Lo Carb Drinkers Exploited

[Steve@PMF82]

If anyone is interested in reading up on how alcohol consumption effects the bodies fuel utilisation
Study link - American journal of clinical nutrition

http://www.ajcn.org/content/70/5/928.full

 

[MarkBastard]

If anyone is interested in reading up on how alcohol consumption effects the bodies fuel utilisation
Study link - American journal of clinical nutrition

http://www.ajcn.org/content/70/5/928.full

I'm interested, but that's a bit too scientific for me.

Everyone knows about the kj in = kj out rule but it's not that simple and I'd like to know more about metabolism. Do you know any easier to understand resources?

Energy in energy out is correct but it doesn't specify time periods or things like GI.

 

[Steve@PMF82]

Yeah it is hard to read.

This is the best explanation i could find on that study - cut and paste

For several hours after drinking the vodka, whole body lipid oxidation (a measure of how much fat your body is burning) dropped by 73%.

The reason why alcohol has this dramatic effect on fat metabolism has to do with the way alcohol is handled in the body. When alcohol is consumed, it readily passes from the stomach and intestines into the blood and goes to the liver. In the liver, an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase mediates the conversion of alcohol to acetaldehyde.

Acetaldehyde is rapidly converted to acetate by other enzymes. So rather than getting stored as fat, the main fate of alcohol is conversion into acetate, the amount of acetate formed is dose dependant on the amount of alcohol consumed. For example, blood levels of acetate after drinking the vodka were 2.5 times higher than normal. And it appears this sharp rise in acetate puts the brakes on fat loss."

 

[MarkBastard]

Which is only an issue if you're on a diet where you deliberately consume less kj than your resting metabolism to make your body burn stored fat.

So I guess if you're in that case, you need to cut down on drinking even if the kj you are drinking in alcohol fits into your daily kj allowance.

 

[jonocarroll]

I think you'd be hard pressed to find any health professional willing to recommend that you hit the gym newted (and even harder pressed to get me motivated to do so).

Absolutely. I wasn't advocating it, I was pointing out that if you do go you can work off some of the kilojoules. The fact that no-one would only helps the argument that it is moot.

The American market reads this as "lighter colored (because they can't spell) and easier drinking" - not "diet".

I got caught up the first time I went to the US - dropped back to 'lites' so I could drive... then was told what 'lite' means. Ended up having to stay a couple more hours on water. 'Lite' means low(er) calorie over there in all the examples I've seen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low-alcohol_b...ed-alcohol_beer

In the United States, most reduced-alcohol beers, including Bud Light, Coors Light, and Miller Lite have 4.2% ABV.^[2] This is a 16% reduction in alcohol compared to beer that has 5% ABV.

It may not be universal, but that explanation was from an American bartender.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

Staying out of the marketing/ethics question, because I said I would. I think people are misinterpreting the whole reason for the "low carb" phenomenon in beer, food and everything else.

Whether it is correct or not - the argument in its simplest form is.. all KJs are not equal.

If you are trying to lose weight, then a KJ restricted diet of X calories will result in a certain weight loss

BUT

a diet that still contains the same X KJs, but has a lower proportion of carbohydrates in it - will result in more weight loss.

Trying to eat low carbohydrate foods is about reducing carbohydrates... not about reducing KJs. So in this instance - a beer with the same amount of alcohol but less carbohydrates - is better - NOT because it has less Kilojoules (that's just a side bonus) but because it has less carbohydrates. If you subscribe to the low carb theory - even if they had exactly the same amount of KJs - the lower carb beer would still be "better"

Now - I happen to believe that this is true to a certain extent - but that's beside the point. The arguments people are putting forward about similar amounts of calories, alcohol content etc etc are irrelevant to someone who is on a low carb diet .... they are interested in the CARB content, not the other stuff. Providing of course it doesn't actually have more KJ than the other beer.

Now I admit that a lot of people will think that this is complete bulldust - and maybe they are right too. BUT that's not what the people who are buying low carb products think - and there is enough evidence around to mean that they are certainly not fools for believing it either. Maybe wrong - but not ridiculously or unreasonably wrong.

 

[jbirbeck]

low carb is bullshit, high carb, low GI, low protein and low fat...there is a reason the Japanese have one of the lowest instances of obesity, heart disease, cancer and diabetes in the world. Low carb is a short term solution and an expensive one at that. But people love it for fast results. I've not met anyone that has kept the weight off after low carb diets...just my 2c

Low carb beers simply continue to play on the bullshit spun by others and believed my most. Low carb beers don't exploit the drinkers, rather the brewery's have discovered a market that has emerged int he last few years.

Low carb beers suck but they have their place...many of my family drink them because they don't suffer 'bloating' and strangely enough they don't get it either when they have my beer. They will always choose mine over the low card but they drink low carb when they need to. If they like it they like it, but they are also aware that they are not a healthy option (now at least)

 

[MarkBastard]

there is a reason the Japanese have one of the lowest instances of obesity, heart disease, cancer and diabetes in the world

And highest stomach cancer.

But hang on, are you seriously saying that low-carb diets will lead to diabetes?

 

[mwd]

And highest stomach cancer.

But hang on, are you seriously saying that low-carb diets will lead to diabetes?

I think the link there is obesity is linked to type 2 diabetes Japanese have low rates of obesity therefore less diabetes :icon_offtopic:

wonder if anybody makes a low GI beer.

 

[jbirbeck]

And highest stomach cancer.

But hang on, are you seriously saying that low-carb diets will lead to diabetes?

tropical has it on the diabetes...are you suggesting that high carb diets cause stomach cancer? So much to look forward to. Its probably the higher salt in all the fish they eat that causes the Japanese stomach cancer. whereas us westerners with our salt rich diets don't live longer enough due to obesity related illnesses to have time to develop stomach cancer...or more likely the higher levels of Helicobacter pylori rather than diet...