Why wine makes you fat

If you have heard about the fact that wine promotes weight loss before, then most likely you already know that this drink contains a special substance resveratrol, which promotes the breakdown of belly fat and has a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system. But there are times when wine can also put on weight. And even resveratrol is unable to prevent this. Why is this happening and who is at risk of getting better from drinking the drink of the gods?

Ten Reasons Why Wine Gets Better

If a person does not have problems with alcohol, then wine can be a very pleasant addition to dinner or lunch. According to scientists, one glass of wine a day will not bring any harm, but will only benefit. But if this drink is abused, it is quite possible to gain extra pounds.

Alcohol relaxes

Any alcohol affects the human brain, causing relaxation. In this state, many cease to control their behavior, including the amount of food they eat. Even if in a sober state a person tries to control the amount of calories consumed or follows a strict diet, then after a few glasses of wine he can give himself a “relaxation” in the form of overeating.

It’s all about the snack

Do not forget that wine, as a rule, goes with not the lowest-calorie snacks. As a rule, most of them contain a lot of fats and carbohydrates, which certainly do not benefit the figure.

Alcohol increases appetite

Many types of alcohol have the ability to increase appetite. After drinking a glass or two, you may not even notice how the desire to eat will increase. But interestingly, not all types of alcohol cause a feeling of hunger. If we talk about wine, then in this regard, the most harmful is dry. The reason is that this type of wine causes a decrease in blood sugar levels, that is, a state of hypoglycemia occurs. As a result, the self-preservation reaction starts in the body and it begins to demand food in order to restore sugar levels. But what is most interesting, the appetite that arose against the background of drinking alcohol is very difficult to tame. The reason for this condition lies in the peculiarities of metabolism. If alcohol and food enter the body at the same time, the liver first breaks down alcohol, and only after that it is taken for food. And until the breakdown of foods begins, the body will not receive the required additional calories to restore sugar levels, which means it will require more and more portions of food.

In addition, if alcohol toxins remain in the body for a long time, it can cause chronic inflammation, metabolic failure and impaired appetite.

Hormonal changes

Alcohol is widely believed to help relieve stress. Basically, that’s how it is. But only if you drink very little alcohol. If a person abuses wine, then even under the influence of alcohol, cortisol (stress hormone) in the body remains at the same high level. That is, stress and irritation do not go away, and side effects from cortisol appear. The fact is that an increase in this hormone can increase appetite.

Slows down fat burning

In short, when alcohol is present in the body, fat cells are not broken down and used by the body as an energy source.

hangover appetite

If you go overboard with wine, then the next day it is quite possible that you will have to face all the “charms” of a hangover. In this state, the body cannot work at full strength, which means it does not spend the accumulated calories. On the other hand, with a hangover, blood sugar levels tend to drop dramatically, causing the body to crave food. Therefore, with a hangover, many are usually drawn to fatty and very high-calorie foods.

Alcohol calories are not converted into energy

It is well known that the human body converts carbohydrates into energy, as a result of which the body feels a surge of strength (remember at least carbohydrate sports nutrition). It would seem that a similar scheme works with wine. However, in the case of alcohol and the calories contained in it, the body reacts differently. Even if you go in for sports immediately after drinking a glass of wine, the body will not use the calories obtained from alcohol. In this case, the mechanism is different: sugars from wine immediately turn into fats. And this should also be known to all lovers of grape drink.

Alcohol disrupts the liver

All types of alcohol in large quantities are harmful to the body. Wine is no exception. If you abuse the drink for a long time, liver cells begin to degenerate: the place of healthy ones is occupied by fat that is unusual for this organ. It is clear that a diseased gland loses the ability to properly break down the nutrients received, and this leads to improper absorption of food and, as a result, weight gain.

Causes swelling

Probably, many people know that alcohol has diuretic properties. That is, while drinking alcohol, a rather large amount of liquid is excreted from the body. But the very next day after drinking, the situation changes exactly the opposite. A dehydrated body tries to retain as much moisture in the tissues as possible. For about 72 hours after drinking, the body primarily stores fluid. As a result, edema appears, and due to the accumulation of excess fluid in the tissues, the scales can show 1-1,5 kg more than usual.

How many calories are in wine

The answer to this question depends on the wine you drink. But all wines have something in common. Note that the alcohol in the drink of the gods is formed by the fermentation of sugar contained in grape juice. That is, wine has two sources of calories at once: alcohol and sugar. And what is most interesting, 1 ml of alcohol contains almost 2 times more calories than 1 g of sugar (4 kcal versus 7 kcal). But here you should also know that sugar and alcohol affect our bodies in different ways. Despite the fact that alcohol is formed from fructose, it is not metabolized like all carbohydrates. That is, ethanol in wine is not added to other carbohydrates.

You also need to understand that the stronger the drink, the more alcohol it contains, which means that it has more calories. In order not to put on weight from drinking wine, nutritionists advise choosing drinks with a lower ethanol content. For example, those in which the proportion of alcohol does not exceed 11%. If it seems to someone that the difference between 11 and 15 percent wines is insignificant, we hasten to upset: in terms of calories, the difference is quite impressive.

The second more obvious source of calories in wine is sugar. It can get into the drink directly from grape berries or be specially added, as is done, for example, in the production of sparkling wines. It is almost impossible to find a wine that contains 1 g of sugar per 0 liter. Even very dry red wines usually have 1-2 g of sugar per liter, dry whites up to 50 g/l, and dry sparkling wines up to 12 g/l. Fans of sweet, flavored and fortified drinks should be prepared for the fact that they contain even more sugar.

Why alcohol disrupts metabolism

So, we have already figured out that the alcohol contained in wine does not add carbohydrates to the drink, it is not metabolized as sugars and is not stored in our bodies as glycogen. Therefore, in many low-carb diets, alcohol is not a forbidden product. It is allowed even in the now popular keto diet, which provides for the almost complete rejection of carbohydrate foods. If so, then why does wine make you gain weight?

Turns out it’s all about the liver. When a person consumes alcohol, the liver first of all breaks down alcohol, leaving everything else for later. Why this happens is easy to explain: iron tries to cleanse the body of toxic substances as quickly as possible (this is how it perceives ethyl alcohol and its decay products). That is, while the liver is working with alcohol, the metabolism of all other substances slows down or even stops. This group left for later includes all fats and carbohydrates consumed in parallel with alcohol.

How to Avoid Extra Wine Calories

If you want to protect yourself from excess calories, then the simplest advice is to completely abandon the use of wine, or at least give preference to its dry varieties. And one more little tip. As a rule, cheap wines have a lot more sugar (and therefore calories) than premium drinks. Usually winemakers add a lot of sweetener to make up for the lack of flavor in the grape drink.

You should also be aware that some wines that taste like dry ones may not be so at all. For example, Italian Pinot Grigio and American Zinfandel can be quite high in sugar. You should also be aware that almost all Californian wines (even the most expensive ones) are quite sweet. The reason is that grapes ripen very quickly and well in this warm region, and the better the berries ripen, the more natural sugar they contain. The category of low-carb wines includes drinks from France. Winemakers from this region almost never add sugar during the fermentation of the drink, that is, the amount of carbohydrates in the finished wine is minimal. If we compare white and red wines, then the former, as a rule, contain a lower percentage of alcohol, which means that they are also more beneficial for weight watchers.

Another way to avoid weight gain is to reduce the strength of the drink. To do this, you can use the method that the ancient Greeks resorted to. They just diluted the wine with water. Many people advise adding 1 parts of water to 2 part of a grape drink. Of course, the strength and calorie content of diluted wine will noticeably decrease, but one must be prepared for the fact that the taste characteristics of such a drink will also suffer.

If you use wine wisely and do not abuse this noble drink, then you can enjoy it without harming your figure. You just need to learn how to control portions of the drink and choose the least calorie varieties.