[kaysions]

Our administrator Tril posted this awhile back: "fat metabolism happens in the liver... if it's "busy" dealing with alcohol or tylenol your fat loss will suffer. That's why alcohol effects wt loss so much. When the liver is processing alcohol that's all it's doing. No fat loss can happen. I hate putting wt loss on pause... if I remind myself of that, it's much easier to not have that glass of wine.

This advice seems sound enough though I'm left wondering how long the liver is tied up processing the alcohol from one or two glasses of wine? Assuming you're not draining an entire bottle by yourself it would seem that a normal healthy person should metabolize the alcohol of a glass of wine in about an hour. I realize that certainly is one less hour to process fat but it shouldn't mean that the good work of the whole day is wiped out should it

[BipiewExifese]

Alcohol on a Low Carb Diet


"Candy Is Dandy; But Liquor Is Quicker!"
- Ogden Nash


Is drinking alcohol healthy or even advisable on a low-carbohydrate diet? Boy, do we hear *that* question a lot. It comes up more at the holidays and during the dawn of the Summer months - people want beer with their Barbeques; a glass of wine with their light Summer meals.

So we're going to try and answer your questions, but the caveat here is a big one - and an obvious one. Everyone is different. Different people will react differently to alcohol (and some of those will be able to incorporate wine but not beer, or vodka, but not wine.) It's a personal decision that weighs preference and sociability against health, weight loss, and progress. So read the facts, and decide.



Is Drinking Alcohol Healthy... period?

This controversial question has been addressed by dozens of studies over the years. One of the latest appeared in the September 19, 2000 edition of the Annals of Internal Medicine. This study found that drinking small amounts of alcohol was beneficial and that wine had a beneficial effect on both heart disease and cancer not seen for beer or liquor.

Over 24,000 men and women in Copenhagen, Denmark began participating in health studies from 1964 through 1976 and were followed until 1995 for this analysis. Almost 5,000 of these people died during that time. Light drinking (a drink a day or less) was associated with a 10% reduction in mortality while heavy drinking (five or more drinks daily) was associated with a 10% increase in death.

But what does this mean to you? Well, it might mean nothing at all. Not one of the participants was on a structured diet of any sort (let alone low-carb) and none had other habits taken into account (such as weight, smoking, etc.) So while we are likely to continue to see anecdotal evidence and small-study evidence of the benefits of drinking, their validity - especially where low-carbers are concerned will stay up in the air for the time being.

Our concern here, is to look at how drinking alcohol will affect our diet regime - our weight loss progress, our cravings, and our well-being.

To understand that relation, let's look at what a few of the low-carb gurus have to say on the subject (and if you're hoping they'll all agree... well, just keep hoping...)




Robert C. Atkins - the Granddaddy of them all:



"Here's the problem with all alcoholic beverages, and the reason I recommend refraining from alcohol consumption on the diet. Alcohol, whenever taken in, is the first fuel to burn. While that's going on, your body will not burn fat. This does not stop the weight loss, it simply postpones it, since the alcohol does not store as glycogen, you immediately go back into ketosis/lipolysis after the alcohol is used up.

If you must drink alcohol, wine is an acceptable addition to levels beyond the Induction diet. If wine does not suit your taste, straight liquor such as scotch, rye, vodka, and gin would be appropriate, as long as the mixer is sugarless; this means no juice, tonic water; or non-diet soda. Seltzer and diet soda are appropriate."




Drs. Michael R. and Mary Dan Eades (Protein Power)

"Can I drink alcohol on the Protein Power Plan?"

"Yes, you can! But, like with everything else, you are limited by your Carbohydrate Maximum. Dry white or red wine (3 oz.) or Miller Lite beer (12 oz.) will cost you 3 or 4 effective carb grams, but are still reasonable choices as long as you count them in your daily totals. Hard liquor will cost you a lot of empty calories. Take it easy and count those carbs! Wine-in moderation-can even help improve insulin sensitivity."




