Wine and Weight

[Pam O.]

Greetings PPP Folks,

So what is the deal with wine and metabolism. I can be going along just fine losing a pound a week on the PPP and then if I drink 1 to 2 glasses of red wine everything stops.....plus I gain 2 pounds? It will take about four days to recover and a week before I am back on track. Dang! I just like to have about 4 glasses of wine a month, but screws my whole body up. Can someone tell me why this is?:confused:

Thanks,

Pam O.

[Bangs]

Pam, I'm a newbie here, but I'll take a stab at your question, according to my understanding.....Any alcohol you intake is metabolized first by the body, in preference over any protein, fat, or carbs you have eaten. Here's a quote I found helpful:


Alcohol (http://wilstar.com/lowcarb/alcohol.htm) cannot be used directly for fuel by the body. Instead, it goes to the liver for processing. There, it is chemically converted to an aldehyde and then to ketone bodies which are used as fuel. Alcohol contains about 6.9 calories per gram. Beer and wine also contain carbohydrates in addition to the alcohol. Due to its caloric density, and because it is used first for fuel, alcohol may result in weight loss stalls.
( http://wilstar.com/lowcarb/hiddencarbs.htm )

So, if you are on the edge of "fat burning" mode, a glass or two of wine may be all it takes to throw you off. Of course, it's a YMMV thing and I have known some low carbers who could still lose while enjoying an occasional glass or two. But not everyone.



In addition, alcohol consumption tends to lower inhibititions, which can lead to that extra glass you hadn't intended, another handful of nuts....or worse, LOL!

[Mitra]

In their book about maintenance, Staying Power, one of the weekly tips the Eadeses give is:Wine, alcohol, and beer are permissible as long as you count the carbs! Dry white (3 oz) or red (3 oz) will cost you 3 or 4 grams, but are still reasonable choices as long as you count them in your daily totals. Hard liquor can have a more pronounced effect on your insulin levels. Wine - in moderation - can help improve insulin sensitivity.

I've had a glass of wine almost every evening with dinner throughout my weight loss and maintenance so far. But individual responses to alcohol do vary. I don't know why you have the response that you do - but it isn't the same for everybody.

I did a search on alcohol on Dr Mike's blog - there wasn't much specific detail about the effects, but he's definitely not opposed to it in moderation, though, obviously, don't drink it if it doesn't agree with you:

Let’s take this analysis a step further. What drives HDL up? A few things. Exercise. Alcohol in moderation. And–drum roll, please–fat in the diet, particularly saturated fat. So, I’ll leave you to draw your own conclusions.

Thank God our dietary regimen allows for alcohol (in moderation, of course).

Some people can tolerate more carbohydrate than others just as some people tolerate alcohol better than others.

You may be wondering what two Paleolithic diet experts and their families eat on a picnic. Well, you start with Paleolithic wine. A little white to start; I think it was a Robert Mondavi Fume Blanc, which had just the right amount of crispness and fruit for a warm afternoon. Then it was off to the Paleolithic merlot. Loren had published a number of papers on the health benefits of wine, and, consequently, is known in the wine world.