Nutrition in the News: Drink to be thin and Obese boarding school

He's no pussy, he can throw them back like the good ole English!

There have been endless studies that have mentioned the negative side effects of alcohol to your health and only a few that actually address its benefits.By The Realistic Nutritionist

I’m not saying that you should drink 5 vodka tonics or a bottle of wine a day, however, I am saying that light to moderate drinking actually has health benefits and is not as detrimental as we once thought. A study published in Time which was done by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston found that women who drank moderately over the span of 13 years were 30 percent less likely to be overweight and 70 percent less likely to be obese!

The study found there to be a few explanations to why this could be. They found that women who drink more tend to eat less to combat it, either by a conscious effort or sub consciously. I find this to be not only interesting but true! Whenever I drink, with a meal or at night, I tend to get fuller faster because of the calories in the drink. Also, many drinks, such as blended margaritas and bloody mary’s are much heavier, therefore fill you up quicker than just a standard drink. Also, they also found that women metabolize alcohol quicker, leaving fewer calories to be absorbed into the body.

Although this is interesting and certainly helps me remove the guilt I sometimes carry after a few drinks on Friday night, it is still important to remember the key part of the article: moderation and responsibility. If you drink moderately and still consume a healthy amount of calories from the right foods, you will see a higher percentage of weight loss. However, act responsibly and know your limits. Also, never replace a meal with alcohol, as that can have a detrimental affect on your health and your metabolism.

To see the full article head over to The Realistic Nutritionist’s site.