• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Alcohol

B

bobrobert

Well-Known Member
Messages
417
Location
Scotland
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
I have read that beer is high in carbs therefore it raises blood sugar levels which means it should be avoided. On the other hand I have also read that alcohol lowers blood sugar levels which means that type 1 sufferers should eat carbs to avoid hypos. I can't seem to get my head around this. Can anyone explain what appears to me a contradiction? BTW I am type 2 so it doesn't directly impact on me.
 
Yes, beers have carbs in them but it varies. T2s need to take account of the carbs to avoid weight and sugar gain. Yes, alcohol can reduce blood sugar a bit as it stops the liver producing glycogen whilst the liver removes the alcohol
 
I'm not an expert but let me try and answer.
True Beer is very high in Carbs, I've heard that I beer is the same a loaf of bread. All Alcohol contains sugar in varying degrees.
Not certain that Alcohol lowers Blood Sugar, I would think it raises it ?
All carbs convert to Glucose when eaten no matter were they come from, and in Type 1 a Hypo would be caused by to high a sugar level, and not sufficient Insulin injected.
Type 1 control Blood Sugar through Diet and Insulin injections.
Type 2 usually produce insulin, but it does not break down sugar well and you have to control your sugar levels usually with Medication, but mainly with Diet.
As Carbohydrates convert to Sugar in your system, you will find that most Diabetics eat Low Carb Diets, as this makes control easier
Hope that answers, if not ask any questions and someone will answer
 
Thanks. A couple of weeks ago I had an "off day" and bought a Chinese meal - hot & sour soup and special fried rice along with a bottle of red wine. Tested before the meal. Readings around 6.0 before and about the same 2 hrs after, which meant no spike but the carbs would have been quite high and obviously ended up in my system. I suspect the wine kept them low. A nice Shiraz. Ok a couple of times a month but a good boy on all other days.
 
Maybe the spike came and went within the 2 hours?
 
The best drink is red wine. (happily, as that is my own personal poison) and I do find one small glass with a meal keeps my after meal spikes down. I have tested this and it really does work. The secret is to drink it with a meal and not on its own, and in small measures.
 
Most beers do tend to be high in carbs, which will raise your blood sugars. However, alcohol partially paralyses the liver, inhibiting its ability to release glycogen. In layman's terms, you will first get a big spike in blood sugars, and then a crash in blood sugars later. The more beer you drink, the bigger the effect. As mentioned above, a glass or two of red wine should be ok, as it's low in carbs so easier to predict. I find I can drink most dry white wines with no problems too.
 
Randburg said:
<snip>
True Beer is very high in Carbs, I've heard that I beer is the same a loaf of bread. All Alcohol contains sugar in varying degrees.
<snip>r
Click to expand...

I would be interested in a reference to this!

Bread is almost all carbs - there isn't much else apart from flour, yeast and some sugar for the yeast.

Beer is almost all water, with generally less than 5% alcohol and some unfermented sugars (mainly maltose, I think).

So with respect I find that statement very hard to believe without conclusive scientific evidence!

I would, however, really like to see nutrition labels on beer and wine to be able to include it in sugar and carb counting.

Cheers

LGC
 
Would definitely recommend some carbs before heading to bed after a drink if T1. A slice of toast or two does the trick for me after a couple of beers.
 
It might help to get your head round the apparent contradiction if you take the timing into account. Beer is liquid toast says a certain well known doctor and drinking it will raise your blood sugar levels a lot.

Alcohol is dealt with by your liver and while it is doing that it won't provide a liver rush of glucose so ............no dawn phenomenon.

So beer is full of carbs and no liver rush during the hangover hence a possible low sugar event the following morning or at any time your need the help of your liver.
 
They can't actually test the GI of wines and beers because they have too little carbohydrate ( and of course the alcohol would confound results)
The researcher's at Sydney say
Alcoholic beverages contain very little carbohydrate. In fact, most wines and spirits contain virtually none, although beer contains some (3 or 4 grams per 100 mL). A middy of beer (10 ounces) contains about 10 grams of carbohydrate compared with 36 grams in the same volume of soft drink. For this reason, a beer will raise glucose levels slightly. If you drink beer in large volumes (not a great idea) then you could expect it to have a more significant effect on blood glucose.
(middy, that's an interesting word)
and here's a Charles Bamforth who holds the wonderful title of Anheuser-Busch Endowed Professorship of Malting and Brewing Science at Davis University in the US expounding on beers unjustified bad rap for carbs.
http://news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=7525

edit I've found his paper 'Beer, carbohydrates and diets'
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/j.2050-0416.2005.tb00681.x/pdf
I haven't really read it but it seems to include everything you might want to know about beer and carbs and how the body deals with ethanol . It is definitely aimed at the industry pointing out that they could positively market beer as being a souce of soluble fibre and pre-biotics.

( Actually, you couldn't do that in Europe, as you can't make health claims for something containing alcohol as the manufacturers of certain so called 'flower' remedies have been told by the ASA)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
An interesting link but in the absence of similar type links in studies then the jury will still be pondering?

quote

He added that there is little experimental data available from the research community to define the healthfulness of beer.

unquote
 
phoenix said:
For this reason, a beer will raise glucose levels slightly. If you drink beer in large volumes (not a great idea) then you could expect it to have a more significant effect on blood glucose.
Click to expand...

So if we don't drink beer in large quantities then the glucose levels will only be slightly raised. Honestly, how many beer drinkers stop after only one pint?
 
Me, usually because I'm driving! I never had more than 3 or 4 even in my yoof, now as a diabetic I'm happy to make a good pint of real ale last.
 
sanguine said:
Me, usually because I'm driving! I never had more than 3 or 4 even in my yoof, now as a diabetic I'm happy to make a good pint of real ale last.
Click to expand...

OK I will modify my statement. People who don't drink beer in large quantities or at all, and drivers won't have a large rise in their blood glucose levels.

It's all the others ...................
 
Cool!:cool:

2 cans of Special Brew a day are a Newcastle style 800 kcal diet. ;)

Hmmm.....Newcastle Brown?
That would be more appropriate.
 
Yeah, but once you've had two, you want another, and no-one will give you any money and then your "mates" come over and start arguing with you in public and you end up in fights and the police come and you smell and ...
 
gfmoore said:
Yeah, but once you've had two, you want another, and no-one will give you any money and then your "mates" come over and start arguing with you in public and you end up in fights and the police come and you smell and ...
Click to expand...

been there have you?
 
Special Brew has a built in safety mechanism.
After a couple you can't find the ring pull to open another.
 
Back
Top