Does Alcohol Really Make A Difference In Losing Weight?

I've just recently (in the past week) started using Calorie Count.  I was doing well with weight loss and then went on a mini vacation to visit my parents.  They like to eat fattening food and drink alcoholic drinks.  I too like to drink margaritas and red wine.  My question is:  Does alcohol really make a difference in losing weight?

Only the fact that there are calories in Alcoholic beverages.  So if you exceed your calorie goal intake, it can stall weight loss, whether it's with wine or bread or chocolate or peanuts or... you get the point =)

Yes.  Alcohol has a ton of calories, especially sugary fruity drinks like margaritas.  Keep it minimal and it's less of an issue, but 2-3 drinks can add up to a lot of calories really fast.

Yes, and it's not just the calories. Alcohol affects the levels of hormones like leptin that help regulate our weight and metabolism. Everyone is different, but I have  noticed that if I have more than 4 oz of wine a day my weight loss stalls out, even if the calories are kept the same.

Interesting jenmcc - I googled it.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications /publications.htm?SEQ_NO_115=150236

Even if it isn't true for everyone, I'm glad I havn't picked up drinking on a regular basis.  Just once at new years and a glass of wine at thanksgiving dinner/christmas.

the problem with alcohol is really more than just the extra calories. its the the things you do after you've had a few drinks. like ordering than pizza, or mexican food, that all of a sudden sounds so good. when your dieting your stomach is usually half empty. so u usually need something to sop up that alcohol. if your gonna drink better have just one and with your meal.

i was afraid that going out and having drinks was going to adversely affect my weight loss, but I also wanted to be mroe outgoing because I'm not just about changing my body but my life as a whole.

So I guess I really didnt a horrible amount of beer (i had two lagers and then switched to light beer) but I still thought I would have gained weight.

The opposite has happened. I don't know what it is, but ever since I started going out these past two weeks the weight has been coming off like nothing.

Obviously it's not typical, and  I wasn't like binging on food either while drunk. I would have like a hamburger or if it were at a resurant something before drinking.

It hasn't stalled me though, surprisingly. I guess it would be good to also note that I am 6'5" 270 and have been working out hardcore, so i am probably still netting a defecit.

shawn, its probably the fact that alchohol is very dehydrating. i always notice after a long night of drinking that my stomach looks very lean. remember that 1 gallon of water is 8 pounds!

Carbs: 4 calories per gram.
Protein: 4 calories per gram.
Alcohol: 7 calories per gram.
Fat: 9 calories per gram.

Per gram, it's higher in calories than carbs or protein, but a calorie is a calorie, so it doesn't REALLY matter for weight's sake where calories come from, it's only the gross amount that matters. Just remember, you have to nourish your body as well.

Jennmc is exactly right! Even ONE drink can affect Leptin. Leptin tells you when to stop eating -- it's the satiety hormone.

For the person who has been losing since drinking these past couple of weeks. Maybe it's a fluke ... or could it be dehydration? Just a thought.

I had to take nutrition years ago to graduate from college (my college had a biosci requirement as part of the breadth requirements) and i took it pass/fail so i wouldn't have to go the small section, but i ended up doing very well on the final and this is what i remember (after having refreshed my memory with the internet). 

there are two metabolic pathways for alcohol (there's actually a third, but you only need to know about the 2).  when you drink a small amount, or drink slowly, your body utilizes the first pathway (the alcohol dehydrogenase or ADH pathway), which makes very efficient use of the energy (calories) in alcohol, and while this happens, any other energy sources in the body are temporarily stored as fat (since alcohol cannot be used in glucogenesis or fat synthesis). 

When you drink heavily in one sitting (get drunk) or are generally a heavy drinker, this first pathway becomes overloaded and cannot metabolize all of the alcohol in your system and the second pathway (the microsomal ethanol oxidizing system or MEOS) kicks in - this pathway is INEFFICIENT (it takes more calories to metabolize the alcohol than were in the alcohol itself) - thus, you lose calories rather than gain them by drinking alcohol in this way (hence, studies have shown that chronic alcoholics tend to be skinnier than one would expect based on their caloric intake). 

one last thought - It's difficult, if not impossible, however, to know exactly which pathway you're activating at any point.  and chronic alcohol abuse is just about the unhealthiest way to lose weight.