Archive - February 7, 2014

I hate to begrudge someone a cocktail but for weight loss purposes it just isn’t optimal.  Alcohol carries 7 calories per gram.  That’s a lot higher than 4 calories per gram that’s in a carbohydrate and protein.  Furthermore, unlike the carbohydrate and protein the 7 grams that’s in each gram of alcohol are empty calories; it contains no nutrition.  

When we consume alcohol our body turns it into acetate to burn off as energy however while the body is busy burning acetate for fuel it puts all the carbs, proteins and fats that we’ve ingested on the back burner leaving it to store in our body as fat and the more alcohol ingested the longer it takes to metabolize.  The body can only process about .5 to 1 oz of alcohol per hour.  Plus if you drink high calorie drinks like margaritas or sugary drinks like mojitos, bailey’s and alcohol with juice etc you are getting all of the empty sugar and carbs as well.  

Just drink in moderation and try to stick to spirits with seltzers and squeeze lemon/lime or drink red wine.  It’s considered heart healthy when used in moderation.  Red wine has resveratrol and antioxidants that may help prevent heart disease by increasing levels of good cholesterol and protecting against artery damage.

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