I was literally actually thinking of this just the other day. Alcohol now gives me intestinal liquidity, possibly a result of too many years of 3-4 beer a night. And I couldn't figure out how an entire populace raised on the stuff wouldn't have had larger issues with beer than with water. I was thinking there had to be something I was missing about what I was taught (and I was taught it in college).
It's worth noting that beer hasn't exactly had a uniform makeup throughout history. The kind originally made in Mesopotamia and given as rations to soldiers was much more nutritious than the kind we drink recreationally now.
I've been reluctantly repeating this "fact" over the years. Although I've always been concerned about the rampant hangovers and dehydration that would have occurred as a result of drinking so much beer. The fact that this is not a fact makes more sense.
