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Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC202331S
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00:44 >> Hello and welcome to It Is 00:46 Written Canada. 00:47 Thank you for joining us. 00:49 According to the World Health 00:51 Organization, Canadians drink 00:54 more alcohol than the 00:56 global average. 00:59 According to Statistics Canada, 01:01 during the pandemic, many 01:03 Canadians consumed even 01:05 more alcohol. 01:07 The common perception is that 01:09 too much alcohol is bad for you, 01:11 but in moderation, it's healthy. 01:15 >> With us on It Is Written 01:16 Canada today to help us 01:18 explore this critical topic 01:20 is Dr. George Cho. 01:21 Dr. Cho is a licensed 01:23 naturopathic doctor who is the 01:26 lead clinician at the nonprofit 01:29 Paradise Health Clinic in 01:31 Newmarket, Ontario. 01:33 Dr. George Cho focuses on 01:35 treating chronic health 01:37 conditions, using lifestyle 01:39 medicine, fitness assessments, 01:41 and athletic performance. 01:43 He has experience with fitness 01:45 testing at the NHL, 01:48 with the Toronto Professional 01:50 Football Club and firefighters 01:52 and police officers. 01:54 Dr. Cho is a member of the 01:57 American College of Lifestyle 01:58 Medicine and the Canadian 02:00 Society for Exercise Physiology. 02:03 His practice focus is on 02:05 lifestyle medicine. 02:08 >> Dr. George Cho, welcome to 02:10 It Is Written Canada. 02:11 >> Thank you for having me. 02:12 It's good to be back. 02:14 >> So, George, when we talk 02:16 about alcohol 02:18 in Canada, 02:20 how does how does Canada rate 02:21 throughout the world? 02:23 >> Very high. 02:24 So...we're... 02:26 We drink on average 02:27 more than the Americans. 02:29 And we're pretty much similar to 02:32 many northern European countries 02:34 where their levels of very high 02:35 as well. 02:36 I believe it's up to around 80% 02:37 of Canadian men, or maybe even 02:39 higher, drink alcohol. 02:41 And I believe it's about 70 or 02:42 more percent of women, 02:43 Canadian women, drink alcohol. 02:44 So it's pretty... 02:45 We're high. 02:47 We're on the higher end of 02:50 the global alcohol drinking 02:52 kind of spectrum. 02:54 >> That's very high, 80% for men 02:56 and 70, over 70% for women. 02:58 That's huge. 03:00 [DR. CHO] Yeah. 03:01 >> Dr. Cho, the assumption is 03:04 that too much alcohol is 03:07 bad for you, but in moderation, 03:09 it's healthy. 03:10 What are your views? 03:12 >> So the question is really 03:15 what is moderate 03:16 alcohol consumption? 03:17 What do we mean by that? 03:18 And when we say, like, healthy 03:20 is kind of a broad term. 03:22 So when someone says alcohol in 03:24 moderation is healthy, what do 03:25 you mean by healthy? 03:27 The World Health Organization 03:28 classifies alcohol as a 03:31 Group 1 carcinogen. 03:33 So it's the highest level. 03:35 It's a definite known 03:36 carcinogen. 03:37 It causes cancer. 03:40 Recent studies have published 03:42 in, for example, the Lancet 03:44 Journal has, they basically, the 03:46 researchers conclude that when 03:48 it comes to cancer risk, there 03:50 is no safe level. 03:51 The safest level is zero. 03:53 So when you say, when people say 03:56 moderate alcohol consumption is 03:59 healthy, what do you mean 04:00 by that? 04:01 Because even the top journals 04:03 are saying that... 04:06 ...there is no safe level of 04:07 alcohol consumption 04:08 when it comes to cancer. 04:09 So when it comes to alcohol 04:12 consumption, there's just too 04:14 much health risks associated 04:15 with it. 04:16 >> So it causes cancer, 04:18 we know that from the research. 04:19 Are there other health effects 04:21 to drinking? 04:23 >> Yeah. 04:24 So I like the way that a 04:26 researcher from CAMH put it, 04:28 he says alcohol is a 04:30 cardiotoxic, hepatotoxic, 04:32 neurotoxic drug, right? 