Mar 22, 2022
Have you ever wondered how much
impact beer, wine, and spirits have on your health and longevity?
The US Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting the number of
alcoholic beverages we consume, but that can be pretty confusing.
How do we even know how much alcohol is considered moderate and how
much is too much? Or if we’re offered a cocktail at a party, how do
we know how much alcohol is in it? My friend, and fellow dietician,
Kathleen Zelman is joining us today to answer all those questions
and tell us how moderate alcohol consumption can affect our health.
She will also explain how alcohol can sabotage our well-being and
longevity. Kathleen Zelman
is a food, nutrition, and media communications consultant, co-host
of the new podcast, True Health Revealed, and owner of No Nonsense
Nutrition. Kathleen helped launch WebMD and spent seventeen years
as their Director of Nutrition. Kathleen has received many awards
throughout her career, including the prestigious Lenna Frances
Cooper Memorial Award from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
in recognition of her distinguished career and remarkable
contributions to the dietetics profession.
Kathleen is also a consultant for
the Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUS), so she is savvy on the
subject of alcohol. She is here to give us the scoop on alcohol and
talk about a new online calculator designed to help us figure out
how much alcohol we are drinking. We will also share some snazzy
ideas for cocktails and mocktails!
Show highlights:
- Kathleen is excited about her new podcast that
launched in January! She and her co-host, Dr. Tom Rifai, are doing
it on behalf of the True Health Initiative, a non-profit
organization that wants to ensure that they get information to
consumers, translate science, and give consumers evidence-based
facts.
- Dr. Eric Rimm, a Harvard professor and true
expert on alcohol, was on Kathleen’s podcast. He said it's okay to
have a glass of wine now and then.
- What does moderation mean for men and women,
and how does that translate into beer, wine, and
spirits?
- To find out what up to one drink per day looks
like, go to www.standarddrinks.org to find a calculator. One standard drink is one
and a half ounces of 80-proof spirits, a 12-ounce bottle of regular
5% alcohol beer, or five ounces of 12% volume wine.
- An exercise to do at home is to measure five
ounces of wine and pour it into different glasses to see what a
standard drink looks like.
- Become aware of what you are drinking and what
the alcohol content is. Most wines have 12% alcohol, but some have
much higher alcohol content- 15 or 16%.
- Most ready-to-drink canned cocktails are 12
ounces and have 5% alcohol content. However, some brands could
contain up to 8 or 10% alcohol, so make sure you know how
concentrated they are before drinking them. The information is on
the label.
- Get to know how much you are drinking using
the standard drinks
calculator. Kathleen
explains how it works.
- Having too many drinks in a row or drinking too
quickly is considered binge drinking. It is always best to moderate
your drinking or have your drinks with food.
- Why does one type of alcohol impact some people
more than another?
- If your face becomes flushed after drinking, it
is your body telling you to slow down. It means you are not
tolerating the alcohol.
- Kathleen discusses the potential health
benefits of drinking in moderation, whether or not there is any
truth to the French paradox, and how drinking too much alcohol can
sabotage your health.
- Kathleen lists the people who should not
consume alcohol at all.
- Some tips to help you enjoy alcohol, reap the
health benefits and make your drink last longer.
- A standard drink contains roughly 150 calories.
Calories add up, so try to use low-calorie mixers, like club soda,
and DON’T drink with a straw!
- Kathleen enjoys a tall vodka soda with a splash
of cranberry and a wedge of lime. Her latest favorite is the Aperol
Spritz- a serving of prosecco over lots of ice with a splash of
Aperol and a wedge of lime.
- Kathleen and I share some recipes for
mocktails. They are a good option for a “dry January” or taking a
break from alcohol.
- Blue zones are hot spots in various places in
the world where people live particularly long and healthy lives.
One of the common denominators in all the blue zones is moderate
alcohol consumption.
- Kathleen talks about the Distilled Spirits
Council of the US (DISCUS) and explains what you will find on the
DISCUS website.
Resources:
The standard drinks
calculator
The Distilled Spirits Council
(DISCUS) website is called Standard
Drinks.Org
Liz’s Links:
My website: www.lizshealthytable.com
My email: liz@lizshealthytable.com
Mocktail Recipe:
Pomegranate Winter Spiced Mocktail (Serves 2)
Place a cup of 100% pomegranate
juice, a cup of 100% orange juice, some cloves, star anise, and a
cinnamon stick in a small saucepan. Let it simmer for about 15
minutes, and then allow it to cool.
Pour it into a tall glass filled
with ice, and garnish it with some orange slices or a wedge of
orange. You can also add a sprig of mint. Or stretch it by adding
some sparkling water.