They can also reach out to others, such as clergy or a social worker,” he said. “The best thing to do is to have them talk to their primary care provider. If you suspect that you might have a problem with binge drinking or alcohol use disorder, Conigliaro recommends reaching out for help. It can also negatively affect your work life, home life, and personal relationships. It can contribute to anxiety and depression, memory loss, and other mental health problems. “This leads to people going to great lengths just to get a drink that most people would find unreasonable and drinking in situations that put you or others in harm’s way, drinking more than you intended to drink, and feeling symptoms of alcohol withdrawal if you don’t have alcohol in your system,” he added.Īlcohol use disorder is associated with many health conditions, including alcoholic liver disease and certain types of cancer. “An alcohol use disorder is characterized by compulsive alcohol use, loss of control over alcohol intake, and a negative emotional state when not using,” Conigliaro said. In some cases, binge drinking is a warning sign of alcohol use disorder, or alcoholism. They’re also at increased risk of alcohol poisoning, a serious and potentially fatal consequence of drinking too much alcohol over a short period of time. “Since people who binge are usually drinking beyond their normal levels in the short term, the risks associated are more acute,” he said.įor example, Conigliaro warned that people are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior, get into fights, or drive while intoxicated if they’ve been binge drinking. Joseph Conigliaro, MPH, FACP, a physician and professor at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, told Healthline. This type of drinking puts people at risk of accidents, injuries, and other negative health effects, Dr. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration defines binge drinking as having 4 or more alcoholic beverages for women, or 5 or more alcoholic beverages for men, over the course of 2 to 3 hours. Whether they reach for hard seltzer or other boozy beverages, many people will engage in binge drinking this weekend. “Lighter in calories, and refreshing like a non-alcoholic seltzer, it may be easier to wind up drinking more,” Mills warned. “Hard seltzers may have fewer calories than beer, wine, and mixed cocktails per serving, and no added sugar, but they will still have calories,” Mills said.Īlthough many types of hard seltzer are flavored with fruit juice, the nutritional benefits of that juice are “not likely to measure up to a serving of fruit,” she added.ĭrinking too much hard seltzer can also lead to alcohol poisoning and other negative health effects from excess alcohol consumption. They still contain empty calories with little nutritional value. With their low carbohydrate and calorie content, hard seltzers may provide a welcome choice to people who want to drink alcohol while restricting their carbohydrate or calorie intake.īut that doesn’t mean that hard seltzers are nutritious. Such numbers have led marketers to push hard seltzers as a good choice for health-conscious consumers. That’s similar to many brands of light beer. One popular brand of hard seltzer called White Claw contains 100 calories and 2 grams of carbohydrates per 355 mL can, with an alcohol content of 5 percent. “Less alcohol means fewer calories,” she added.īut how healthy or unhealthy are they, really? “Hard seltzers usually have between 5 to 7 percent, making them a lower alcohol choice compared with wine, some beers, and mixed cocktails,” Libby Mills, MS, RDN, LDN, FAND, a registered dietitian nutritionist and national spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told Healthline. Hard seltzers are as convenient as a can of beer, easy to pack, and ready to drink.Ī blend of carbonated water, alcohol, and fruit flavoring, they also tend to be light in alcohol and low in carbohydrates and calories. According to market research conducted by The Nielsen Company, sales of hard seltzers increased by 193 percent between the spring of 20. In anticipation of the long weekend, many Americans are stocking their fridges with beer, wine, and other alcoholic beverages.Ī growing number of people are also reaching for hard seltzers, a relatively recent but increasingly popular addition to liquor store shelves.
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