"Der Landsknecht" Hendrik Terbrugghen (1587-1629) Alte Pinakothek, Munich, Germany

Wine and beer are viewed by many cultures as a healthy component of a general diet. Drinking "raw" water poses a health risk in many regions of the world. Contaminated beer and wine are easily detected by their taste. This "fear of water" finds an expression in "pyvo, pyty" for drink or potable, which in Ukrainian also means beer (beber, bebe in Spanish stands for to drink and baby). In many cultures, beer was prescribed to breastfeeding women.