Ray Audette - Author of "NeanderThin":

"Don't Drink Alcohol"



"It is best not to consume alcohol in any amount from any source. Alcohol is a by-product of yeast digestion (the yeast equivalent of urine) and is known to damage the stomach, kidneys, and liver. Alcohol adds fat principally by producing cravings for both itself and other carbohydrates (see snack trays at any bar) and even other addictive substances (ask any former smoker.) It is almost impossible to drink alcohol and follow the hunter-gatherer lifestyle. If you must drink, do so only on special occasions (once or twice a year) and stick to alcohols derived from fruit (wine and champagne.) Be aware, however, that once you have been on the NeanderThin program for any length of time, drinking any form of alcohol could make you queasy. It is best to avoid alcohol altogether."





Okay, I could go on quoting diet doctors and authors, but I think you get the idea - they don't agree. So it will be up to you to decide how they affect YOU, YOUR weight loss, YOUR well-being, and YOUR cravings.

My personal experience has been that when I drink more often than a drink or two per month, my weight loss stalls. It's also my experience that I have sugar cravings the next day that I must deal with and my hunger levels are increased.

So weigh the pros and cons for yourself. But just in case you haven't thought of them, here's a list of "sobering" facts about alcohol that you might want to be armed with when making your decisions:

• Alcohol depletes many nutrients, particularly zinc and magnesium.
• Alcohol can increase the production of free radicals in the body. (Free radicals are known to be the fertile ground from which cancer springs.)
• Alcohol can damage the liver - often seriously.
• Alcohol damages the brain. Not just an off-hand statement. When alcohol is consumed, brain cells expire - just like with a "puff" of a cigarette.
• When pregnant women consume alcohol, low-birth-weight babies with lower IQs often result.
• Alcohol impairs functioning of the digestive tract.

The "Bottom Line" comes from Robert Crayhon, one of the most brilliant nutritionists I've ever known:

"Optimal nutrition is about isolating the good elements in food and getting more of those. It is also about avoiding harmful, toxic substances. Alcohol, even red wine, has some of both. If you want to be optimally healthy, you only want to accentuate the positive. You don't want to set your house on fire and turn on your sprinkler system at the same time.



Don't drink alcohol if you are doing it for health benefits. There are less toxic ways to get the benefits of the antioxidants, polyphenols, and other substances found in red wine. Fruits, vegetables, garlic, spices and herbs and supplements can give you just as much antioxidant benefit if not more. If you are interested in the protective effects of red wine polyphenols, they are available in supplement form. Alcohol's nutrient depleting effect is not what a poorly nourished society needs. Its liver weakening properties are also not needed in a country where the liver is nearly overwhelmed with all of the toxins in our environment.

Can you drink alcohol every now and then and be healthy? Yes. An occasional glass of red wine is not going to do that much damage, and does offer some benefits. If it gives you pleasure and is an important part of the way you enjoy life, it may be more unhealthy for you to abstain. Consume red wine or alcohol, however, only after considering its full spectrum of possible negative effects."[SIZE=3face="arial"]
[/SIZE]

This is copied from http://www.low-carb.com/article-03.html

[Pheddytrourry]

If I may just intervene here a bit..........

You mentioned 50 carbs a day in your opening post.
FOR INDUCTION ??????????

I thought it was supposed to be 20 carbs and definitely NOT 50 ..........


Just a comment !!!!!!!

[Annevecenqp]

Hi everyone - im thinking of trying the Atkins and am doing all the reading and stuff first before i start my journey but i need a little help with how to calculate my daily carb intake. I know how to do it if i lived in the US but here in Britain im unsure how to read the food labels .

Do i take the "Total carb" figure or the "carb of which sugars" figure????
and then do i deduct the fibre total of that to get my carb amount for that food for the day or do i not deduct the fibre???? Unsure of how to do this in the UK.

I have read all sorts of contradicting information which would make a huge difference in the amount of carbs eaten in a day; therefore failing the diet .

