The weekend is still far away, it’s been a long day and you want to take the edge off with a breezy cocktail. And you think to yourself- It’s only one drink, that can’t hurt!
If that’s you, read on.
It hurts. And it hurts your waistline the most.
Did you know that alcohol is one of the top three reasons for obesity in the world! And by now you must’ve noticed that your booze doesn’t carry any label admitting its nutritional break up. Isn’t that odd given that even a bottle of water confesses its calorie count?
And this is not an Indian exception. Across US and Europe, alcohol is exempt to spell out what’s in the bottle. But they should be required to put the calorie chart, argues a public health expert in a new paper published in British Medical Journal. The paper establishes that mild regular drinkers get 10% of their daily calories from booze alone.
Why isn’t Alcohol Labelled?
In the US, booze falls under the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. This agency doesn’t require labelling. But everything else thats edible and drinkable is controlled by US FDA and they believe in truthful labels big time! As for India, we simply don’t have an alcohol labelling guideline of our own.
But that hardly changes our right to know how much fat, trans fat, protein etc goes into that yummy martini you’re about to take a sip of.
Get Drunk and Not Fat!
If staying fit is your mantra but you just can’t do without your nightly drink, think of your darling waistline. You could add almost 2 kilos to your waistline in a year of social drinking.
Are you thinking ‘wine’ at this point?
Red wine might be relatively easier on the heart but two glasses could set you back by 370 calories. That’s as good as four large cookies and makes for a fifth of a woman’s daily calorie requirement. The trend of drinking in big wine glasses might be fuelling your invisible calorie count even further.
What You Can Do
If punching extra holes in your belt is what you would rather do, then enjoy the wait till India comes up with its own labelling system for alcohol. But we suggest you drink smart:
Beer: It’s called ‘beer belly’ for a reason and let’s face it, there’s no cheat code when it comes to beer. Don’t go overboard with this one.
Cocktails are calorie bombs, especially the lethal mixers they’re made with. Have them at your own risk!
Absolut Vodka has less than 100 calories per shot, making it healthier than Smirnoff at least, which boasts of 160 calories per shot.
Bourbon has just about 140 calories per glass.
Dry wines pack the least the lowest calorie count. Say a flat NO to dessert wines.
Follow these rules if you want to have that chilled six pack without losing your six packs. Happy trippin...
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)