I know a lot of people love having a drink too cool down after a long day at work, or to celebrate that it’s Friday and there’s no work for a few days, but I’m just not one of them. I have my reasons why I don’t drink alcohol. I thought it would be fun to list the reasons why I don’t drink alcohol. next time someone asks me about it, I will ask him or her to read my blog post 😉

1. Hangovers

Who wants to wake up feeling like you’ve been hit by a truck, and then hit by a car when you tried to get back up? A hangover is never fun. At the very least you feel tired and thirsty. At the worst you can wake up in pain, dizzy, and like you still have some more puking left to do. Not to mention you’re more sensitive emotionally and physically. I’d rather avoid waking up like that if I can avoid it.

2. It’s Bad for the Brain

Everyone knows about the brain damaging effects of alcohol. You only have to have a few drinks to notice that your vision starts to go blurry and you don’t talk and respond as quickly as you normally do. It also makes you forget. These might just be short term effects that go away after you sober up but the more you drink the longer these effects last. It can reach a point where you end up with serious brain disorders if you aren’t careful.

3. It’s Bad for the Body

The CDC say that drinking too much alcohol can wreak havoc on your body as well as your mind. Many people are aware of the damage that it can do to the liver. Your liver is pretty tough and is built to handle toxins. The fact that it can be seriously damaged by alcohol should tell you how toxic it is. Drinking can also cause high blood pressure and pancreatitis.

4. Cancer

Drinking too much alcohol is linked to a number of cancers. Liver cancer is the obvious one given the damage it does to this vital organ. But it can also cause mouth, throat, larynx, breast, and larynx cancer. If you smoke as well as drink then you’re really at risk of developing cancer. One is bad enough; two is seriously dangerous.

5. Weight Gain

Alcohol might not be too high in fat but it can be very, very high in calories. Drinking a 12-ounce beer or just a 1.5 ounce shot of liquor will give you about 150 empty calories that do absolutely nothing but make you fat. They contain no beneficial nutrients. If you want to lose weight then you need to burn more calories than you take in. If you’re drinking then you’re taking in way more calories than you need. They call it a “beer gut” for a reason.

And that’s why I don’t drink alcohol. There are plenty of reasons why alcohol is bad for you, so consider cutting down, if not cutting it out entirely.

When scrolling through the television lineup on your TV Guide, you’ll see a fraternization of shows glorifying sex, violence and deceit.

It’s one bad show after another, each one depending on more negative values than the next to achieve the highest ratings. The selection is awful when compared to that of our childhoods. It’s what makes me miss shows like Little House on the Prairie. Little House on the Prairie was a plethora of good values taught to our children through the Ingall family’s example.

Value of hard work

First, they taught us the value of hard work.

This was a family that had no television, computers or iPads, and their free time was typically spent learning new skills or doing family activities.

Living on the farm isn’t easy; it requires dedication, early hours and the drive to make the farm succeed. Back in those days, people like the Ingalls depended on a good crop to see them through the winter. Each of the Ingalls had their daily chores to do their part and help out.

Each child worked more in a day than most modern kids do in a month, or for some, a year!

Honesty and Quality of character

Secondly, Little House on the Prairie taught us honesty and quality of character.

The Ingalls held a strong belief in God and the principles of the Bible, which promote selflessness and truth-telling, among hundreds of other notable actions and characteristics.

Each family member was taught that lying was wrong and that you should care for others more than yourself. It’s because of this that many children watching the show learned to treat others with respect and dignity. It also encouraged more honest actions and better family dynamics in the home. There’s a lot to be learned in today’s society from this.

Family and support

Lastly, it taught us to support one another no matter what. Early settlers in that time faced many hardships, anything from a shortage of crops to severe winter storms that would wipe out livestock. There was also the matter of sickness and disease that threatened the lives of settlers and their families. Each family looked out for one another.

If one was suffering, the others would step up to provide essential needs and assistance to help them out. This was a time before government programs coddled much more fortunate individuals, so it was up to each family to ensure the safety of their own as well as others.

Community

Little House on the Prairie showed a closely-knit community that truly cared for each and every member, even the not-so-favorable ones who were little more than antagonists. It was this godly love that held the Ingalls together through all the trials they faced.

The difference between the culture of our youth and the one we see together is so great that it’s hard to imagine a show like Little House on the Prairie ever existed, but it did. In this author’s humble opinion, every family should start watching this series with their children to instill positive values and a wholesome TV viewing experience.

If you’ve seen fashion photos of models, you’ve probably gotten the feeling that something is amiss.

Her skin is just too perfect. Her hair seems to defy gravity, and you wonder to yourself how anyone could have the body she does.

The truth is, this picture perfect woman doesn’t even come close to looking like this in real life.

The secret to eternal youth and a flawless body isn’t diet, exercise and vitamins… it’s Photoshop.

In a world where women struggle to have a positive body image, Photoshop has set an unnaturally high standard of beauty that’s impossible for even the Victoria’s Secret models to reach.

Not only have fashion moguls come under fire from the public for retouching photos to a ridiculous extent, but models and celebrities have also complained.

Not even the royals are immune to photo tampering, as evidenced by Photoshop fails where Duchess Kate was given a ludicrously tiny waist and Prince William sported an unusual hair color.

The ugly truth is that Photoshop is everywhere.

It affects anyone who has had the misfortune to be on the cover of a gossip rag, or even a high profile fashion magazine.

Celebrities of all sorts have fallen victim to waist adjustments, breast augmentation and elongated legs.

Rather than be happy that their image has been “perfected” and can now shine in all its pristine glory, most are upset that their real body isn’t good enough as is.

The image of being “perfect” is no longer as desirable as it once was. People want the real thing.

Actresses like Melissa McCarthy or singer Adele are proud of their larger figure, and they’ve been campaigning relentlessly to let the rest of the world, particularly young women in their teens, know that they look just fine the way they are, that they don’t need to be a lifesize Barbie with stick-thin limbs and perfect double-D breasts.

The term “body shaming” has emerged as an effort to combat the harsh words and images of those saying a woman must be thin to be beautiful.

Young women are indeed “ashamed” to have the slightest bit of body fat, and God forbid you have a muffin top.

The fact of the matter is you don’t have to give in to the lies.

None of the pictures you see of models, singers and actresses are the original photo.

Every one of them has been retouched, most of them quite extensively. The photos aren’t the real deal.

There’s nothing wrong with who you are and what you look like.

If we all looked like models in the photos, our world would be a terrifying real-life Stepford Wives community (sans the robot replacements).

The real you is the beautiful you, so don’t be afraid to flaunt it.

There’s nothing sexier than being comfortable in your own skin, that you need to take good care of with well suited skincare.

The next time you see a magazine ad with a picture perfect model, just remember that it’s just a facade, one that most models don’t appreciate.

They feel the same way you do when they see a fake image of themselves. Just be genuine. Be real. Be you.