I would appreciate any help

Many thanks
Spanglescandles

[aceriscoolon]

Hi!!! Good to have you here.... I know, it is so confusing.....

Okay, take the total carb number and subtract the fiber....

There are several nice tracking websites were you can put in what you are eating and this is done for you.

Fitday is one http://www.fitday.com/ Be sure to configure it to look at net carbs

and of course Cron O Meter
http://cronometer.com/

Several here use that and can help with questions. Spangle, if you start a progress thread and post questions there, as we answer they will all be in one place for you.

[regfortruegoo]

Hi thankyou, thankyou, thankyou, for your quick reply . Now ive got that confirmed i can start with the low carb way of eating.

And thankyou for the websites as well i will definately have a look at both of these .

Best regards
Spangles

[TeemFilla]

Hi Spangles....

Looking forward to keeping up with your progress so start your own progress thread and post your weight and goals etc. This is a great site that has many success stories!

[Unakjyfk]

Welcome Spangles and good luck on this journey to a new and healthier YOU!

Great to have you here.

[Assungusa]

Thankyou very much ;

not sure how to use this forum yet but ill get there eventually lol

[Liskaspexia]

I am also a newbie here. I really appreciate all those who pitch in and help answer questions. I am learning a lot from all you. Thank you so much.

[ljq0AYOV]

Welcome Wesley and do keep coming here. Arlene has a wealth of information and it really helps to come and post and read. It keeps you focused and there is so much to learn. Why not go into the Progress thread and tell us more about yourself!

[uaodnabnjz]

Welcome Wesley, come on in, the water's great!!!! LOL

[RayFairhurst]

Hello all!

I have recently started eating low carb as of a couple of weeks. I feel better and think I have lost some weight, but also started working out pretty intensely as well.

I have had no problems with the low carb diet as I love most everything I can eat and don't miss (yet) too much.

My questions are with regards to the necessity for the strict "induction" phase before seeing results? I can pretty much eat like the induction phase calls for, but is that really necessary to start losing weight? I have drastically cut back on my carbs, but still like my glass of wine or two in the evening especially after basically only eating meat, cheese, salads all low carb stuff all day. Does my couple glasses of wine negate the day of eating very low carb all day. Another way to ask may be does it matter what kind of carbs I eat during the day as long as I stay say under 50g? I don't know what the right number for me is yet, just using that as an example.

Thanks for your thoughts!

Sam

[Cofeeman]

Hi again Sam

Good luck to you and hope you can get away with it. Wish I could

[Anaedilla]

Oh Sam.......Sam Sam Sam...... !!! That wine will be a problem. Trust me, I speak from experience. Your body will use the alcohol as fuel instead of switching to fat burning mode and will pretty much stop you from losing.

"TRIL" "Where are you?" She can explain all this best but I was eating perfectly and proudly and having a couple of glasses of wine a night and not understanding how it could hurt my efforts. Arlene challenged me to lose the wine for 3 weeks and I lost about 11 lbs. It's hard to cut out when it's part of your lifestyle and even harder when it's part of your employment like it is for me. I still blow it now and then but alot less than I used to.

Good luck!! You must be a Python fan

[cmruloah]

Our administrator Tril posted this awhile back: "fat metabolism happens in the liver... if it's "busy" dealing with alcohol or tylenol your fat loss will suffer. That's why alcohol effects wt loss so much. When the liver is processing alcohol that's all it's doing. No fat loss can happen. I hate putting wt loss on pause... if I remind myself of that, it's much easier to not have that glass of wine.

I know that the days I enjoy wine, forget any weight loss no matter how active I have been. Of course my age plays into it as well.

Good luck!

[Zebrabitch]

Thanks for the info...I understand and you are probably right. I work out quite a lot and hopefully that will counter the effects of the wine. We'll see. Worth trying it for me.

Appreciate your response!

Yes, big Python fan.

Sam