Dieters are always guilty of the holidays as there are so many great foods to eat but calories are to be watched in order not to blow that diet one has worked so hard for the entire year. However, it's not just foods that could damage one's hard work as liquor is also a sin.
Margo Wootan, the director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, alcohol is the fifth in all the calorie consumptions in United States among adults. People usually think that calorie counts for food equates to calorie counts for liquor.
Wootan points out that alcohol is a huge source of calories and that it even has more than foods from fast food chains such as hamburgers and fries.
Wootan revealed that a new rule will be issued by the Food and Drug Administration and it is requiring restaurants and other food chains to list the calories on their menus even for liquors.
Basically, a 1.5-ounce shot of an 80-proof liquor such as gin or vodka, contains 100 calories while a 5-ounce glass of wine such as red or white has around 120 calories. A regular beer has 150 calories. This is according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
So due to the holidays, people tend to drink more and that when people start to drink, they tend to drink more and more until they are no longer aware of how much they have already consumed.
Here are some tips from the Academy of Nutrition in Dietetics in New York City for those dieters who want to watch their weight.
First is paying a lot of attention to your mixers as mixed drinks such as margaritas are jam-packed with calories. If you want a margarita, just have the classic with tequila and lime juice. Next is the glass size. The smaller it is, the more mindful you are of how many calories you are drinking.
And lastly, you have to know your limit as people drink more alcohol once they enjoy it. It is okay to enjoy due to the festivities but you have to mind what you drink and eat.
