Drinking = Gaining Less Weight?

By Amanda Pendolino on March 9th, 2010

We’ve all read those articles about how frozen margaritas are like a thousand calories each, but, finally, there’s one that suggests that drinking may not be so detrimental to your diet plan after all. According to The New York Times, new research suggests that women who regularly consume moderate amounts of alcohol are less likely to gain weight than nondrinkers and are at lower risk for obesity.

I know, your mind is blown! The findings, reported this week in the Archives of Internal Medicine, are based on a study of 19,220 United States women aged 39 or older who, at the start of the study, fell into the “normal weight” category based on their body mass index. Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston tracked the women’s drinking habits over 13 years. About 60 percent of the women were light or regular drinkers, while about 40 percent reported drinking no alcohol.

Over the course of the study, 41 percent of the women became overweight or obese. Although alcohol is definitely high in calories (a six-ounce glass of wine packs 150), the nondrinkers in the study actually gained more weight over time: nine pounds, on average, compared with an average gain of about three pounds among regular moderate drinkers. The risk of becoming overweight was almost 30 percent lower for women who consumed one or two alcohol beverages a day, compared with nondrinkers.

Honestly, studies about the benefits and risks of alcohol are often contradictory. Although moderate drinking is associated with better heart health, regular drinking also increases breast cancer risk. So what should we do? Like in most things, it seems the key is moderation.

Interestingly, the findings don’t translate to guys. A 2003 study of British men showed that regular drinkers gained more weight than nondrinkers. It could be due to eating habits; while men typically add alcohol to their daily caloric intake, women are more likely to substitute alcohol for food. In the Archives study, women who drank alcohol reported fewer calories from food sources, particularly carbohydrates.

In addition, there may be differences in how men and women metabolize alcohol. Metabolic studies show that after men drink alcohol, they experience little if any metabolic change. But alcohol appears to slightly speed up a woman’s metabolism.

The link between consumption of red wine and less weight gain was particularly pronounced in the Archives study. Some studies have suggested that resveratrol, a compound present in grapes and red wine, appears to inhibit the development of fat cells and to have other anti-obesity properties. Where’s my Malbec?

Photo via NYTimes