Drinking and the Low Carb Diet, Nutrient Bible Chapter 2

Since this is probably the most difficult aspect of dieting for most of us, today, I wanted to focus on the carbohydrate counts in alcohol (I have also added the calories, since we will be transitioning into the calorie system later on.) Although I do not drink frequently myself, I recognize the research that one or two drinks a day can be quite healthy for your system. Research shows that moderate drinking can reduce your risk of heart attacks and your risk of developing heart disease, while excessive drinking can increase your risk of pancreatic, mouth and liver cancer and is the cause of almost 100,000 deaths per year. So, lets stick with moderation! 

What we consume as alcoholic beverages are at once created from carbohydrates and are the antithesis of them. Alcoholic drinks are essentially fermented beverages - all fermented beverages start out with a plant that is high in carbohydrates, frequently a grape, grain or starch. Alcohol is produced during the process of fermentation - carbohydrates are consumed by yeasts. Carbohydrates not consumed by yeasts remain as residual sugars in the beverage, thus, the more carbohydrates the less alcohol content, and the more alcohol content, the less carbohydrates. Keep that in mind.

Beers can have up to 20 grams of carbohydrates per a 12 ounce serving, whereas distilled spirits like whiskey, rum, and vodka have only trace amounts of residual sugars.  Be aware though, that the add-ins for mixed drinks are the source of the bulk of carbohydrates in alcoholic drinks and liqueurs frequently have added sugar for flavor.

About.com made a lovely list of carbohydrate counts for popular drinks, to that I add calorie counts and below, a list of calorie and carb information for the most popular mixed drinks. 

Hope this helps and happy drinking! You know, not too much though... think of the calories!

Beer per 12 Ounce Serving

Regular Beer                        12 grams carb               149 calories


Light Beer                            3 to 7 grams                 110 calories


Wine per 5 Ounce Serving

 

Dry Champagne                  2.5 to 4.5 grams             112
 calories


Dry White                           3 grams                          94 calories


Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay


”Off Dry”                             5 to 6 grams                   120 calories


Reisling, Chenin Blanc


Muscat                               8 grams                         124
 calories


Dry Red                              3.5 to 4 grams               122 calories


Syrah, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sav


Zinfindel                             4.2 grams                       131
 calories


Dessert Wines                   12 to 14 grams                 233
 calories


Sweet Late Harvest Wine    20 grams                        174 calories


Liqueurs per 1.5 fl oz

Amaretto                            25 grams                       159
 calories


Bailey’s Irish Cream           11 grams                        156
 calories


B & B Benedictine              8 grams                          135 calories


Campari                             12 grams                        107
 calories


Coffee Liqueur                   24 grams                         155
 calories


Cointreau                           15 grams                        119
 calories


Creme de Cacao                22 grams                         147
 calories


Creme de Cassis               17 grams                         126
 calories


Creme de Menthe               21 grams
                        143 calories


Grand Marnier                    10 grams
                         99 calories


Kirsch                                 9 grams
                         95 calories


Ouzo                                  16 grams
                       123 calories


Sambuca                            17 grams
                       126 calories


Triple Sec                           16 grams                       123 calories


Distilled Spirits per 1 fl oz

Gin, Rum, Vodka                 0 grams                         65 calories


Whiskey, Tequila                 0 grams                         65 calories


Brandy, Cognac                   0 grams                         65 calories


Mixed Drinks and Cocktails per 1 drink

Bourbon and Soda              0 grams                         106 calories


Gin and Tonic                     16 grams                       171 calories


Rum and Cola                     15 grams                       154 calories


Scotch and Soda                 0 grams                         105 calories


Bacardi                                6 grams                        117 calories


Black Russian                     16 grams                       244 calories


Bloody Mary                        5 grams                        123 calories


Cape Cod                           13 grams                       148 calories


Fuzzy Navel                        38 grams                       253 calories


Golden Cadillac                   27 grams                       361 calories


Grasshopper                       15 grams                       164 calories


High Ball                              0 grams                       104 calories


Kamikaze                            15 grams                      178 calories


Long Island Iced tea           10 grams                        138 calories


Mai Tai                                30 grams                      309 calories


Mahnattan                           2 grams                        129 calories


Margarita                            11 grams                       168 calories


Martini                                 .5 grams                       160 calories


