Alcohol and Diet

Alcohol consumption is considered part of our diet and can impact human systems in various ways. The first thing to consider with consuming alcohol is that it affects every system in our body! Even with the smallest amounts. But when you consider heavier drinking it can have even bigger impacts on our body including

• Affecting the pathways our brain uses to process information
• Causing liver problems such as inflammation and eventually liver disease
• Heart beat irregularities
• Certain types of cancers

Another consideration when consuming alcohol is the calorie content of drinks. On the most basic scale, alcohol contains 7 calories per gram. Thus providing calories without any nutrients. More practically, about 12-ounces of beer contains about 150 calories, 4-ounces of wine contains about 70 calories, and 1-ounce 80 proof liquor contains about 65 calories. If you are going to drink alcohol, realize that it does provide calories without providing other nutrients. So drink in moderation for calories sake to avoid extra calories. 

How much alcohol is too much alcohol? Our bodies can metabolize one drink per hour (on average). One drink is classified as 12-ounces of beer, 4-5 ounces of wine, and 1.5-ounces of 80 proof liquor. Keep this one drink rule in mind while consuming alcohol. Also, keep in mind that binge drinking is classified as having 4 or more drinks within 2 hours. Binge drinking can have even more serious consequences including more impaired judgement and health consequences such as alcohol poisoning.

So if deciding to drink, be smart about it. Fit it into your daily calorie requirements, plan ahead and make decisions about how much to drink before starting to drink, and remember that drinking impairs every body system including your judgment.