04:34 So basically alcohol causes 04:37 direct damage to the brain, 04:40 it destroys nerve cells, 04:42 it causes damage to the liver, 04:43 it's a hepatotoxin. 04:45 It's also a cardiotoxin. 04:47 And we could talk about the 04:47 health effects on the heart 04:49 later, but it causes, it's toxic 04:51 to the heart as well. 04:53 And it causes other problems, 04:55 like, for example, it causes 04:56 leaky gut. 04:57 So alcohol damages the gut 04:59 lining so it makes the gut leaky 05:01 so stuff gets through the gut 05:03 wall which causes inflammation 05:05 in the body. 05:07 Alcohol has, it's... 05:10 pretty much it has, 05:11 it damages the body in so 05:13 many ways. 05:14 >> Dr. George, you're advocating 05:17 for zero alcohol. 05:19 But didn't the Canadian 2023 05:22 guidelines suggest that two per 05:25 week is okay? 05:27 >> Okay. 05:28 So first of all, it doesn't say 05:29 “okay,” it says two drinks per 05:32 week is low risk. 05:34 In fact, in their, in the 05:36 document that they published, 05:37 they say any level of alcohol 05:39 is associated with risk. 05:41 It's just what level of risk. 05:43 So to say that 05:46 the new Canadian guidelines 05:48 suggest that two is 05:49 healthy or okay, that's 05:50 actually, that'd be a gross 05:52 misunderstanding of that. 05:53 It says it's low risk. 05:55 Now, people have to understand 05:56 something, in 2011, they 05:58 released the guidelines. 06:00 So about a dec-- you know, 06:02 ten or so years ago. 06:03 And in those guidelines, 06:05 they said two drinks 06:07 per day for men, 06:09 one drink per day approximately 06:10 for women, up to about 06:11 15 drinks per week 06:14 for men and a little 06:15 bit less for women. 06:17 Now, a little more than a decade 06:19 later, they dropped it all the 06:21 way down from 15 to 2, 06:24 regardless of your sex. 06:25 So for both men and women, 06:27 it's now, it's just two. 06:30 So people have to really, you 06:31 have to really ask yourself, how 06:32 do they get from 15 and, like, 06:35 12 or 13 down to two in just a 06:37 matter of a decade, which is not 06:39 very long in terms of research 06:41 when it comes to research time. 06:43 So that tells you something that 06:45 the more that research is coming 06:46 out, it's just suggesting that 06:47 alcohol is actually worse for 06:49 you than we've thought 06:50 previously, right? 06:52 So, and like I said, the wording 06:55 that they use now is "low risk," 06:57 is not "no risk." 06:59 They say any level of alcohol 07:01 consumption is associated with 07:02 some risk. 07:04 It's just a matter of degrees. 07:05 Which is true. 07:06 I mean, if you drink more, 07:07 there's more risk. 07:09 It's also important to point out 07:10 that the past guidelines from 07:13 2011, the 15 drinks, is now 07:15 considered high risk. 07:17 So the previous guidelines for 07:19 Canadians just a little bit more 07:20 than a decade ago put Canadians 07:23 at high risk of negative health 07:24 effects from alcohol. 07:27 So that tells you all you really 07:28 need to know about 07:30 alcohol consumption. 07:32 It's not healthy. 07:33 Any level of consumption is 07:35 associated with risk. 07:37 There's low and there's high 07:38 risk, which is true. 07:39 But to say that two drinks per 07:41 day-- per week is okay, 07:44 that's not true, that's a 07:45 misunderstanding. 07:47 Yeah. 07:47 >> So let's talk about red wine, 07:49 because some people think, oh, 07:50 red wine is safe and it's good 07:52 for the heart. 07:54 >> Yeah, so in the new... 07:58 ...guidelines that they 08:00 published, they specifically 08:01 say, "Alcohol is not good 08:04 for the heart." 08:05 So they actually tackle this 08:06 whole understanding that 08:08 people had that 08:10 red wine or alcohol is 08:12 good for the heart. 08:13 They actually tackle it head on 08:14 and they specifically say, 08:16 "It is not good for the heart." 