Weight gain due to regular consumption of alcohol is increasing day - by - day. A study done by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) revealed that nearly two-thirds of all adults drink some amount of alcohol. People think that alcohol won’t hamper your regularly maintained body weight unless you overdo it and so for some people, the habit of daily consumption continues. It is said that the percentage of calories from alcohol in the daily diet ranges between 3 - 6 percent for men and 1- 4 percent for women. You may think that this percentage won’t make any difference to your waistline, but as you know when every single drop combines, they can make a huge difference since alcohol means high calories and we know that every calorie counts.

Alcohol Consumption Calorie Chart:
The following calculation of calories and alcohol consumption will tell you how much calories you gain with every glass of your favorite drinks.
•    Light beer, 12 oz, 90 to 110 calories
•    Regular beer, 12 oz, 150 calories
•    Red wine, 5 oz, 120 to 150 calories
•    Rum or whiskey, 1.5 oz, 98 calories
•    Gin, 1.5 oz, 120 calories
•    Vodka, 1.5 oz, 98 calories
If you take only one drink may be then your calorie count wont rise, but if you are drinking alcohol every night, you could easily put on at least a pound over the course of a month. It's also very important to remember that the total calories in your drink include any additions to the alcohol such as the fruit juice, mix, or soda in your cocktail counts too!

Ways to cut down calories without giving up alcohol:

It is suggested that women should drink no more than one alcoholic drink a day and men no more than two. Sometimes, argue are given that a glass of alcohol, such as red wine actually helps our heart, but you know the fact that everything in excess is actually bad for us.
You can also change the shape of the glasses you use. It’s observed that wide and short glasses contain more alcohol in them than the tall and thin ones. So, guys what you are waiting for. Go ahead, and change your glasses for your next cocktail treat.
Some additional tips for enjoying alcohol without the fear of weight gain:
•  Drink water or another no-calorie drink between alcoholic beverages. Water and other such drinks help in maintaining the balance of minerals in our body. They help us in passing out these not so good alcoholic drinks from our body.
•  Cut calories where you can, e.g. light beer instead of regular. Dr. Donna L. Weihofen, RD, MS, health nutritionist at the University of Wisconsin in Madison says that if you love to have signature drink such as Southern Comfort Old-Fashioned, try to avoid it and go for wine to cut calories, and then opt for wine spritzers which is a mix of wine and club soda, to cut the calories in half. You should enjoy these, but always be careful about the excess calories you are going to gain.
•  Save alcohol for special occasions. This saving will make you stronger for not consuming your alcohol too often. Start doing so from today itself; see you will really feel good.
•  Budget the calories into your diet and limit your alcohol servings. Try to have control over your senses by consuming less alcohol.

These few simple yet important ways will definitely take you to that level from where you won’t feel like a slave of your drinks. Instead, you will enjoy these with a limited calorie intake. So have fun! With a little planning, you can enjoy your favorite alcoholic drink in moderation without sabotaging your diet.

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