Mimosa                              15 grams                       144 calories


Mojito                                  30 grams                      217 calories


Pina Colada                        30 grams                       230 calories


Salty Dog                            14 grams                      157 calories


Screwdriver                        19 grams                       181 calories


Sex on the Beach               30 grams                       322 calories


Tequila Sunrise                  15 grams                       189 calories


White Russian                    17 grams                       257 calories


My Nutrient Bible, Chapter 1 - Carbohydrates

One of the most useful things when embarking on any new program or venture is research. I firmly believe that you cannot truly say you are doing something unless you actually have learned everything that is available to know about it. Thus, if you want to start a low carbohydrate diet, you must know how many carbohydrates are in every food you eat, otherwise you are just wasting your time.

Carbohydrates are measured by grams and your goal in this phase is to eat 25 grams or fewer per day. Fiber is an insoluble Carbohydrate that passes through your body and aids digestion, so in calculating net carbohydrates, you can subtract the grams of fibers from the total carbohydrates. These are the numbers that will be presented in my list below.

Meats, Poultry and Fish:

0g carbs - beef, pork, boar, lamb, rabbit, chicken, duck, turkey, quail, salmon, tuna, tilapia, catfish, crab
1-2g carbs - hotdog (1.6oz), cured beef/ deli (1oz), Lebanon bologna (2oz), bratwurst (3oz), ham (2oz), pepperoni (2oz), lobster (3oz), octopus (3oz), shrimp (4oz)
2-3g carbs - calf liver (3oz), clams (3oz), squid (3oz), scallops (3oz)
3-5g carbs - mussels (3oz), oysters (3oz)
8-10g carbs - scrapple (2oz)
*Breaded meats and fish and meatballs/meatloaf are not suitable for this diet (I will share a low carb meatball recipe later on), also be careful of hidden sugars and fillers in processed meats. Check the packaging!

Milk (and substitutes), Eggs and Cheeses:

1g carbs - egg (1 large), blue cheese (4tbsp), Swiss (1oz), Parmesan (1oz), Mozzarella (2oz), Gouda (2oz), Cream Cheese (2tbsp), Feta (1oz), Compte (2-3oz), Gruyere (2-3oz), sour cream (2tbsp)
2-3G carbs - unsweetened almond milk (8oz)
5-6g carbs - heavy cream (8oz), unsweetened soy milk (8oz), coconut milk (8oz)
10g carbs - half and half (8oz)
11g carbs - whole and low fat milk (8 oz), unsweetened yogurt (8oz)
12g carbs - nonfat milk (8oz)

Vegetables and Fruits

1g carbs - arugula (2cup), book choi (2cup), celery (1stalk), endive (1cup), cucumber (.5cup), iceberg lettuce (5cup), mushrooms (.5cup), romaine lettuce (2cup), green olives (20ea), black olives (5ea), garlic (1clove), ginger (1tbsp)
2-3g carbs - asparagus (6-7 spears), broccoli (1cup), cabbage (.5cup), pumpkin (.25cup), rhubarb (.25), spaghetti squash (.25cup), zucchini (1cup), lemon/lime juice (2tbsp)
3-5g carbs - artichoke (1/2), avocado (whole), green beans (1cup), onion (.25cup), tomato (.25cup)
8-10g carbs - tangerine, grapes (20), apricot (2 small), cherries (8), peach, plum, kiwi, blackberries (1cup), cranberries (1cup), raspberries (1cup), strawberries (1cup)
10-15g carbs - orange, nectarine
15-20g carbs - apple, grapefruit, mango (1/2), blueberries (1cup)
20-25g carbs - pear, banana, papaya, watermelon (wedge)

Nuts and Seeds (1oz servings)

4-6g carbs - Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, peanuts, pecans, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, sunflower seeds
6-8g carbs - almonds, pistachios, sesame seeds
8-10g carbs - cashews, flax seeds
10-13g carbs - chestnuts

Liquids and Beverages (8oz servings)

0g carbs - water, club soda, unsweetened tea, unsweetened coffee
Dairy (check above)
10-15g carbs -celery juice, mixed vegetable, tomato juice
20-25g carbs - carrot juice, grapefruit juice
25-30g carbs - apple juice, orange juice
30-g carbs - cranberry juice cocktail, grape juice, pineapple juice

Oils, Butters and Fats

0g carbs - still, don't lick butter...