08:17 Yeah. 08:18 Studies have shown that 08:20 alcohol might lower the risk of, 08:24 like, slightly lower the risk 08:25 of, like, getting a-- of dying 08:26 from a heart attack, but also 08:28 increases the risk of dying from 08:30 hypertensive disease, stroke, 08:33 and other cardiovascular issues. 08:35 So you might lower the risk a 08:38 little bit or dying from a heart 08:39 attack, I think it's like 6% or 08:41 so, but then you dramatically 08:42 increase the risk of other 08:43 cardiovascular issues, because 08:45 remember, the cardiovascular 08:46 system includes the 08:47 cardiovascular system in the 08:48 brain and it's just 08:50 all over the body. 08:51 It's not just the heart, right, 08:52 it's all over. 08:53 The cardiovascular system is 08:54 spread out everywhere. 08:55 And you look at, as a whole, 08:58 it actually is not good 08:59 for the heart. 09:00 And so alcohol is a cardiotoxin, 09:03 it can cause damage 09:04 to the heart. 09:05 So do you want to drink alcohol 09:08 hoping to lower the risk of-- 09:09 slightly lower the risk of dying 09:11 from a heart attack, while 09:12 increasing the risk of all these 09:13 other health issues? 09:15 To me, that doesn't make sense. 09:17 So it's not true that alcohol is 09:20 good for the heart. 09:21 That's a major misunderstanding. 09:22 Yeah, and more and more research 09:24 is now proving that 09:25 to be the case. 09:26 In fact, like I said, the new 09:28 guidelines explicitly state 09:30 it is not good for the heart. 09:32 So, yeah. 09:33 >> And, Dr. George Cho, 09:35 in the... 09:36 ...study for the Blue Zones, 09:38 it mentions over there that 09:40 drinking wine is actually good 09:42 and helps with longevity. 09:44 [DR. CHO] Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. 09:46 So, Dan Buettner, 09:47 he was looking at the different 09:49 Blue Zones populations, he... 09:52 ...and these are groups of 09:53 centenarians who live 09:54 a long life. 09:55 And he basically looked at the 09:57 health patterns that they, the 09:58 lifestyle patterns that they 10:00 typically seem to practice. 10:03 And he created what's called the 10:04 Power Nine, which is basically 10:06 these lifestyle principles. 10:08 So, like, plant-based eating, 10:09 exercising, social connections, 10:11 spirituality, stuff like that. 10:13 Now, including in that, he 10:14 included wine, drinking red 10:17 wine, which is very curious 10:19 because-- which is very, I 10:21 think, unfortunate, because the 10:24 other lifestyle practices that 10:26 he talks about, pretty much all 10:28 the different blues, the five 10:30 Blue Zones, they practice it. 10:32 But when it comes to wine, one 10:34 of the Blues Zones actually does 10:35 not practice it. 10:36 The Loma Linda Blue Zone, 10:38 the Seventh-day Adventists. 10:41 Seventh-day Adventists typically 10:42 do not drink alcohol. 10:44 In fact, they take a very, very 10:46 strong stance against alcohol. 10:48 In fact, to even join the 10:50 church, you had to abstain from 10:52 alcohol to even join the church. 10:54 So drinking wine is not part of 10:57 the Loma Linda Blue Zone. 10:59 So I'm-- so it puzzles me a 11:01 little bit whenever I... 11:04 ...see that, see why he would 11:06 include that 11:07 into his 11:09 Power Nine of these lifestyle 11:11 habits that these Blue Zone 11:12 centenarians practice because 11:14 one of them, one of the 11:16 Blue Zones doesn't practice it. 11:19 Now, it's true that the 11:19 Sardinians that he looked at, 11:21 like, they drink wine and I 11:23 think that's kind of where he 11:23 gets that idea, from the 11:24 Sardinians and the Ikarians and 11:26 so forth. 11:27 But what I would say is that 11:30 likely these individuals 11:31 probably are living a long life 11:33 despite, like, in spite 11:35 of the alcohol, 11:37 not really because of it, 11:39 you see? 11:40 So it's like some people, they 11:42 can live their whole life 11:44 smoking and they don't get lung 11:45 cancer, right? 