With so much health information surrounding the dos and don’ts, messages about drinking alcohol can get as mixed up as your favourite cocktail. There’s no doubt that alcohol in excess can lead to problems, not only health but personal and family ones as well. On the other hand you’ve probably heard about the positive research linking antioxidants in red wine and heart disease protection, especially in the French. The big question is how does moderate drinking affect your healthy weight goals? Here’s what you need to know about drinking and dieting.

How fattening are alcoholic drinks?

As alcoholic drinks like beer and wine are fat-free you wouldn’t be the first person to think that they are not too fattening. Unfortunately when you compare the kilojoule content of a gram of alcohol with a gram of fat or carbohydrate, the truth shines through. Fat contains 37 kilojoules per gram, carbohydrate contains 16 kilojoules per gram and alcohol is placed in between with a surprising 29 kilojoules per gram. In fact a small glass of white wine (160mL) has approximately 500 kilojoules or 120 calories. This is higher in kilojoules than a Tim Tam!

As the alcohol content of drinks increase, so does the kilojoule value. On average a jigger (60mL) of brandy, rum, whisky, gin, vodka, or scotch contains 550 kilojoules or 132 calories. And when you start mixing your drinks you can mix in added sugar, fat and kilojoules too. Ingredients like juice, soft drinks, sugar and cream add to the count, with a Brandy Alexander scoring a whopping 1500 kilojoules per cocktail. Plus premix cocktails and bottles (like coolers, breezers, cruisers and ruskis) as well as liqueurs are also riding high.

When trying to lose weight, should you cut out all alcoholic drinks?

The key with drinking and dieting is to get to know and appreciate your own tastes. As they are high in kilojoules, alcoholic drinks will make a mark on your daily kilojoule allowance. However, there’s no need to cut them out completely. If you can’t live (or get started) without a pre-dinner glass of bubbly or a crisp white with dinner, that’s fine. Just look for other ways to compensate on "drinking days", such as skipping dessert, going for a ‘lite’ dinner like grilled fish and salad or an extra exercise session.

The main problem with drinking and dieting is self discipline. Alcohol is a known appetite stimulant and for some people it only takes one drink for good judgment to start to blur. You may plan to only have one drink at the party (and you may even stick to this), but you’re more likely to snack on the party food than if you’d abstained. Chances are you may even decide to throw caution to the wind, as you throw your car keys to a friend, and decide to party on. If you’re celebrating a big event, cheers! If this pattern happens every Friday night, you may want to curb things a bit and be kind to your weight loss goals (and health). Aim to arrive well satisfied following a healthy meal, space your drinks with sparkling mineral water or diet soft drink, and go for lower kilojoule alcoholic choices (see table).

Best of the bar bunch – lower kilojoule choices

Message on metabolism

Just like your choice of drink, alcohol metabolism is a very personal thing. There are actually three possible pathways in the human body for metabolism with the average rate being about 5g of ethanol or ½ a standard drink per hour. Women are generally slower at metabolising alcohol for a number of reasons, including relatively smaller livers and the lower levels of enzymes that start the break down process. The most important thing for dieters to consider is that alcohol promotes fat storage particularly in the abdomen area and lessens the body’s ability to burn fat.

Drinking guidelines

The general guidelines for all people are that women should have no more than two standard drinks per day and men, due to more efficient metabolism, can have up to four. At least two days per week should be alcohol free. A standard drink contains 10g of alcohol and equates to roughly one nip of spirits, a small glass of wine or a can of low-alcohol beer.

Hangover Helper

Finally a little tip from inside sports nutrition circles. The main thing your body is crying out for after a big night out is hydration. Coffee won’t cut it. The hair of the dog can dehydrate you more. B vitamins and Berocca won’t give instant relief. And a big fry up is really going to sabotage your weight loss goals. What’s best? Sports drinks. They have the right balance of carbohydrate (4-8%) and electrolytes for rapid rehydration.