Social Drinking Helps War Stress
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iStock/Thinkstock(HAIFA, Israel) — How are Israelis coping with the latest air war between their country and Hamas militants in Gaza?
A new study by Israeli and U.S. researchers says that bending the old elbow at the local watering hole might help.
According to the report published in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal based on previous conflicts between Israelis and Palestinians, social drinking can help people deal with the anxiety of air raids and rockets flying overhead.
While not encouraging drunkenness or alcohol abuse, the researchers contend that liquor increases feelings of happiness that come from hanging out with friends and others close to you.
University of Haifa political scientist Daphna Canetti, who helped conduct the study, remarked, “Our research shows for the first time that drinking can help people get through terrorism-related trauma, like what we’re experiencing in Israel right now.”
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