11:47 It doesn't mean that the smoking 11:48 contributed to their longevity, 11:49 it just means that they just 11:51 weren't-- they were like the 11:52 rare exception to the 11:54 general rule. 11:55 So these individuals, we know 11:58 that these Blue Zone 11:59 centenarians are practising a 12:00 lot of good lifestyle habits, 12:01 so perhaps it's maybe negating a 12:03 little bit of the alcohol 12:04 consumption that they're doing, 12:05 right, so... 12:06 But we can't ignore the research 12:08 though, which is suggesting that 12:09 alcohol is really not that good 12:11 for you, so... 12:12 So these other lifestyle habits 12:14 are probably helping these 12:15 individuals in spite of the fact 12:17 that they're drinking. 12:18 But I think it's very 12:19 unfortunate that he included 12:21 alcohol into his Power Nine 12:24 when one of the Blues Zones 12:26 doesn't even practice it at all. 12:29 >> Couldn't there be something 12:31 in the grapes that is 12:33 also good for the heart? 12:34 I've heard this, that there's 12:35 something called resveratrol 12:37 inside the grapes? 12:38 >> Yeah, it's not just 12:39 resveratrol, it's all the other 12:40 antioxidants that 12:41 grapes have, right? 12:43 So, and likely that's probably 12:45 what's beneficial for, like, for 12:47 the heart, you know, people 12:48 say wine is good for the heart. 12:49 It's probably just the other 12:50 plant chemicals, the 12:52 phytochemicals that wine, grapes 12:54 have, right, the grapes have 12:56 that's promoting good health, 12:57 right? 12:58 So you don't need to drink 12:59 alcohol for that, you can just 13:01 get it from eating fruits and 13:02 vegetables and whole grains and 13:04 things like that. 13:05 So you get all the benefits 13:06 without the, potentially the 13:09 addiction and all the other 13:10 issues that come with 13:12 alcohol consumption. 13:13 Yeah. 13:13 >> But after all, Jesus turned 13:16 water into wine. 13:18 >> In the Bible and says, 13:19 "wine," I think people 13:20 automatically assume that's 13:22 alcoholic. 13:23 And I think this is where the 13:25 original Greek kind of helps us. 13:28 So, for example, like, in the 13:29 Bible, in some versions it says 13:31 "meat," but when you actually 13:33 look it's, "meat" is actually 13:34 referring to, could be, like, 13:36 flesh of animals or it could 13:38 just mean food, right? 13:39 So you have to look at the kind 13:40 of the original language to kind 13:41 of tease that out, but when they 13:43 translate to English, it said, 13:44 they just use the word, "meat." 13:46 And right now we understand meat 13:47 as the flesh of animals. 13:49 And so we assume that it could 13:50 be meat, but when actually it 13:52 could be food. 13:53 It's the same with in the Bible 13:55 when it talks about wine. 13:57 There's a lot of different 13:57 Hebrew words for it and also the 13:59 Greek word, which is "oinos," 14:02 could actually refer to 14:03 nonalcoholic or alcoholic 14:05 beverages. 14:05 So people back in the day, just 14:07 like us now, they drank grape 14:09 juice and they also had 14:10 alcoholic beverages. 14:12 But right now, we have different 14:14 words for that. 14:16 The Greek, in the Greek, it 14:17 was-- they used the same word. 14:19 So basically when people look at 14:21 the story of Jesus turning the 14:23 water into wine, basically 14:24 automatically they assume 14:26 that it must be the alcoholic 14:28 beverage probably because they 14:29 want it as an excuse to 14:30 drink it. 14:31 But that's-- we can't make that 14:33 assumption. 14:34 So, yeah. 14:35 >> And Jesus was a healer. 14:36 So is He going to cause brain 14:39 damage, right, by making 14:41 something intentionally... 14:42 [DR. CHO] Correct. 