What about Alcohol?

Does drinking too much alcohol make you fat?
The short answer is yes.

Think of alcohol as a carbohydrate not a fluid and remember that it’s not just the alcohol itself that may be causing the problem but the things often associated with drinking too much – i.e. overeating the wrong foods, social smoking and not feeling well enough to exercise.

Alcohol consumption not only lessens your inhibitions around food but also stimulates your appetite. It also depletes your blood glucose which is a vital energy source for your brain.If you have ever wondered why you crave foods like hamburgers, bacon, fried eggs, grilled cheese, hot chips and sugary sports drinks after a night out, it is because your blood glucose levels are low.What’s more, research shows that alcohol cannot be stored as energy. This means the alcohol burns off first, then the mixer you have with the alcohol. Only then does your body attempt to burn off the food you’ve eaten with the alcohol – or, more likely, stores it as fat. Alcoholic beverages such as RTDs - ready to drink ‘alcopops’ - and cocktails are the worst offenders. A White Russian cocktail has the energy equivalent of a bowl of nachos and a premixed vodka drink about the energy of a 6 inch roast beef Subway sandwich. 

Now alcohol is not all bad. Studies have linked moderate alcohol intake to a lower risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes and dementia. But binge drinking ages the body, deprives it of nutrients, damages the liver, increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, some cancers including breast cancer, diabetes and dementia and makes you fat.
Excess alcohol can also damage your brain. Remember alcohol is a dehydrator and our brains are 95% water. Think about people that you know that drink too much. How do they look? How do they act? How healthy are they?

So how much alcohol is safe to drink?
There is no such thing as a safe level of drinking that fits everyone, all the time, as you need to factor in your age, weight and overall health.In general, women should drink no more that two glasses of alcohol a day – with studies indicating that pregnant women should abstain from alcohol completely - and men four glasses a day. For women that is a maximum of 14 drinks a week and definitely no more than four drinks in any one day. On social occasions where you’re expected to have a glass in your hand, the best thing to do is have a drink of water between alcoholic drinks. This helps avoid the weight gain and goes a long way to making sure you do not overindulge and suffer a hangover the next day. Make the glass of water look more appealing by having a wedge of lemon or lime with it along with ice and a straw.

Here are some facts on alcohol:

• Alcohol is the leading cause of poisonings requiring hospital admission in Auckland, New Zealand.
• Women are biologically more susceptible to the effects of alcohol than men. This is because they generally have more body fat and less body water, which impacts on their ability to metabolise alcohol. The enzyme dehydrogenase, which helps break alcohol down, is less active in women.
• Drinking alcohol during pregnancy is the leading preventable cause of birth defects and neurological damage in children.
• As few as five drinks a week can inhibit female fertility.
• Adolescent girls are more likely to drink because of peer pressure.
• Women find it harder to admit to a drinking problem than men. They are more likely to try to match male drinking patterns.

As with most things in life, moderation is the key to your alcohol consumption. There is nothing wrong with a few drinks, it’s the few too many that are the problem.

On those nights when you do overindulge your Figure 8 bodychain will certainly get tight and let you know it is time to stop or at least ease up a bit. You want to stay looking as fabulous as you can and be as healthy as you can for as long as you can don’t you? At the end of the day it is up to you - luckily you now have your Figure 8 bodychain to help you along the way just one link at a time.

For more information on sensible drinking go to the Alcohol Advisory Council of NZ’s