Happy Hour… Bumps and Bruises

The calories in alcohol can play a significant role in weight management. Calories can add up to increased body fat, so consider these points the next time you have that EXTRA drink:

• Calories in alcohol are used before stored fat calories. WOW!!
• People who are overweight actually gain weight more easily when they drink alcohol. WHAT!!
• Calories from alcohol tend to be stored in the gut. YOU DON’T SAY!!

Beer

12 oz Regular beer: 150 calories

12 oz. Light beer: 100 calories

Wine

4 oz. Dry wine: 100 calories

4 oz. Sweet, dessert wine: 225 calories

Hard Liquor

1 oz. 80 proof gin, rum, vodka, or whiskey: 50 calories

1 oz. 100 proof gin, rum, vodka, or whiskey: 60 calories

1 oz. schnapps: 100 calories

1 oz. crème de menthe: 185 calories

Making the Comparison

• Drinking 5 oz. of a sweet, dessert wine provides as many calories as one plain donut from Dunkin Donuts.
• Binge drinking? You might as well eat an entire Big Mac plus a scoop of chocolate ice cream. The calories are the same as in 5 regular beers.
• Drinking a glass of wine before dinner, one with your meal, and then after dinner equates to the added calories of 2 slices of cheese pizza. Doing the Math One beer every night adds over 1,000 calories per week, which results in an added 15 pounds to your belly every year. Three glasses of dry wine a week will cost you an additional 3 miles on the treadmill to burn off the extra calories. And don’t forget that most people eat high-calorie snacks when they drink alcohol, further adding to the infamous beer belly.