14:43 I think this is where, like, if 14:44 you look at the whole Bible and 14:46 you look at what the Bible says 14:48 as a whole regarding alcohol, 14:50 it doesn't say good things about 14:52 it, you know, so... 14:54 And the stories where people are 14:56 consuming alcohol in the Bible, 14:58 like Noah, Lot, what David tried 15:01 to do with Uriah and 15:03 these examples, 15:05 it's all negative, you know? 15:06 And in fact, I believe that the 15:08 priests, the Nazarites, they 15:10 were told not to drink alcohol 15:12 and-- because the Bible, these 15:14 people knew the-- that it could 15:17 cloud your judgment, 15:19 things like that, right? 15:20 So I tend to believe that Jesus 15:23 probably wasn't providing 15:24 alcoholic beverages. 15:26 He was providing probably the 15:27 unfermented grape juice. 15:29 >> Because that is a definite 15:31 possible interpretation there 15:33 and a very likely 15:34 interpretation. 15:34 Especially if you go back and 15:36 see where God says to Samson's 15:38 parents, "Don't drink alcohol." 15:40 [DR. CHO] Exactly, yeah. 15:41 >> He talked to 15:43 John the Baptist's parents, 15:44 "Don't drink alc--" he was not 15:45 supposed to drink alcohol 15:46 throughout his life, and an 15:47 elder of the church is not 15:48 supposed to drink alcohol. 15:49 So there's all of these 15:51 guidelines that are telling us 15:52 that it's just not good to drink 15:54 alcohol at all or even touch it 15:56 or even look at the wine in the 15:57 glass when it's turning. 15:59 So what about when Paul talks to 16:02 Timothy and he says a little 16:03 wine is good for the stomach? 16:04 What is he saying there? 16:06 >> Well, again, like, I think 16:09 he's talking about medicinal 16:10 use, so maybe back in the day 16:12 they thought that there was some 16:13 medicinal use of alcohol maybe 16:15 for the stomach, right? 16:17 But this is medicinal. 16:18 So we don't exactly know, like, 16:20 maybe the full detailed 16:21 understanding of what Paul 16:22 really was trying to really get 16:24 at in its full sense, but it's 16:26 medicinal use. 16:27 But that's not what people are 16:29 really wanting to drink alcohol 16:30 for, right? 16:31 They're wanting to drink it 16:32 chronically, socially and so 16:33 forth, right? 16:34 So, like, I think to use that 16:37 and then conclude, "Okay, now we 16:39 can start drinking alcohol just, 16:41 like, as a regular 16:42 routine thing." 16:43 I think that's be misusing 16:45 scripture. 16:45 Yeah, yeah. 16:47 >> So, Dr. George, is it 16:49 possible for us to drink a 16:51 little bit of alcohol or to 16:53 drink alcohol and still 16:54 be healthy? 16:57 >> You're taking a risk. 16:59 So like I mentioned previously, 17:01 you know, there's people who can 17:03 live their whole life smoking, 17:05 they're not gonna get lung 17:06 cancer and some people, they 17:07 live a long life. 17:09 But it's a risk, right? 17:11 The studies show that smoke, 17:14 like, cigarettes is linked with 17:15 lung cancer. 17:16 So you're taking a massive risk 17:18 even though there is maybe that 17:19 small number of people who can 17:21 smoke and they never get, like, 17:24 lung cancer, for example. 17:26 So in the same way, sure, 17:27 there's people who probably can 17:29 drink alcohol and they 17:32 don't get sick. 17:33 But why would you 17:36 bank on 17:37 you being the exception, right? 17:39 Alcohol is very addictive as 17:41 well so the risk for abuse is 17:44 very high. 17:45 And so, again, we're taking a-- 17:48 we're basically gambling on our 17:49 health when we do that and I 17:51 don't think that's a risk 17:53 worth taking. 17:54 Yeah. 17:55 >> What can we do to lower the 17:58 general consumption of alcohol 18:00 in Canada? 18:02 >> We need do the exact same 18:03 thing we did with cigarettes, 18:04 right? 18:05 So smoking levels are high, but 18:06 then we started to get really 18:08 honest with people about what 18:09 cigarettes do, right? 18:10 You know, on the cigarette 18:11 packages, they start to put all, 18:13 like, the pictures of, like, 18:15 black teeth and, like, black 18:17 lungs and, like, erectile 18:20 dysfunction. 