Tuesday Tips: Alcohol Truths 🍷
I covered carbs last week so here are a few facts and truths about alcohol and its impact on the body.
# Beneficial?
Alcohol intake in moderation has been claimed to have health benefits e.g. red wine consumption and heart disease. However this largely depends on the individual and their health status. ‘Moderation’ is also interpreted differently by everyone which makes it a hard claim to justify – what does moderation actually entail in real terms? Whilst some studies do show that there may be some protective effects from low levels of alcohol consumption for some diseases, as the WHO states, the potential risk reduction for some diseases is outweighed by the increased risk of cancers linked to alcohol consumption.
# It aids sleep?
Although alcohol may help us get to sleep as it is a sedative, it doesn’t allow good quality sleep and actually disrupts sleep. This is mainly due to aldehydes and ketone production during its’ processing in the body.
# Muscle impact
Alcohol intake reduces anabolic signaling (i.e. it reduces muscle growth) and inhibits muscle recovery. Whilst a couple of drinks won’t have a massive impact over the long term it can affect muscle growth so if that’s a fitness goal then you’d be wise to reduce consumption.
# Performance
I think everyone knows that alcohol consumption impacts performance – both during and the next day. Alcohol intake dehydrates, impairs glycogen metabolism and disrupts cognitive and neurological function so impacts both physical and mental performance.
# Binge drinking
Binge drinking is classified as more than 4-5 units of alcohol in a single sitting (women 4 drinks, Men 5). That’s not actually a huge amount for many people and would probably mean many social occasions would be classified as ‘binge drinking’ when perhaps you viewed them as ‘moderate’ . So once again the term ‘moderation’ actually constitutes far less alcohol consumption than we realise.
# Weight loss
When it comes to weight loss the main issues with alcohol consumption are the additional calories (7 cals per gram) and the decisions we make around food when under the influence or hung over the next day. If you can opt for lighter calorie and/or smaller drinks and make goal-orientated food decisions when consuming alcohol, there is no reason you can’t include it in your diet and lose weight but it does require an awareness of the impact it could have .
Happy Tuesday 🤗xx
Every Step Fitness 