Ever been on a diet, faithfully tracked your meals and never lost a pound?
Well, if you have a few drinks on your cheat day then the alcohol could be killing any chance you had of being in a calorie deficit.
Even if you’re not dieting you might have found that the Euros or even just the summer weather has meant you’re boozing more.
And, that could have had a major affect on your waistline.
We all know that alcohol contains calories, but a recent study found that most Brits are absolutely clueless about just how many there are in our favourite tipples.
And, it could be adding to the obesity crisis in the UK, reports the Mirror.
A huge 28% of British adults are obese and a further 36.2% are overweight – meaning over half of the population in not a healthy weight.
Health campaigners are now demanding that calorie counts be added to alcohol labels after less than a quarter of people asked in a study could estimate the calories in a pint of lager.
Only one in five came close to the correct figure for a glass of wine.
The study accepted a correct answer if the guess was within 50% of the true value – meaning there was a pretty huge allowance for error.
Now, there have been calls for better nutritional info to be added to cans and bottles of booze so that Brits can make informed decisions.
A pint of lager with a 5% ABV (alcohol by volume) has 239 calories, just 11 less than a 51g Mars bar which has 228.
And a medium 175ml glass of wine has 133 calories that’s three more than a 25g bag of Walkers ready salted crisps.
The survey by the Alcohol Health Alliance asked 12,247 adults, but only 18% knew that the chief medical officers’ (CMO) drinking guideline was no more than 14 units of alcohol per week.
A huge 34% said they didn’t know the recommended amount and 48% gave the incorrect answer.
Legally, alcohol labels need only to show the strength of alcohol (ABV), allergens and the container’s volume.
Any other information like calories, ingredients, health risks and allergy notes are all optional.
Currently, more information is legally required to be written on bottles of juice than on bottles of wine.
Alcohol Health Alliance chairman Professor Sir Ian Gilmore said: “Alcohol labelling in this country is leaving consumers in the dark about what exactly their drink contains.
“Displaying basic product information, such as calorie content, empowers the consumer to make informed choices about what, and how much, they decide to drink.
“This information should be displayed clearly on the product they are buying. They should not have to research basic health information online.
“The upcoming Government consultation on calorie labelling is a great opportunity for change.
“Requiring the display of calorie content on alcoholic drinks would bring alcohol labelling in line with food and soft drink labelling and would help to address the fact that most adults in the UK do not know the calorie content of alcohol.”
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Holly Gabriel, nutrition manager at Action on Sugar, said: “We have long been subjected to inadequate and inconsistent labelling.
"Alcohol labelling must be brought into line with food and soft drinks, without delay.
“Previous research by Action on Sugar found excessive sugar content in pre-mixed alcoholic drinks and no clear labelling to guide purchasing decisions – with some drinks containing a whopping 15 teaspoons of sugar per pack, which is double the added sugar an adult should be having in one day.”
Visit drinkaware.co.uk for resources if you are struggling with your alcohol consumption.
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