18:20 You know, they started to put 18:21 all these, like, different 18:22 things on-- they put labels on 18:25 cigarette packages. 18:26 And now cigarettes, like, 18:28 smoking levels actually trended 18:30 kind of downward, right? 18:32 So they need to do the same 18:33 thing with alcohol as well. 18:35 When the scientific community, 18:37 when the government is clear to 18:38 people, then it, then people 18:41 will, it will start shifting the 18:43 needle a little bit. 18:44 So I think we have to just be 18:45 really honest, use strategies 18:47 like warning labels, 18:49 things like that. 18:50 Yeah. 18:52 >> I like that idea, Dr. George, 18:54 because nowadays alcohol is 18:56 so easily accessible 18:58 and it's almost like the norm, 19:01 that it's okay to drink, 19:04 you know, and you can get it 19:06 anywhere, right? 19:08 >> Among young people, they see 19:09 it as cool and things like that. 19:11 So we have to stop portraying 19:13 alcohol consumption like beer as 19:15 cool, as manly, these types of 19:17 things, you know? 19:19 That's just not true. 19:20 [MIKE] Yeah. 19:21 And definitely for me, when I 19:22 was growing up, it was a cool 19:23 thing to do. 19:25 It wasn't so cool when, 19:26 you know, I was getting sick 19:27 because of it, and when it was 19:29 causing that kind of disturbance 19:31 in my thinking and I couldn't, 19:33 you know, couldn't study 19:34 properly and my relationships 19:35 were breaking down, you know? 19:37 Alcohol consumption was 19:38 certainly detrimental to my 19:40 health and to my relationships. 19:42 So I can say that, you know, 19:44 that was certainly a motivating 19:46 factor for me personally to say 19:48 this isn't good for you. 19:49 [DR. CHO] Right, and as 19:50 Christians in particular, 19:52 you know, alcohol has all these 19:54 physical effects, but also, 19:56 like, on the brain, it has an 19:57 effect on the brain and on the 19:58 frontal lobe. 20:00 Like, God communicates to us, 20:02 it's through the brain, right, 20:03 that this is happening, 20:04 it's not-- 20:05 Yeah, so basically we need to 20:06 keep our brain very sharp and we 20:08 know, everyone knows the effect 20:10 that alcohol has on the brain. 20:11 So Christians in particular 20:13 should take a very strong, 20:14 very firm stance on alcohol 20:16 consumption for the public and 20:17 also in their personal life 20:18 as well. 20:19 [MIKE] Absolutely. 20:20 >> And, Dr. George Cho, what 20:21 about those that are struggling 20:24 with alcohol abuse and alcohol 20:26 addictions? 20:29 >> So that's not really my 20:31 special area of focus. 20:33 However, I will say that those 20:35 individuals, they need to get 20:37 help, they need to get 20:38 professional help. 20:40 There's a lot of great resources 20:41 out there, also, like, centres 20:43 as well, things like that. 20:45 But yeah, so these individuals, 20:48 they do need to get professional 20:49 help, but they need to tackle 20:52 their issue. 20:53 And I've seen people who... 20:57 ...have struggled 20:58 and they've really 20:59 been able to overcome. 21:00 It can be very challenging, 21:02 it can seem hopeless, but I've 21:03 seen as-- I've seen it myself. 21:05 And what I've seen is people, 21:07 they never look back and say, 21:08 "Oh, I wish I had that again." 21:10 Like, nobody wants that, 21:12 you know? 21:12 So it's always, it's like 21:15 you're being released, you know, 21:17 you're coming out of prison, you 21:18 know, that you feel more free, 21:20 right, from getting out of this 21:21 bondage that's been 21:23 kind of keeping you in chains. 21:25 [MIKE] Absolutely. 21:26 Very interesting. 21:27 Alcoholics Anonymous, for 21:29 example, they always celebrate, 21:30 you know, celebrate each time, 21:32 you know, every month, every 21:34 year that they are sober 21:37 and they're saying, "Wow, 21:38 I'm set free." 21:39 And I think that's a beautiful 21:40 feeling. 