In the last day or two, 2 major news outlets (and many more I’m sure) have published articles linking Alcohol and Weight Loss.  You can read about them here and here.

A brief breakdown of their key points:

• Women consuming the highest amount of alcohol per day (more than two drinks daily) were 30% less likely to be overweight and nearly 70% less likely to be obese than nondrinkers.
• There is evidence that alcohol may cause physiologic changes to appetite and metabolism that may drive women to lose weight as they drink more.
• The trend toward less weight gain among drinkers doesn’t appear to hold true for men.
• The risk of becoming overweight was almost 30 percent lower for women who consumed one or two alcohol beverages a day, compared with nondrinkers.

This was a 13-year study and they controlled for factors such as age, weight, body mass index, smoking, physical activity levels, and income levels.

The study was published by a major medical journal, making it hard to dismiss, but at the same time I wouldn’t be surprised if some “doctor” decides to ride its coattails and turn it into another crazed diet fad.  Drink alcohol for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and lose 10 pounds in 10 days!!!

Before you go out and celebrate let’s consider a few things:

• They didn’t distinguish between types of alcohol.  Red wine has long been known for its health benefits, but beer and mixed cocktails?  Full of sugar and empty carbs if you ask me.  Something to think about.
• The study said that the women who consumed the most alcohol replaced the alcohol with food.  They replaced one form of calories for another.  Alcohol over food is not the healthiest approach IMHO.
• Previous studies have shown that moderate alcohol consumption is highly correlated with already active women.  If you’re thinking about adding alcohol to an already sedentary lifestyle, I’m not sure it will lead to weight loss.

Bottom Line? Moderation is key.  My biggest concern with these articles is that they were saying those who drank the most alcohol saw the least amount of weight gain.  Remember in the 70s when they said Low fat and High Carbs were the way to go?  That led us to a generation of obesity and diabetes.  In the 90s it was High Protein and No Carbs.  That led us to a generation of obesity and heart disease.

Remember, it’s the RIGHT kind of carbs, the RIGHT kind of fats, the RIGHT kind of protein, and now… the RIGHT kind of alcohol that matters.  In reasonable amounts of course.

When my husband and I discussed the idea of me going back to school, we brought up the kids issue.  If I finish my degree by 29 will I get a chance to use it if kids enter the picture right away.  It’s a risk we decided we would take.  I know a lot of RDs enjoy 4-day workweeks though.  I have faith in the future of our careers – that it will be more about telecommuting with flexible work hours than the standard “8-5 grind” we have now.  Only time will tell though.

I’d rather have tried at something (in this case, pursuing my RD) and never put it to use than to waste my life waiting, regretting that I never attempted.

For those that want to know more of the science behind women’s declining fertility, here’s a good article: Beating your Biological Clock