We hear a lot from nutrition experts about limiting our intake of added sugars. And, to our credit, our added sugar consumption has ever so slowly begun to decline. But there’s another very common source of empty calories in our diets that doesn’t receive nearly as much as attention. And the average number of calories we take in from this other, overlooked source has more than doubled over the last twenty years.
What is this stealthy diet wrecker? Alcohol.
In 1991, Americans consumed about 350 calories per week per person in the form of beer, wine, liquor, or mixed drinks. By 2012, it was more than 700 calories per week per person. But perhaps per capita consumption figures aren’t the best way to look at it, because those calories are being averaged across the entire adult population, including those who don’t drink at all.
Although the percentage of adults that drink alcohol has increased slightly, the numbers also show that those who drink are drinking more and more frequently than they used to. The proportion of adults who have a drink on any given day has doubled, from 1 in 8 to 1 in 4. Drinkers now take in an average of 3,000 calories per week in 2012, up from just over 2000 calories per week two decades ago. That means that for regular drinkers, alcoholic beverages may now contribute 15 to 20% of their total calorie intake.
See also: How Many Calories Do You Need?
I’ve talked before about healthy limits for alcohol consumption. One to two drinks per day may confer some mild benefits in terms of reducing inflammation and cardiovascular disease risk. Drinking more than that, however, has no benefits and variety of increased risks. But even for those who are within those guidelines, the extra calories that alcohol contributes may be a separate issue.
Beer Isn't the Only Thing Giving You a Belly
We often forget to account for the calories that we take in from alcohol and how they figure in to our calorie budget. If two glasses of wine a week slowly becomes three, four, or eight, that’s a lot of extra calories being added into the system. (Not to mention the fact that alcohol lowers our restraint, which can lead us to eat more than we otherwise would.)
On the other hand, and if you’re drinking more than you used to and you haven’t gained any weight, that would suggest that you’ve cut back on the calories you get from food to compensate for those extra calories. That’s not necessarily a problem if you’re cutting other empty calories.
If you’re having a beer with dinner instead of a soda, it may be an even trade calorically. But if you’re sometimes replacing your evening meal with a couple of beers and some nacho chips (or a martini and a bowl of nuts), you may be coming out even in terms of calories but falling short on a lot of important nutrients.
Alcoholic Beverages Are Discretionary Calories
If you’ve ever put together a financial budget, maybe you included a line item for discretionary income—some amount of money that you can spend however you want without having to worry about ruining your financial health.
Similarly, I think there’s room in a healthy diet for some discretionary calories without wrecking your nutrition. You might choose to spend your discretionary calories on dessert or an alcoholic beverage or other foods that you enjoy but don’t have much going for them nutritionally. (Of course, you can also choose to spend your discretionary calories on nutritious foods that you happen to love!) But I usually suggest that those discretionary calories—from all sources—add up to no more than 10% of your total calorie intake.
For most people, that’s going to be 150-250 calories. What will 250 calories get you? Two glasses of wine … or one pina colada … or a light beer and a small bag of pretzels … or a bowl of ice cream. But not all of the above.
Can You Save Up Your Discretionary Calories?
Remember when you were a kid and you had to save up your piddly allowance for weeks or months in order to afford something special that you had your eye on? That’s all part of what our care-givers were trying to teach us about money. Sometimes we have to forgo smaller pleasures for a while in order to save up for something more indulgent.
And, to a certain extent, the same is true of calories. Eating a bit less one day can create a little leeway to eat a bit more the next day. In fact, I’ve talked about this before as a potential strategy for weight maintenance.
See also: How to Break a Weight Loss Plateau
However, you’ll want to be pretty careful about doing the same thing with your discretionary calories—especially if sweets and/or alcohol are your indulgences of choice. Although the guidelines for moderate drinking suggest that 7 drinks a week would be reasonable, having 7 drinks in one night is a very bad idea. Similarly, saving up the entire week’s allowance of sweets and eating them at one go is going to put a lot of stress on your system.
Your Thoughts?
I’d love to hear your thoughts and about this topic along with any experiences or insights you‘d like to share. Post them below or on the Nutrition Diva Facebook page.
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