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In this episode, I (Turo Virta) share my personal journey with alcohol—growing up with a dad who drank daily, going out every weekend in my 20s, and where I’m at now: only having a few drinks occasionally.

For years we heard that moderate drinking might be good for you, maybe even protective for the heart. But newer, higher-quality studies tell a very different story. What seemed like “benefits” often came from healthier, more affluent people being compared to less healthy non-drinkers—not from alcohol itself.

Here’s what we now know:

• The World Health Organization makes it clear: there is no safe level of alcohol use when it comes to health risks, especially cancer (WHO source
  ).
• Harvard researchers also confirm that even light to moderate drinking increases risk of several cancers and may shorten life expectancy (Harvard source).

In this episode, I break down:

• Why even “a glass of wine a day” isn’t harmless.
• The link between alcohol, cancer, brain health, and sleep.
• My own reflections on cultural drinking habits in Finland and Italy.
• Practical ways to be more intentional—like swapping in alcohol-free options or making social drinking the exception, not the norm.

👉 I encourage you to reflect on your own relationship with alcohol. Try reducing or even better skipping it for a month and notice what changes. You´ll be surprised how your sleep, energy, mood and even cravings are improving.

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Thank you so much for listening and if you have any questions or topics you would like me to answer, feel free to email me turo@fitmitturo.com