Does Drinking Alcohol Make You Gain Weight?
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In 2018, Corey had the opportunity to partner with Amethyst and USR to open The Freedom Center in his to hometown of Gaithersburg, MD. Throughout his tenure at The Freedom Center, he has strategically built relationship with does alcohol make you gain weight referring providers, hospitals and local government leaders. Corey has continued to grow The Freedom Center brand, educate his local community on Substance Use Disorder and become a pillar of the local recovery community.
She served as a Wellness coordinator at Search for Change, Inc and currently serves as an Independent Practice Coach from 2011 to present. As the Family Nurse Practitioner, Deirdre performs history and physical exams, and works with clients to diagnose and treat dual diagnosis clients. In addition to the title of Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, Kevin is also licensed by the state of Maryland as a Clinical Drug and Alcohol Counselor. He holds a Master of Science degree in Counseling and has over 26 years of experience as a substance use/mental health counselor with the Montgomery County Government. Whether he’s leading groups or providing individual and family therapy, Kevin’s passion for serving those suffering from substance use disorders is always on display. When he’s not busy treating The Freedom Center’s clientele, you might find Kevin engaged in his other passion as an actor/director in the local theater community.
How Much Alcohol Makes You Gain Weight?
It is perfectly fine to enjoy a glass of red wine with a meal, for example. The problem arises when people binge drink, i.e. having 3-4+ glasses of wine or pints of beer at once. So, all these extra calories from the alcohol, the fat, the carbs along with the water weight result in you gaining weight overnight, Pooja adds. Long-term, regular consumption of alcohol, especially in excessive amounts, can cause a condition known as alcoholic fatty liver. Once this condition exists, the liver’s metabolic functions are compromised.
It is highly likely that the paradoxical results seen in studies examining the effect of alcohol on weight gain and obesity are also the product of a multitude of factors beyond the individual’s ingestion habits. Future research must consider the other important factors that may influence the link between alcohol and obesity, some of which are discussed below. However, a clear cause-and-effect association between alcohol intake and weight gain is not apparent based on the mixed and conflicting available evidence on the topic.
Can Exercise Eliminate Your Beer Belly?
In excess, the empty calories of alcoholic drinks can undoubtedly cause weight gain. But alcohol consumption doesn’t intrinsically make you gain weight; rather, it can indirectly influence your body composition by altering appetite, cognition, and insulin sensitivity. However, increased energy intake from alcoholic beverages is not the main reason excessive alcohol results in weight gain. What’s more interesting is the number of ways excessive alcohol affects your weight indirectly. There’s a lack of evidence linking reduced alcohol consumption to weight loss.
Further, when you’re drinking beer at a bar or party, the food on hand is often fattening fare like pizza, wings, and other fried foods. While there’s not a ton of research on alcohol and weight gain, it likely comes down to how much you drink and what types of alcohol and mixers you consume. Keep reading to learn how alcohol can impact your weight and what some low-calorie drink options are for a night out on the town. If you are someone who engages in drinking and want to lose weight, the dietitians will help you find a way to incorporate drinking into your lifestyle without sabotaging weight loss goals. If you are someone who engages in drinking and want to lose weight, our dietitians will help you find a way to incorporate drinking into your lifestyle without sabotaging weight loss goals.
Alcohol Intake and Obesity: Observational Evidence
But, there are several reasons why you feel so heavy and even bloated. Alcohol addiction is a devastating disease that can destroy the lives of those afflicted as well as the lives of their loved ones. Fortunately, however, alcoholism is a condition that can be treated using a comprehensive approach. Consuming too much alcohol results in a myriad of effects, both large and small, on a person’s general health and emotional stability. While we all enjoy a night out every once in a while, there’s a fine line between the occasional indulgence and going overboard.
Beer bellies tend to be more prominent in older people because as you get older, your calorie needs go down, you often become less active, and gaining weight gets easier. Beer also gets the blame because alcohol calories are so easy to overdo. A typical beer has 150 calories – and if you down several in one sitting, you can end up with serious calorie overload.
Some individuals can drink alcohol moderately, and others can’t, which is a reason why dependency and addiction develop. Some people say alcohol consumption causes weight gain, and others say that’s a myth. Some even say drinking alcohol actually causes a decrease in weight. Therefore, the objective of this article is to provide an update on the link between alcohol intake and obesity.
But while alcohol is not exactly a health elixir, when it comes to its impact on weight, it’s not a guilty pleasure we should feel all that guilty about. Before Fong conducted research into this topic, she would advise those she worked with as a dietitian to cut calories by moderating their alcohol intake. “Would I do that now, having done all this work on the evidence? https://ecosoberhouse.com/ I think I still would because it still could have other benefits, with a bonus being weight loss,” she says. If you want to enjoy a drink but limit your alcohol intake, try subbing in some of our favorite nonalcoholic drinks and spirits, several of which are low-calorie or low-sugar. Alcohol may have various effects on your health that link to weight gain.