Enjoy the party season without jeopardising your health!
As the year draws to a close and the entertaining ramps up, many people tend to drink more than they usually would – and unfortunately I don’t mean water ;)
I don’t want to be the fun police here as I like a glass of wine myself, but I know that excessive alcohol consumption can have a significant impact on our health.
Women are more susceptible to the negative effects of alcohol as they have lower levels of the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, which is responsible for breaking down alcohol before it reaches the bloodstream. This is one of the reasons why women can generally tolerate less drinks than men, in addition to differences in body shape and composition.
If you have been trying hard to be healthy all year, there are things you can do to prevent your health unravelling during the party season.
Alternate alcoholic drinks with still or sparkling water
This is a good way to reduce your alcohol consumption and at the same time ensure you stay hydrated, especially during long social events.
Make sure you eat before you go out
Drinking on an empty stomach increases the rate that the alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream, causing you to feel the effects of the alcohol more quickly. Eating food before drinking alcohol helps to slow the absorption rate.
The best foods to eat are protein and healthy fats as they take longer to digest, so I recommend snacking on some egg and avocado or a bowl of Greek yoghurt sprinkled with nuts or seeds before you leave the house
Keep track of how much you are drinking and avoid situations where your glass is continually being topped up
The current Australian guidelines state that adults should not have more than 4 standard drinks on any one day or 10 standard drinks in one week.
Note: wine glasses these days often contain a lot more than one standard drink (100ml)
Choose drinks that are low in sugar
White wine, champagne and many cocktails contain significant amounts of sugar so they are best avoided if you are trying to stay in shape and avoid weight gain over the holiday season. Low sugar options include gin, vodka and whisky but be careful what you mix them with as many mixers contain sugar. Soda water is a good sugar-free mixer.
Use smaller wine glasses (tasting glasses are good)
Consuming wine in a smaller glass tends to slow down your drinking and helps you to stick to standard drink serves.
Use drops to remove preservatives
All non-organic wines contain sulphite preservatives and these can cause reactions such as asthma, eczema, allergies and sinus issues. There are drops available to buy in bottle shops that chemically remove the preservatives, for example, Purewine Drops (https://www.purewine.com.au/)
Give alcohol-free drinks a go!
Non-alcoholic drinks have come a long way in the past few years. There are now many good quality alcohol-free beers, wines, ciders and even spirits available and they taste pretty good.
References
Department of Health and Aged Car, 2020, ‘Australian alcohol guidelines revised’, Australian Government, viewed 28 November 2022, https://www.health.gov.au/news/australian-alcohol-guidelines-revised.
Harvard Health Publishing, 2013, ‘Ask the doctor: why does alcohol affect women differently?’, Harvard Medical School, USA, viewed 28 November 2022, https://www.health.harvard.edu/womens-health/why-does-alcohol-affect-women-differently
Health Direct, 2022, ‘Top 7 tips for safe drinking’, Healthdirect.com.au, Australia, viewed 28 November 2022, https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/top-7-tips-for-safe-drinking