All About Wine And Its Goodness!

Many people want to know if Absinthe has any effect on the body and what are the physical effects of Absinthe? A number of people have never tried Absinthe as it was banned in the 1900s and was illegal for decades.

Absinthe is an anise flavored distilled alcoholic drink produced from a wine base and flavored with herbs. The distillation of Absinthe is done with three main herbs known as common wormwood (Artemisia Absinthium), aniseed and fennel.

Dr Pierre Ordinaire, in Couvet, Switzerland in the 18th century produced Absinthe. It was prepared by him as a medicine for his patients. Absinthe was made in Couvet and then in Pontarlier, France by Henri-Louis Pernod.

Absinthe became a very famous drink and was used to treat malaria by French soldiers. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries it became the most popular drink in France. Along with France Absinthe became well known in several other countries.

Absinthe was served with apparel such as a special Absinthe glass, a slotted Absinthe spoon and an Absinthe fountain or carafe of iced water. It was not generally served straight but, instead, diluted with a sugar and water solution.

By going through an article from “Sweat” magazine “Battle Cry” one can know how the medical profession in France were worried about Absinthism that was caused by prolonged Absinthe drinking. Doctors claimed that it was far worse than normal alcoholism and had the following symptoms:-

Initial Symptoms after consuming Absinthe:-

- A feeling of exhilaration
– Hallucinations
– One can have restless nights with terrible nightmares
– A person can suffer from nausea and vomiting
– Trembling
– Dizziness

Symptoms of long term Absinthe abuse:-

- Frothing and convulsions
– Delirium
– Problems of hypersensitivity to pain
– There can be loss of libido
– Feeling of hot and cold
– Insanity
– Paralysis
– Death

The French Academy of Medicine asked that Absinthe be forbidden in 1900 but their pleas were ignored. The governments took action against it because in 1905 a family was killed by an Absinthe drinker in Switzerland. At different periods of time Absinthe was banned in Switzerland, Italy and in France.

Thujone was found to be responsible for Absinthe’s physical effects. People thought about thujone that it was a psychoactive, a neurotoxin and also active on the GABA receptors in the brain. People had compared it with THC in the drug cannabis.

However, recent research with traditional pre ban Absinthe recipesand gas chromatography  tests on vintage bottles of original Absinthe have all shown that, contrary to belief, Absinthe only contained a maximum of 6mg of thujone rather than 350mg which is what people believed it contained. One had never find this amount of thujone near a harmful level.

Many now believe that Absinthe was unfairly blamed and that Absintheis no more dangerous than any other strong liquor. As it has a high ABV in comparison to other spirits so one should consume it with care and in moderation.

There are various physical effects of Absinthe today?

Most believe that Absinthe has no physical effects like causing hallucinations but those who consume bottled Absinthes, or stronger Absinthes made using kits like those available from AbsintheKit.To know about a “clear headed” or “lucid” drunkenness go to AbsintheKit.com. This may occur because of blend of herbs in Absinthe. There are some herbs which act as stimulants and others as sedatives.

Different physical effects of Absinthe? A feeling of pleasure and enjoyment and perhaps a clear headed drunkenness.

 

 

 

Tags: Absinthe Recipes, Absinthe spoon, Symptoms of consuming Absinthe

This entry was posted on Monday, December 21st, 2009 at 6:07 pm and is filed under food and wine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.