What's the healthiest libation for ringing in the New Year? Beer, says Charlie Bamforth, a professor of brewing sciences at the University of California, Davis. Though it's been blamed for many a paunch, it's more nutritious than most other alcoholic drinks, Bamforth says. "There's a reason people call it liquid bread," he says. Beer, he says, has more selenium, B vitamins, phosphorus, folate and niacin than wine. Beer also has significant protein and some fiber. And it is one of a few significant dietary sources of silicon, which research has shown can help thwart the effects of osteoporosis. Hangover Helper: Tips To Prevent A Horrible Headache Preliminary research by Bamforth has also suggested that beer may have prebiotics — nourishment for the good bacteria in our gut. As for antioxidants, he says both beer and wine contain them. But, as we've reported, resveratrol, the molecule in red wine and chocolate once celebrated as a nutritional key to longevity, may not offer much of a benefit — if consumed in the small quantities we typically get from food and drink.

"The way that the wine industry advertised red wine [as healthy], making us think beer just causes beer bellies, was very clever," says Bamforth. He adds that the antioxidants in wine may also not be as readily absorbed as the ones in beer — compounds like ferulic acid. "With beer, more of [the antioxidants] actually get into the body," he says, though beers can have varying levels of them. And despite a common misconception, color has little or no bearing on a beer's nutritional content, Bamforth says. That is, a pint of Guinness is roughly equivalent to a Budweiser lager. What's more, Bamforth notes, craft beer should not be perceived as healthier than mass-produced lagers, which he says also tend to be made with natural, grain-based sugars and few, if any, synthetic additives. So what about the dreaded beer belly? After all, alcohol contains about 7 calories per gram (almost as much as fat, which contains 9 calories per gram). Those calories can add up after a few bottles, with about 150 calories in your typical, 12-ounce serving of 5 percent-alcohol beer.

Bamforth argues that we shouldn't blame big bellies on beer. Beer drinkers who are overweight or obese are probably eating too much greasy pub grub and spending too many hours on the bar stool, he notes. "But the brewers shot themselves in the foot when they came out with 'low-carb' beer, implying that everything else they made was 'high-carb,' " Bamforth says. Calorie-counting, though, gets a lot trickier in the world of craft beers. Many imperial stouts, barley wines, IPAs, Belgian styles and bocks measure 8 or 9 percent alcohol by volume — or even much more. In addition, many of these beers — especially highly hopped, bitter beers — tend to be sweeter, with extra calories from carbs (which add another 4 calories per gram). While Bamforth is correct that beer is lower in carbs compared with, say, bread, it has lots more carbs than wine. A standard 5-ounce glass of wine contains just 1 or 2 grams of carbohydrates. A 12-ounce serving of a 5 percent-alcohol beer has between 10 and 20 grams of carbs — or 40 to 80 extra calories.

Up the ABV, and your calories start to balloon. best wine selection dcA 12-ounce bottle of 9.6 percent ABV Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barleywine will contain roughly 300 calories, 200 of which come from the alcohol. where do you buy wine in parisRight up there among the most calorie-packed beers is Dogfish Head's 120-Minute IPA, which contains 20 percent alcohol — twice that of Bigfoot. glass of wine tumblrOne bottle may contain more than 500 calories. good wine for dinner dateThat's about the same energy as you'd get from a cup of granola — or four glasses of wine. good cheap red dry wineSam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head Brewery, tells The Salt that his philosophy on drinking such hefty beers is that the higher alcohol content boosts flavor — which makes the extra calories worth it. best wines to give as christmas gift

He adds that Dogfish Head, like many craft breweries, also makes lower-alcohol beers with about the same calorie counts as mainstream lagers. Arthur Klatsky, a retired Kaiser Permanente doctor and a researcher of the health effects of alcohol consumption, doesn't favor any particular alcoholic beverage. Yet he agrees that "beer has more nutrients, often more calories, B vitamins. It's more like a food [than wine or spirits]." He says that if you want to reap the heart-health benefits of drinking, consistency is key: two or three drinks per day for an average man, and one or two for a woman. A drink, he notes, is a 5-ounce serving of wine, or a 12-ounce serving of 5 percent-alcohol beer. But Klatsky is just as quick to warn against overdoing it, which can damage the liver and, in some cases, cause fatal alcohol poisoning. Diet for type 1 diabetes Diet for type 2 diabetes Low carb high fat diet Meal replacement diet plans Very low calorie diet What can I drink?

Alcohol and blood sugar Soft drinks and diabetes Diet soft drinks and diabetes Carbohydrate counting Chocolate and diabetes Food for a healthy diet Which slimming club is best? Eggs, beans & pulses Eating out with diabetes Low carb lunch ideas Low carb dinner ideas Low carb flour alternatives Low carb snacks Low sugar sweets Simple carbs vs complex carbs Nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners Role of sugar in our diet Which artificial sweetener should I choose? The carbohydrate in alcohol can effect your blood sugar levels Alcohol can have a confusing effect on blood sugar levels because it prevents the liver from producing glucose. One consequence of this is that hypoglycemia can occur after a night of drinking. As a result, people with diabetes are often advised to eat something to compensate for the expected drop in blood sugar levels. Alcohol does affect different people in different ways so, if in doubt, test your blood glucose to see how alcohol affects you.

Some people may find it all too easy to let diabetes drift out of their mind when having alcohol and not worry too much about sugar levels. However, it is advisable to test blood sugar levels whenever possible to get an idea of how different drinks affect your sugar levels. Regular lagers tend to typically vary in carbohydrate content from about 10 to 15g per pint. Some ‘light’ beers may be better and have less than 10g of carbs per pint and some with less 5g of carbs. Pilsners are thought to have a relatively benign effect on blood sugar, however, just as with any drink amongst this list, it’s best if you can test to be sure what effect they’re having on your blood glucose levels. Stouts, Porters and Guinness tend to be on the higher end of the carbohydrate spectrum amongst beers and can have upwards of 20g of carbohydrate per pint. There are a wide variety of real ales covering pale ales through to porters. Real ales will typically have a carbohydrate content of 10 to 20g of carbs per pint.

Certain real ales may be given additional flavouring with extra sugar or honey so be prepared for the effect to vary with different beers. Red wine generally receives good press thanks to the certain chemical properties (polyphenol and resveratrol compounds) it contains. As you’d expect, dry wines and champagnes will have a lower carbohydrate level than sweeter wines and champagnes. A dry wine can have as low as 1-2g of carbohydrate in a modest sized glass (200ml) whereas a particularly sweet wine could have over 10g of carbs. A medium sweetness wine is likely to have 5 to 10g of carbs per standard glass. Fortified wines such as sherry and port tend to be sweeter than table wine. A glass of port could contain as much as 20g of carbs. To keep carbohydrate content down, look for dry varieties. Spirits, such as gin, vodka, whiskey and even rum are highly distilled and should not contain sugars. With spirits the consideration is more on what they are mixed with.