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Alcohol Abuse and Nutrition

A healthy diet is important for everyone, but especially for those who drink alcohol regularly and/or in large amounts. Heavy users of alcohol may have different nutritional needs than the average person. Heavy drinkers may gain weight from their alcohol intake or may need extra vitamins and minerals. A registered dietitian can evaluate the diet to see if the heavy drinker is subject to nutritional problems related to alcohol intake.

Too much alcohol can affect the body in many ways. Those who are heavy drinkers often have poor diets; so, they may replace healthy foods with alcohol, which contains almost no nutrients. Alcohol also can affect the way your body breaks down food and absorbs nutrients. For those reasons, heavy drinkers might be low in vitamins A, D, E, and K, B vitamins, calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc. In addition, too much alcohol over many years can cause serious diseases, such as cirrhosis of the liver, problems in the digestive tract, and even some cancers, all of which can affect your weight, health status, and nutritional needs.

Alcohol intake

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans encourages moderation in alcohol intake, which is defined as no more than one drink/day for women and no more than two drinks/day for men. A drink is defined as something containing about 14 grams (g) of alcohol, and is equal to 12 fluid ounces (fl oz) of regular beer, 5 fl oz of wine, 1½ fl oz of distilled spirits (80 proof), and 10 fl oz of wine cooler. However, the following individuals are advised to avoid alcohol completely:

Calories of different alcoholic beverages

The calories for different alcoholic drinks vary, and anytime you mix spirits with a juice, soda, or other mixer you will increase the caloric content of your drink. A regular beer (12 fl oz, can or bottle) contains roughly 140 calories, a light beer 90-110 calories, 4 fl oz of wine around 100-110 calories, and 1½ fl oz of distilled spirits around 100 calories. Mixed drinks, depending on the mixer, can contain 250 calories and up to 550 calories for sweet drinks. It is easy to see why drinking a few drinks each day can add up to many extra calories and possibly weight gain.

Weight gain

Some experts think that when you drink extra calories from alcohol you will not gain weight. Some believe this is true for alcoholics, but not for individuals who drink moderately. If you drink moderately and as a result take in more calories than your body needs each day, you will most likely gain weight.

Health benefits from drinking alcohol

Some studies show that one to two drinks/day may have some health benefits, including possibly lowering blood pressure and reducing risk for heart disease. Because alcohol has so many potential negative side effects, most health care professionals will not recommend that nondrinkers drink to receive the potential health benefits of alcohol. Talk to your doctor or registered dietitian about whether moderate alcohol intake might benefit your health.

References

American Dietetic Association. ADA Nutrition Care Manual.
Available online to subscribers at: www.nutritioncaremanual.org.

Leiber CS. Relationships Between Nutrition, Alcohol Use, and Liver Disease.
Available at: http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh27-3/220-231.htm.

National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Alcohol Alert: Alcohol and Nutrition.
Available at: http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa22.htm.

US Dept of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2005.
Available at: www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines.

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, McKinley Health Center. Alcohol and Nutrition: 101.
Available at: http://www.mckinley.uiuc.edu/Handouts/alcohol_nutrit_101.html.

Posted 4/03/09