be far far far from ever calling a hangover I noticeably had a more lethargic and groggier feeling..

It is like I find Homebrew cleaner on my mind and digestive system..

 

[simon12]

Most articles trying to scare you about whats in beer seem to mainly focus on GM corn and rice syrup, I am not going to try and go into GM but I don't think these will affect hangovers. Other than that apparently Corona contains Propylene Glycol which I find hard to believe would be added but who knows and fish bladder comes up all the time, obviously isinglass which has been used in cask beers for a long time with no issues (apparently if you have an extreme fish allergy it may be a problem). I am surprised these scaremongers have not picked up on all the water treatment chemicals. I think most commercial beers need very little chemicals as the are cold filtered to get them crystal clear so need less chemicals than a small brewery. I think wine may be another story though. Sorry if i'm just ranting without really saying anything.

 

[GHW]

I can't really see why it is any healthier. The problem ingredient in beer is alcohol, which your homebrew contains in the roughly the same quantities as commercial beers.

Alcohol is a way bigger risk to your health than anything else that's put in beer.

Being unscientific myself I would wager that, compared with the the average public, us lot are far more likely to be candidates for heart and liver disease.

Everything in moderation, eh?

Btw there is no evidence whatsoever that GM poses health issues. If you're interested in it, read matt ridley's book, 'Genome'. It (in some small part) discusses what Gm really means and why the general press on it is misleading.

 

[Covrich]

Again this may be nothing to do with this or facts whatsoever but mass produced beer is produced and served cold or Ice Cold now.. as it warms up your tastebuds are not as numbed to the flavours and they taste not as good..

 

[geetee]

Propylene glycol is otherwise know as propane 1-2 diol has an E number designation (E1520) and as such is approved for use in foodstuffs and pharmaceuticals, added as a stabiliser and is relatively non toxic. Just about everything we eat wear,sniff or smoke is a chemical and to use in foods has to have incredibly low toxicity to be approved for use.

The subject on chemicals in beer depends on your personal stance as to the use of chemicals because remember ethanol itself is a chemical. Although they are extracted from grain glucose, fructose, maltose and yes even water are all themselves chemicals so where do you draw the line?

Cask beers may be the most organic especially where no finings are used and they clear naturally, same as home brewers. Kegs and bottles may be filtered to achieve both stability and clarity. This can be by means of very fine (0.2micron) filtration or the addition of substances such as diatomaceous earth (prehistoric dead sea animals) which is then filtered out to give clear, long lasting beer.
As I said before I am more concerned about drinking too much or getting a badly kept pint than worrying about what goes into it as most brewing ingredients are approved for safe food use.

 

[Notlaw]

Regarding hangovers; I'm convinced that commercial beers that use forced CO2 to carbonate them give me more of a hangover than handpulls, so by the same measure, home brew should give me less of a hangover than commercial brews.

Zero science here, just what I've convinced myself of..!!

 

[geetee]

Regarding hangovers; I'm convinced that commercial beers that use forced CO2 to carbonate them give me more of a hangover than handpulls, so by the same measure, home brew should give me less of a hangover than commercial brews.

Zero science here, just what I've convinced myself of..!!

Pure speculation on my part but with champagne the bubbles make alcohol diffuse into the blood faster and this could also be the case with carbonated beer. The alcohol gives you a quicker hit which is why Champagne is popular , but not with me I hasten to add!

 

[Notlaw]

Pure speculation on my part but with champagne the bubbles make alcohol diffuse into the blood faster and this could also be the case with carbonated beer. The alcohol gives you a quicker hit which is why Champagne is popular , but not with me I hasten to add!

Science, good stuff..!!

I agree, I can't stand Champagne.... its so dry, it gives me chronic heartburn!!

At least thats what I tell our lass :whistle:

 

[simon12]

I have heard speculation that beer with yeast still in doesn't give as bad hangovers due to the extra vitamins/nutrients.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I know my wine doesn't give me a banging head like the cheap supermarket stuff I used to drink did many moons ago.

