Men need to meet up with friends twice a week for a brew (or a brawl) to stay healthy: U.K. study
What do one of the oldest beer companies in the world and an Oxford professor of psychology have in common? They both think men need more time together. Drinking beer. And playing sports.
That’s right, gents, put down your phones, shut your laptops and grab a pint with your buddies at the local pub, because science says your health may depend on it.
Men need a minimum of two guys nights a week to maintain good health, and it’s a scientific fact, at least according to new research from a U.K. psychologist.
Robin Dunbar (infamous for “the Dunbar Number” and his work on friendships), director of Oxford University’s social and evolutionary neuroscience research group, is very specific with his prescription: Men must physically meet with four friends, two times a week, in order to reap the benefits of male friendship. Those benefits, in addition to general health, include faster recovery times when faced with illnesses, and even higher levels of generosity.
Dunbar goes so far as to recommend guys “do stuff” while they socialize. In addition to drinking beer and laughing together, men should try to choose to play a number of team sports. “Bonds can be formed through a range of activities from team sports to male banter — or simply having a pint with your pals on a Friday night,” he said in the report.
Too busy with their day-to-day lives, one in three men in the U.K. can’t find the time to meet once a week, and 40% of men are only able to make a “guys’ night” a weekly affair. Despite spending 20% of their day interacting through other means (all of which can be done on a smartphone), men need to meet face to face to keep their broships strong, Dunbar suggests.
Led by the same researcher that suggested individuals max out at 150 real relationships (despite social media friend counts that often reach much higher than that), this study shows men to have an inner circle of only a handful of guys. If the group gets too big, laughter is less likely, as are the endorphins released by happy interactions, which are said to be responsible for the health benefits of this male bonding time.
Guinness, the makers of the famous Irish stout and stewards of dozens of other worldwide beer brands, commissioned the research, which in turn, not surprisingly, recommends the benefits of drinking a pint or two with the lads.
“When guys get together physically and more frequently with their mates,” Stephen O’Kelly, a spokesperson for Guinness told Daily Mail in the U.K., “their friendships become stronger, better and a richer life results.”
Shall we bond, thy brothers?
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) , she recognized it was MY trip, not OURS - that being said I didn't sacrifice any trips with her last year so we still got our trip in. 
