What You Need to Know About Alcohol Intake and Weight Gain

Alexandra understands addiction from both familial and personal standpoints, as she is active in her own recovery. Alexandra is a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend and has learned the value of recovery and succeeding in whatever she sets her mind to. Her innovative approach as Director of Operations gives her clients a safe and compassionate place at The Freedom Center to begin their recovery journey. Her experience in behavioral health training, program development, and organizational leadership lead her to pursue a certification as a Project Management Professional in 2018. If you’re taking an antidepressant, it’s important to understand the risks of combining alcohol with this medication.

why does alcohol make you gain weight

Alongside weight, excess alcohol consumption can lead to liver disease and other chronic health conditions like type 2 diabetes. By cutting back on binge drinking, you could inadvertently lose weight to achieve a lower body mass index without making any other changes to your lifestyle. Second does alcohol make you gain weight Nature uses science to help you make healthy choices, ensuring they stick in the long run. Join the 150,000 people on a Second Nature journey today by taking our quiz. We use your quiz answers to tailor our advice and support on the programme, to ensure you lose weight and keep it off.

Reasons Alcohol Makes You Fat

Alcohol only contains what’s referred to as “empty calories.” This means that while alcohol is an energy source, it doesn’t provide many nutrients. Our website services, content, and products are for informational purposes only. Healthline Media does not provide https://ecosoberhouse.com/ medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Weight loss patches are supposed to be quick, easy ways to lose weight. Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations.

  • “In fact, individuals who are dependent on alcohol commonly experience insomnia symptoms,” Maurin said.
  • Menopausal women who take hormone replacement therapy tend to have less of a shift toward more belly fat than those who do not.
  • On average, men consume alcohol 3 times higher than women and they are more likely to be drinking beer which has higher carbohydrates than other alcoholic beverages such as red wine .
  • Buying the single glass bottle of wine is easiest for me until I reset my mind to only have this amount.

So, on the plus side, you might leave behind a great looking corpse. However, the study argues that your metabolism reacts different to alcohol if you train it to handle moderate amounts. So, if you binge-drink or if you have a Bloody Mary once in a blue moon, your body either can’t handle or has no experience with metabolizing the booze, so everything gets converted into fat. It’s no secret that booze—say an icy margarita to wash down some spicy fish tacos—adds extra calories to your meal. But you might be less clear on the other ways alcohol can screw with your diet. See if you can tell fact from fiction in this virtual diet drinking game.

Does alcohol make you gain weight? The Effects of Drinking on Body Composition

If you like bubbles, try a gin and soda with a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Carbonated beer is often paired with pizza or deep-fried wings. Wine is often the drink of choice along with large portions of steak or pasta, and cocktails at happy hour are often accompanied by fried appetizers. If the issue is caused by gastritis, you can get some antibiotics from your doctor as well as some additional medications such as antacids, H2 blockers, as well as proton pump inhibitors.

why does alcohol make you gain weight

Juniper’s Weight Reset Program is designed for long-term weight management, and conducted by a range of medical experts and health coaches. The Weight Reset Program combines breakthrough medication that helps to regulate digestion, decrease appetite and helps to change your relationship with food. While men and women start off with similar fat storage patterns, with age this changes. Men tend to accumulate and store fat around their abdominal region meaning they are more apple-shaped and are prone to developing beer bellies.

Does wine make you bloated?

Beer lovers should opt for light beers with 100 calorie or less, and limit the number they drink per day. Another option is to drink alcohol only on weekends, and to alternate alcoholic drinks with low-calorie, non-alcohol beverages. It’s not necessarily beer but too many calories that can turn your trim waistline into a belly that protrudes over your pants. Any kind of calories — whether from alcohol, sugary beverages, or oversized portions of food — can increase belly fat. However, alcohol does seem to have a particular association with fat in the midsection.

How much does alcohol make you gain weight?

These numbers are significant; alcohol is a very high-calorie product and provides 7 calories per gram. Therefore, alcohol consumption within the government guidelines of up to 14 units per week for men and women can provide almost 3,000 extra calories per week if choosing the highest calorie option.

“Visceral fat is more metabolically active and can be broken down quicker than other fat,” Jensen says, “so it is usually the first to go, especially when you have a lot to lose.” If you’re an alcoholic, drinking excessively will cause you to drop pounds, but in the worst ways possible. However, there is also a BAD way that alcohol can help you lose weight, if you’re less into moderation and more into self-destruction.