21:41 Every single one of my family 21:43 members who have gone through 21:45 that and struggled with it, 21:46 it's kind of like Romans 7, 21:48 right, I don't wanna do it, 21:49 but I'm doing something I don't 21:50 wanna do and the things I 21:52 wanna do, I don't do. 21:53 And it's like, well, how 21:55 can I get some help? 21:56 And one thing that Alcoholics 21:58 Anonymous does is admit your 22:00 need of a higher power. 22:02 And I think that's really, 22:03 really critical that that is a 22:05 part of this, that you recognize 22:08 that you don't have power over 22:09 it yourself and that you need to 22:11 turn to a higher power 22:14 for us that would be God and 22:16 turning to the Bible and turning 22:18 to Jesus and asking for that 22:19 help and the Holy Spirit 22:21 to guide us. 22:22 >> Yeah, and the North American 22:23 Division of Seventh-day 22:24 Adventists, they have recovery 22:26 ministries. 22:27 And as part of that, they have 22:28 something called, like, 22:29 it's called the... 22:31 ...addiction recovery, 22:32 there's something about 22:32 addiction recovery program from 22:34 the North American Division 22:35 that's really faith based. 22:36 It helps people, kind of like 22:38 Alcoholics Anonymous, look to 22:39 God for help, but there's, like, 22:41 a program, a year long process 22:43 which the program, which can 22:45 help individuals with various 22:46 addictions, including alcohol 22:48 addiction. 22:48 So there's different resources 22:49 out there that people can 22:52 utilize, but really, for-- 22:54 really the best thing is 22:55 prevention. 22:56 So for those who have, 22:59 already have struggles, 23:01 they need get professional help, 23:02 but those listeners 23:03 who aren't... 23:06 ...my message is basically don't 23:08 start because it is addictive 23:10 and there's high possibility of 23:12 abuse and you just never know if 23:14 you're the exception. 23:15 Again, people want to be the 23:16 exception, you just never know 23:17 if you are the exception. 23:18 So there's just no, there's no 23:20 point taking that risk. 23:22 And the consequences are just 23:23 too much, too-- can be too 23:26 damaging, too tragic. 23:27 [MIKE] Yeah, yeah. 23:29 Before I ask you a final 23:30 question or final thoughts that 23:31 you have, I think of the One 23:34 Week in Paradise program that we 23:35 run together with a lot of 23:38 health care professionals and 23:39 I've seen how you address this 23:41 issue of alcohol and going to 23:44 zero alcohol. 23:45 And many people after that, 23:46 after just one week are-- say, 23:48 "Hey, I'm finished," you know, 23:50 "I'm not gonna do that again." 23:51 And it's a beautiful thing to 23:52 watch people feeling like, hey, 23:55 I'm free and feeling really good 23:57 and celebrating that 23:58 because they do. 24:00 >> And we're honest with people 24:01 there about what alcohol is, 24:03 you know? 24:04 And so you had to be honest with 24:05 people and make them 24:07 make the choice. 24:08 Yeah, yeah. 24:09 >> And having that emotional 24:11 support there is really good and 24:12 the support of prayer, 24:14 all of that. 24:15 Any final thoughts? 24:17 >> So my final thought is this, 24:20 if, like, we would never give 24:22 any other food substance the 24:24 pass that we do for alcohol. 24:25 So, like, let's say, for 24:27 example, that tomorrow a study 24:30 comes out, like something 24:31 on the news, "Soy milk, 24:33 now linked with cancer. 24:35 Also, if you drink more than, 24:37 like, three cups of soy milk, 24:38 it's gonna cause brain damage 24:40 and heart issues and..." 24:41 [MIKE] That's the end of 24:42 soy milk. [laughs] 24:43 >> Do you think people are gonna 24:44 be like, "Oh, let's drink soy 24:45 milk in moderation?" 24:46 No one's gonna say that. 24:47 Everyone's gonna be like, 24:48 they're not, they're gonna be 24:49 like, no soy milk, right? 24:50 Or, like, Gatorade. 