Wine + Health 4: Is Moderate Drinking a Myth? Professor Tim Stockwell and the J-Curve Controversy

October 09, 2024 01:14:21
Wine + Health 4: Is Moderate Drinking a Myth? Professor Tim Stockwell and the J-Curve Controversy
Drinks Insider
Wine + Health 4: Is Moderate Drinking a Myth? Professor Tim Stockwell and the J-Curve Controversy

Oct 09 2024 | 01:14:21

/

Hosted By

Felicity Carter

Show Notes

Professor Tim Stockwell is the most influential figure in the world of alcohol right now. His research claiming there are no health benefits to moderate drinking has attracted wide media attention and directly led to people either moderating their alcohol intake or quitting altogether.

In fact, The New York Times has called himone of the people most responsible for our cultural course correction on alcohol.”

The J-Curve hypothesis claims that people who drink light to moderate amounts of alcohol have lower all-cause mortality rates than those who drink heavily or not at all. Professor Stockwell challenges this hypothesis, arguing that many studies that support the J-Curve fail to account for the "sick quitter" phenomenon. This is what happens when people who have given up alcohol due to bad health are grouped with lifetime abstainers, which makes the health outcomes for moderate drinkers appear more favourable.

But his work has been harshly criticised, by both libertarians and by other scientists. He’s been accused of bias, cherry picking and sloppy referencing.

In this in-depth episode, Professor Stockwell explains his research, pushes back against his critics and explains his ties with Movendi.

This interview covers:

Relevant articles:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/15/magazine/alcohol-health-risks.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/04/health/alcohol-health-effects.html
https://www.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/jul/27/why-scientific-support-for-alcohols-health-benefits-is-fading

Drinks Insider has also interviewed Chris Snowdon, one of Tim Stockwell's harshest critics. You'll find that here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2k1XtETvfywIi14MYqJYtY
And here is a summary of Snowdon's criticisms: https://snowdon.substack.com/p/cherry-picking-the-evidence-on-alcohol

Other Episodes

Episode 25

March 05, 2025 00:55:42
Episode Cover

Ep 24: How Morten Sørensen Created ISH, Conquered 25 Markets and Partnered With Ford

Morten Sørensen is the man behind ISH Spirits, a revolutionary line of non-alcoholic drinks that have taken the beverage world by storm — including...

Listen

Episode 26

April 02, 2025 00:51:26
Episode Cover

Ep 26: Inside Finland's Dynamic Wine Market With Heidi Mäkinen MW

Who created the Finnish long drink? When did Finns start drinking wine? And how does wine get into their glasses? At a time of...

Listen

Episode 17

November 13, 2024 01:03:48
Episode Cover

Ep 17: Proxies Co-Founder Charlie Friedmann on Building a Beverage Category from Scratch

One of the hardest problems to solve in the non-alc category is the substitute wine. Charlie Friedmann, the president and co-founder of Proxies, was...

Listen