Alcohol Update

The latest Australian guidelines to alcohol consumption are based on ‘standard drinks’. Standard drinks are a simple and effective way of keeping track of how much alcohol you’re consuming.  The safe alcohol consumption guidelines are:

• For men and women, a maximum of two standard drinks a day
• Drink no more than four standard drinks on a single occasion

If you want to lose weight however, or if your triglyceride levels are high, you have poor glucose control or high blood pressure; try to drink alcohol on special occasions only. When alcohol is consumed, our bodies use this nutrient firstly as the fuel source, causing other nutrients (fat, carbohydrates and protein) to be stored.

A standard drink is any drink containing 10 grams of pure alcohol. Different alcoholic drinks contain different numbers of standard drinks as demonstrated in the figure below:

Alcohol and health

• Weight gain Alcoholic drinks are usually high in energy (1 gram of alcohol = 7 calories) contain few vitamins or minerals and can contribute to weight gain
• Hypoglycemia (low blood glucose levels) Alcohol in large amounts, and particularly when consumed on an empty stomach, stops the liver from releasing glucose. This may cause hypoglycemia, therefore it is important that when you are drinking, to drink with a carbohydrate-based meal or snack, such as bread or fruit
• Raised triglyceride levels Alcohol can increase the levels of triglycerides (a type of ‘bad’ fat) in your blood. High triglyceride levels increase your risk of heart disease. When you have raised triglyceride levels, you’re good (HDL) cholesterol is often too low, which is unhealthy
• Impaired judgment Impaired judgment can lead to less recognition; therefore you are less likely to make healthy food choices
• Others Other affects of alcohol include toxic effects on your organs, and hypertension

Are there any benefits from drinking alcohol?

Some research has suggested that there may be a cardiovascular benefit from drinking moderate amounts of alcohol, particularly red wine. If you do not already drink alcohol, it is not recommended that you start for this reason. 

Tips for sensible drinking

• Use plain soda, mineral water or low joule tonic water as mixer
• Go for the ‘low energy’ content drinks rather than the higher ones
• Count how many standard drinks you have, as the numbers add up over a long evening out
• Skip salty foods like chips and salted nuts when you’re out, which make you thirsty (and wanting more to drink!)
• The best drink to quench your thirst and is GREAT for your waist line is simply water
• Drink slowly from a small glass and have a glass of water as a ‘spacer’ between your alcoholic drinks

Reduce your risk

The Australian Government has recently put together a report addressing national guidelines for alcohol consumption, which can be viewed by clicking on the link below:

http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/file/publications/synopses/ds10-alcohol.pdf

References

Alcohol and Weight Loss

At the Wesley Weight Management Clinic we're often asked if drinking alcohol can hinder weight loss. Here's our answer:

To lose weight, you will probably need to moderate your alcohol consumption. We don't want to demonise alcohol (or any other food or drink) - we're strong believers in the saying "all things in moderation" and you still need to go out and enjoy yourself when you are losing weight. But it's important that you appreciate that drinking alcohol will hinder your weight loss efforts.

Alcohol is High in Calories

Alcohol contains 70 calories per serve. To put this into perspective, the following meals contain the same number of calories as three standard drinks:

- 100g lean pork/steak/chicken breast + 2 cups of salad
- 1 x 95g can tuna (98% fat free) + 4 Vita Wheat crackers
- 1 Weight Watchers Beef Burgundy frozen meal + 2 cups of vegetables

These meals provide important nutrients, vitamins and minerals, which can't be said for alcohol: alcohol calories are 'empty calories', or energy without any substantial vitamins or minerals. Additionally, alcohol may directly promote fat storage by slowing fat and carbohydrate digestion and increasing appetite (1).

If you were on a 1500 Calorie a day meal plan during weight loss and chose to consume 500 of these calories from alcohol (approximately 4 x 375mL cans of regular beer), you would need to provide all your essential nutrients from the remaining 1000 Calories. This may be difficult; and it's possible that nutritional deficiencies may occur over time.

And if you consumed 1500 Calories of food per day plus 500 Calories of alcohol per week (approximately 4 x 375mL cans of regular beer), you might gain 5kg of weight per year!

Can Alcohol be Beneficial to My Health?

The risks of consuming alcohol far outweigh any possible benefits. There are health benefits from drinking alcohol, but these can be obtained by drinking as little as half a standard drink per day (2).

How much Alcohol is Safe to Consume?

The Australian Alcohol Guidelines have recently been updated (3) and consist of four recommendations:

1. For healthy men and women, drinking no more than two standard drinks on any day reduces the lifetime risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury (note that it is no longer considered safe for men to drink four standard drinks per day).
2. For healthy men and women, drinking no more than four standard drinks on a single occasion reduces the risk of alcohol-related injury arising from that occasion.
3. For children and young people under 18 years of age, not drinking alcohol is the safest option. 4. For women who are breastfeeding, pregnant or planning a pregnancy; not drinking is the safest option.

What is a Standard Drink?

See the image to the right. Note that there is no standard glass size used in Australia: you will often be served more than one standard drink.

How can I Reduce My Alcohol Intake?

Try the following practical tips for reducing your alcohol intake:

- Eat before you drink alcohol: food fills you up, slowing your drinking pace and possibly slowing your absorption of alcohol
- Drink water or a diet soft drink before drinking any alcohol and avoid salty foods while you are consuming alcohol
- Sip alcohol slowly and put your glass down between sips
- Intersperse your alcoholic drinks with non alcoholic drinks such as water or diet soft drinks
- Dilute wine with ice, water, juice or natural mineral water; dilute beer with diet lemonade or soda water and mix spirits with diet soft drinks or soda water
- Choose light beer over full strength
- Don't let other people 'top up' your glass: be more assertive and do not to let peer pressure make you drink more than you want to
- Avoid 'shouts' or get a glass of water when it's your turn to buy a round
- Volunteer to be the designated driver to avoid peer pressure to drink.

So go easy on the alcohol when you are trying to lose weight and you'll reap the rewards.

References:
1.National Health and Medical Research Council (2003), Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults Commonwealth of Australia
2.Lewis S, Campbell S, Proudfoot E et al (2008) Alcohol as a Cause of Cancer, Cancer Institute NSW, Sydney
3.National Health and Medical Research Council (2009) 'Australian guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcohol' Commonwealth of Australia