24:51 You can just name any 24:51 other food, broccoli, kale. 24:53 Like, if any other 24:56 substance out there 24:58 had the same health 24:59 profile as alcohol, immediately 25:02 everyone would stop that thing. 25:04 So have to stick with what is 25:06 healthy and not gamble on what 25:08 is not healthy, right? 25:10 Moderation is taking detrimental 25:13 things out and eating healthy 25:16 things in moderation, right? 25:18 For me, when I look at the 25:19 research, it's so clear, 25:20 alcohol is extremely detrimental 25:23 to your health. 25:23 So that should be out, you know 25:25 why gamble on your health? 25:26 Stick with things that we know 25:28 is healthy. 25:30 [MIKE] That's very good. 25:31 Thank you very much for that. 25:32 Very insightful. 25:34 I wonder, as we close off, if 25:35 you could pray, pray for our 25:36 guests, our viewers, those who 25:39 may be struggling with this 25:41 and that they can get the kind 25:43 of professional help and support 25:45 that they need and also 25:46 experience the power of God 25:48 to overcome these addictions. 25:50 [DR. CHO] Right. 25:51 Okay, yeah, we can pray. 25:54 Father God in heaven, Lord, I 25:55 wanna pray for 25:57 those who may be listening, 25:59 who are struggling 26:01 with alcohol use. 26:04 I'm praying, oh God, that You 26:05 can lead them to the help that 26:07 they need. 26:08 Also, that they can get help 26:09 from You as they look up to You 26:11 for strength and power, 26:13 and that the potentially 26:15 negative consequences of their 26:17 decisions, that You can help 26:18 work things out. 26:20 I'm also praying for those who 26:22 may be just drinking alcohol 26:25 just casually, occasionally 26:27 that something that they might, 26:29 that they have heard today will 26:32 inspire them, Lord, to 26:34 give up this harmful substance 26:36 altogether. 26:38 May we not yield to pressure, 26:39 social pressures and other 26:41 pressures, but may we take a 26:43 stand for what is good and 26:45 what's healthy. 26:47 We pray in Jesus name, amen. 26:49 [MIKE & RENÉ] Amen. 26:52 >> Friends, freedom of choice is 26:53 one of the most precious gifts 26:55 God has entrusted to us. 26:57 Unfortunately, we often make 26:58 poor choices which may lead to 27:00 destructive habits that enslave 27:02 us, damage our health, 27:04 and even ruin our lives. 27:08 >> Our free offer for you is 27:09 the special Steps to Christ 27:11 Recovery Edition. 27:13 This powerful book includes a 27:16 12-step recovery program, 27:18 empowering you to overcome 27:21 harmful habits and addictions. 27:25 Above all, you will come to know 27:27 Jesus Christ, the only one who 27:30 can heal and restore, strengthen 27:33 and encourage as well as bring 27:36 true balance and meaning 27:38 to your life. 27:40 >> Before you go, we would like 27:42 to thank all of you who have 27:44 supported the Ministry of It Is 27:45 Written Canada with your prayers 27:47 and financial contributions. 27:48 Without your support, this 27:50 television ministry could not 27:52 have reached so many people 27:54 for so many decades. 27:56 >> Yes, thank you. 27:58 And we would also like to invite 28:00 you to follow us on Instagram 28:02 and Facebook and subscribe to 28:04 our YouTube channel and also 28:06 listen to our podcasts. 28:08 And if you go to our website, 28:11 you can see our latest programs. 28:14 >> Friends, to be honest, Jesus 28:16 is offering you holistic health 28:19 and life that is beyond a 28:21 temporary existence, beyond our 28:23 ongoing struggles with pain and 28:25 suffering and the sorrows that 28:27 this life brings. 28:29 So we would like to recommend 28:31 that you open up the Bible or 28:32 get yourself a copy of the 28:34 Bible, or open up a Bible app 28:35 where it is recorded that Jesus 28:38 Himself found His assurance to 28:40 defeat the Devil through the 28:41 Word of His Father 28:43 when He declared... |
Revised 2024-04-24