Alcohol can be a "hidden" source of calories —
you may have a glass of wine (or two) with dinner, or champagne to ring in the
New Year, without thinking about the extra calories you're consuming.
But alcoholic drinks can be a significant contributor to
your daily calorie intake. A 2012 study found that the average American adult consumes
100 calories a day from beer, wine or other alcoholic beverages. And close
to 20 percent of men and 6 percent of women consume more than 300 calories from
alcohol daily, the study found. This can add up – for example, consuming 100
calories more than you burn every day may lead to a weight gain of 10 pounds
over a year.
Because alcoholic drinks are essentially "empty"
calories and don't contribute toward your daily nutrition, cutting back on
alcohol may be one healthy way to lose weight.
Different types of alcoholic drinks pack varying amounts of
calories. A 12-ounce glass of beer has about 150 calories, a 5-ounce glass of
red wine has about 125 calories, and a 1.5 ounce shot of gin, rum, vodka,
whiskey or tequila has about 100 calories, according
to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
The drink with the fewest calories? Per serving, its
champagne, which has 84 calories for every 4 ounces. (Beer, technically, has
fewer calories per ounce, but we're guessing you'd be unlikely to drink just 4
ounces of a beer.)
Here's a look at how many calories are in different
alcoholic drinks:
