Beer or wine drinkers: Who has the less healthy lifestyle?

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A rising number of severely overweight people, increased alcohol consumption to problematic levels, and liver disease as a significant health problem: in many parts of the world, these developments are placing a strain on healthcare systems—and, in most cases, on the lives of those affected.

Lifestyle changes are crucial for the treatment and prevention of these diseases. Understanding how alcohol consumption, an unbalanced diet, and other lifestyle factors are interrelated is therefore essential, researchers emphasize in a newly published study.

How alcohol preferences influence overall lifestyle

Surveys repeatedly show that as alcohol consumption increases, the quality of nutrition decreases. Until now, little research has focused on the influence of specific types of alcohol, the authors write in a press release about the study. It will be published in the journal Nutrients in the coming days, following its presentation at a conference of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

Using a nationally representative survey of nearly 2,000 adults, a team led by internist Madeline Novack of Tulane University in the US compared the nutritional quality of individuals with different alcohol preferences.

38.9 percent of respondents drank only beer

21.8 percent said they drank only wine

18.3 percent drank only spirits, i.e., high-proof alcohol

21 percent reported mixed consumption

The participants’ eating habits were assessed using the Healthy Eating Index, which is based on current dietary recommendations.

Beer drinkers: male, young, unathletic, and smokers

None of the four consumption groups reached the 80-point mark, which is equivalent to a balanced diet on the index’s 100-point scale. Beer drinkers scored the lowest on average, with 49 points. Wine drinkers scored 55 points, and both pure spirits consumers and mixed drinkers scored just under 53 points.

Beer drinkers, who tend to be male, younger, smokers, and lower-income, reported the highest daily calorie intake and the lowest level of physical activity.

According to study leader Novack, the different eating habits can be attributed to the contexts in which the various alcoholic beverages are consumed. In the US, for example, beer is often drunk in environments where the food available tends to be low in fiber and high in carbohydrates and processed meat—in burger joints or bars, for example. Wine, on the other hand, especially red wine, is often served with meals that contain meat, vegetables, and dairy products.

The opposite is also conceivable: that certain dietary habits influence the choice of alcohol. “For example, fried or salty foods can cause thirst, which in turn could lead to increased beer consumption,” says Novack.

Adapting medical recommendations to alcohol choices

To prevent liver disease and other health problems and to specifically guide healthy behaviors, doctors should always ask about the type of alcohol consumed.

“The results of the study could be used, for example, in patients who identify themselves as beer drinkers to make recommendations for increasing fruit and vegetable consumption and physical activity,” the internist explains.