No, it has nothing to do with snow in Winter wonderland. Perhaps you have heard that Scandinavians are heavy drinkers. In general, one in three Norwegians drink alcoholic beverages every week. The rate varies according to the gender. Around 37% of Norwegian men drink alcoholic beverages once or more every week, while 31% of the women do the same.
On Christmas time, they have the habit to exaggerate both in buying gifts and food and alcoholic beverages consumption. That’s why white month has been popular among many citizens. They take the month off from alcoholic beverages.
That’s why every fourth person in Norway have considered taking a white month. Those whom I have met, say that it’s worth it. They feel lighter and sleep better.
Researches show the damages alcoholic drinks can cause to our health. It works as a kind of poison in our body and the most linked effect connected to it is sudden death. Not to mention our behavior. People under effect of alcohol tend to be more violent than if they were sober.
A 31-day-break can do good to one’s body. Reserach from The Blue Cross points out the main benefits of reduced alcohol consumption:
- better immunity
- fewer rates of kidney, heart, brain damages and cancer
- weight reduction
- better memory and concentration skills
- better blood pressure
- skin looks better
- better sleep
- more joy on a daily basis
- reduction in alcohol consumption in the long run
Source: blakors.no
Criminality and alcohol walk hand in hand in every country. On the first week in January 2024, eight women were killed in Norway by their partners or ex-partners. Two of them had contacted the police and asked for help. They even used the violence alarm. That’s an shocking fact, which leads to another discussion. Why haven’t most Norwegian cities implemented the Reverse violence alarm law, which was created in 2013? (Wanna know more? Write in the comments and I’ll make a post about it).
What Norwegian culture and the law say:
Most Norwegian parents avoid drinking in front of the kids. Like, for example, parent’s don’t drink beer nor wine at children’s or teens’ parties. The exception is unfortunately Christmas holidays.
It’s forbidden to walk on the streets of Norway carrying or drinking alcoholic beverages.
The only authorized place to sell wine, vodka and the like is Vinmonopol, a monopoly controlled by the government. You can buy beer at supermarkets, but you need to show id and they sell at reduced hours.
To sum up, I don’t know about you and your health, but I agree with the Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle who lived from 384 B.C.E to 322 B.C.E. He said: “Every virtue is argued to be a mean, or middle ground, between two vices, one of excess and the other of deficiency“. The virtue is in the middle. Don’t you think?