The France 3 report from 1975 had a hydration tip which is a hallmark of its era, it seems. The report recommends drinking a litre and a half of beer to stave off sunstroke and, as you can expect, pops up on social media every time there’s a heat wave.
The France 3 - or rather, FR3 Nord Picardie - report, preserved by the French National Audiovisual Institute (INA) - recommends ditching water completely and instead opting for the cool, refreshing taste of beer. It is certainly true that cracking open a cold one with the lads may feel refreshing, but does it actually leave you hydrated?
According to the dated report, France’s national defence committee against alcoholism claimed that people can drink ‘1.5 litres of beer (per day) without any health issues.’ We can doubt the veracity of that claim another day, but the report goes on to interview pub dwellers, happily saying that ‘the moment it’s warm, it’s time to drink beer’ regardless of the time. The journalist estimates that each resident in the North of France drinks 120 litres of beer per year, with a delivery man adding ‘babies included!’.
However much people sharing the video on social media might want to hop on board the beer train, alcohol actually leaves you more dehydrated in a heat wave. The report did get one thing right, though - beer isn’t necessarily bad for your health, provided you don’t exaggerate.
