red wine, white wine, miller lite, etc? I've seen posts in other forums saying you can and other's saying ya can't. Any clarification present here?
thanks again,
casey

There is a thread on the subject here...

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthre...highlight=tiffy

Karen

Here's the straight dope on alcohol.

When you're lowcarbing, especially Atkins, Protein Power and other very lowcarb programs ... you want to be in ketosis. Ok, ketones are made in your liver ... from the products resulting from the breakdown of fat. Ketones can also be made from alcohol. In fact, the process to make ketones from alcohol is much easier than from fat ... so your liver will use alcohol in preference. What this means is ... you'll stop burning fat, and you'll stop making ketones from fat .. as long as there's alcohol in your system. Period. If you're testing with the ketone strips, you'll see a positive result, but it's false security .. you are not burning fat. Your body will use the alcohol FIRST.

As for the carb content, use a good carb counter, such as you'll find on our Low Carb Tools page, from the menu bar at the top. Distilled spirits are zero carbs, meaning they won't raise blood sugar .. but it will stop ketosis. Bone dry wines, both white and red as far as I recall .. are extremely low carb. Miller light beer is supposed to be only 3 or 4 carbs per can.

So, if you like a drink now and then, assess your lowcarb program, and your personal progress .. and drink accordingly. Just remember that the more you drink, chances are your judgement might go out the window too .. and next day you have the regrets of a hangover AND a jumbo pizza with double order of garlic bread.



Doreen

Hi Casey. Yes, Alcohol is permitted. Light beer, dry wine, any spirit either on its own or mixed with a non carbohydrate mix. However, you should bear in mind that your body will burn the alcohol before it goes after anything else (followed by carbs and then fat). So while you may not gain weight, it will slow down your loss.

Cheers,
Nat

Hi,
I saw the conflicting statements on that as well, and I still have my wine, and to date have lost 7 lbs. So must work for some and not others. Years ago there used to be a diet called the drinking mans diet. Don't advocate that, but you can still enjoy your cocktail and have weight loss, perhaps at a slower pace.

I have a question about low carb beers. I've read on a couple low carb diet sites that even though lite beers are low in carbs, beer is made from sugar, maltose, and that it all gets converted over into carb anyway. Basically thay are saying that low carb ads give false security, but beer pretty much is sugar. Does anyone have any info on that? Will beer take you out of ketosis? I'm 23 and really cant imagine drinking absolut and diet for very much longer, but i will if i have to.

Thanks! Ali

Interesting

Can you?

Can you take a drink or two and not want to eat, not want to drink more, not want to pick up a cigarette, not insist on driving home because you've forgotten that alcohol kicks harder when you're LCing?

If you can, then it won't hurt much. If you can't, it may not be worth it.

But only you can tell what really happens inside when you drink.

As a former home beer brewer beer isn't made of sugar. It's made of a grains and hops, the sugar from said grains is used by the yeast to carbonate the beer. So its sort of like saying that bread is made from sugar. It isn't. It has a little sugar in it to give the yeast something to eat, but primarily all the sugar, or starches or alcohol, in bread, or beer, is coming from the grains.

I would second cs_carver. It is up to you. There are many threads posts about alcohol. There are some who can stop after one occassional glass, others can not. You should consider social/peer pressure too. Usually it is much more accepted if somebody does not drink at all during a social event, than somebody who wants to drink only one glass...

I have a few Aspen Edge's a week...and still can lose weight IF and only IF I watch my food consumption during that same week. My DH drank during his stint with Atkins last year and dropped 25 lbs in 2 months and has pretty much kept it off....everyone is different. For some, alcohol stops fat burning or slows it down consideratbly. I KNOW I would lose faster if I stopped drinking altogether...but Im just not in that frame of mind.

I've been on Atkins 10 weeks and have dropped 34 pounds, so far. When I started, I pledged to do a clean 2-week induction and, afterwards, limit my "cheating" to alcohol on Saturday nights. I have stuck to my pledge and am happy. I did change from Budweiser to Michelob Ultra and now drink my Wild Turkey straight or mixed with water. I also stay away from the B-52's, Goldschlager and other sweet shooters my friends drink when we are out. A lady friend has also got me enjoying a little wine (Duplin Hatteras Red made in NC!), which I formerly never touched. I have not really drank to excess during the 10 weeks, however.

Maybe I could have lost more without the alcohol, but who knows...

The most important thing about alcohol and LC is: Be careful how much you drink ! I used to be able to knok back drinks like no tomorrow and then go to work the next day. Now I hve 4 Vodkas and I am legless !!!! And I get the most awful hangover. Which means I actually do lose more when I am drinking, but that's only because I can't stomach food the next day.

I have found that if I have about 3 or 4 glasses of wine I could pretty much count on not losing any weight for about 3 days. I have lost 22 lbs so far , and I do not want to give up my wine, so I am happy with losing a bit slower. I do find however, that since I have started this WOE that if I have more than 3 glasses....I am pretty toasted!! but boy do I have fun!! I look at it as a lifestyle, and you must enjoy it. Everyone is different....but again moderation, but dont forget to have a little fun!

Happy Easter everyone! Mitz