 

[mike-os]

AFAIK everything is 'chemical'..... The most dangerous in beer is probably dihydrogen oxide, though overdosing on oxides of carbon, or carbon/hydrogen chains is not good either. ....

 

[Sonnal]

AFAIK everything is 'chemical'..... The most dangerous in beer is probably dihydrogen oxide, though overdosing on oxides of carbon, or carbon/hydrogen chains is not good either. ....

Very true. That dihydrogen oxide is nasty stuff. It's the main constituent in acid rain! :lol:

 

[geetee]

AFAIK everything is 'chemical'..... The most dangerous in beer is probably dihydrogen oxide, though overdosing on oxides of carbon, or carbon/hydrogen chains is not good either. ....

I remember a quote from First year of organic Chemistry degree.

" There are two types of Chemicals, those that are carcinogenic and those that we have not yet proved to be carcinogenic."

Great way to start a chemistry course and career!

 

[mike-os]

I remember a quote from First year of organic Chemistry degree.

" There are two types of Chemicals, those that are carcinogenic and those that we have not yet proved to be carcinogenic."

Great way to start a chemistry course and career!

.... even if we have to dose at levels you could not actually consume or contact if you bathed in it :lol:

 

[W0nderW0man]

I am going to unscientifically say yes I think it is..

I can happily consume by home brew fine putting aside the flavour and enjoyment factor I have what I have and wake up the next day feeling completely fine.

The other night I had a few commercial ones given to me. Whilst I woke up with something that would be far far far from ever calling a hangover I noticeably had a more lethargic and groggier feeling..

It is like I find Homebrew cleaner on my mind and digestive system..

Funny you should say that... I had this suspicion as well. I haven't drank excessively since my teens lol as I am very susceptible to hangovers but last time I had some of my beers and felt them I was completely fie the next day!

I hadn't used any water treatment in that particular brew but I did wonder whether the treatments are pure chemicals (sorry, don't know anything about them really!)

 

[W0nderW0man]

By the way I wasn't trying to say that beer is healthy. I know about ethanol/alcohol being poison to the body, so I was more wondering about the other stuff that some breweries put into their beer. I have heard of Stella being more chemical than anything else and I really don;t like it anyway, so since you can brew beer with nothing but (good) water, malt and yeast, what could be better than that?

By the way, I must be the exception to the rule, I don't drink any more than I used to. It is just more versatile now and cheaper I guess And more exciting.

 

[geetee]

By the way I wasn't trying to say that beer is healthy. I know about ethanol/alcohol being poison to the body, so I was more wondering about the other stuff that some breweries put into their beer. I have heard of Stella being more chemical than anything else and I really don;t like it anyway, so since you can brew beer with nothing but (good) water, malt and yeast, what could be better than that?

By the way, I must be the exception to the rule, I don't drink any more than I used to. It is just more versatile now and cheaper I guess And more exciting.

you are right WW you can brew beer with the 4 main ingredients, everything else is added to beers to either quicken the process, stabilize or clear the the beer. They are not essential for anything other than commercial purposes. the homebrewers who have the time and patience can leave beers long enough to avoid most of these aids as there is is no commercial pressure.

I myself make vastly more beer than I consume, not that I don't like it I just don't drink 30 pints a week. I make batches between 40 -50 litres because I enjoy making beer that I want to drink and it lasts a long time, most of my beer is given away or drunk by family.

 

[Dutto]

I remember a quote from First year of organic Chemistry degree.

" There are two types of Chemicals, those that are carcinogenic and those that we have not yet proved to be carcinogenic."

Great way to start a chemistry course and career!

That reminds me of the Octel Rep presenting a course on the Tetraethyl and Tetramethyl lead that we injected into petrol.

Rep "If you get poisoned with this stuff you have bad dreams, go mad and die."

Me "What's the cure?"

Rep "You weren't listening were you lad. You have bad dreams, go mad and die!"

The Rep moved on to the next part of his presentation and most of us started having bad dreams that very night! :thumb: