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- Beer is the most commonly consumed alcoholic beverage in the United States.
- Is beer good for you? It may help with bone density, but can disrupt sleep, cause digestive issues and increase cancer risk.
- If you do decide to drink beer, do so in moderation with responsibility.
If your idea of relaxing at the end of the day involves cracking open a beer, you’re not the only one. Beer is cited as the most consumed alcoholic beverage in the United States. Compared to other alcoholic beverages, beer is easy to come by in stores due to its low alcohol by volume (ABV); many beers are under 5% ABV, making them sellable in grocery stores in states with strict liquor laws. However, while those low ABV numbers may make drinking beer seem like a better option than other alcoholic beverages, it’s important to note how drinking a beer every day does take a toll on your overall health—both immediate and long term.
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Potential Health Effects
It May Help Your Bone Density
Drinking beer has been linked to increased bone mineral density for both men and women, and the consumption of one beer per week has been associated with a lower risk of hip fracture. This is due to the high amounts of silicon and polyphenols in beer. However, more research must be done to support this and evaluate if the benefits outweigh the downsides of beer consumption.
It Could Disrupt Your Sleep
While drinking beer—as well as other types of alcohol—is popularly known for making the consumer feel relaxed and experience feelings of euphoria, the intoxication of alcohol can affect your brain’s long-term health.
“The alcohol in beer can affect the brain so that reflexes are slowed down, and [your] balance, memory and sleep may be impaired,” says Kimberly Gomer M.S., RD, LDN. Alcohol can affect your brain’s communication pathway and even affects your brain’s ability to process information.
As Gomer mentions, sleep can be impaired even if you consume a light amount of alcohol during the day. One study found that even a low dose of alcohol (two standard drinks) delayed the onset of REM sleep and reduced the time in REM sleep. When consuming alcohol, the liver kicks into gear to metabolize the alcohol, which can result in a fitful night of sleep.
It Slows Down Your Weight-Loss Process
“Every time you drink beer, it goes directly to your liver,” says Gomer. “The body has no ability to store alcohol, as it recognizes it as a toxin. It is then prioritized by the liver to be used for energy.”
When consumed, alcohol goes to the “front of the line,” as Gomer says, because the liver is prioritizing getting rid of that toxin first. So if you are in the process of trying to lose weight, because alcohol is prioritized, it can slow down the entire fat-burning process.
“The liver’s job is to filter circulating blood and destroys toxic substances, including alcohol,” she says. “The liver can handle a certain amount of alcohol, but as a person continues to drink, it can become stressed to the point of causing permanent damage.”
It May Cause Digestive Issues
“Alcohol is first broken down in the stomach, promoting an increase in digestive juices,” says Gomer. “Alcohol also irritates the small intestine and colon where it is further broken down and absorbed, and it also can affect the normal speed that food moves through them, which may result in abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhea.”
When consumed in large amounts, alcohol can cause intestinal inflammation and cause issues within the gastrointestinal tract and the liver. Alcohol can negatively alter the bacteria in your gut and permeate the lining of the intestine (leaky gut syndrome), making the body even more susceptible to alcohol-related diseases—including alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Contradictorily, some research suggests that due to beer’s fermented compounds, this alcoholic beverage, in particular, could potentially benefit your gut health.
It Could Dehydrate You
“The alcohol in beer can result in dehydration,” says Gomer. “The kidney is responsible for regulating fluid and electrolytes, and alcohol can disrupt hormones that affect kidney function, which can affect the kidneys and the body’s ability to regulate fluid and electrolytes. It also disrupts hormones that affect kidney function.”
One study found that when drinking moderate amounts of low-alcoholic beverages, such as beer, the diuretic effect of this drink was not as strong as other alcoholic beverages like wine and liquor. So if you drink beer moderately and make sure to drink water as well during the day, that may help you avoid dehydration—which is known to be a contributing factor to the morning-after hangover.
It Can Increase Your Risk of Chronic Diseases
Limiting the number of drinks really does matter when it comes to taking care of your long-term health— particularly when it comes to lowering your risk of several chronic diseases.
Although one small study found some connections between moderate drinking and improved heart health due to alcohol’s potential ability to increase the functionality of HDL (“good”) cholesterol, another concluded that many observational studies may have overestimated the benefits of alcohol consumption, mainly wine, in cardiovascular health, by not considering other factors such genetics, lifestyle and socioeconomic associations with wine consumption.
Additionally, excessive drinking can increase your risk of high blood pressure, stroke, heart failure and even cardiomyopathy, a disorder that affects the heart muscle.
Along with heart-health risks, drinking alcohol has been linked to increasing the risk of certain types of cancer, such as mouth and throat, voice box (larynx), esophagus, colon and rectum, liver and breast cancer for women. Alcohol consumption accounts for 6% of all cancers and 4% of cancer deaths in the United States.
Nutrition Facts
One 12-ounce can (355 mL) of regular beer contains:
- Calories: 153
- Total Carbohydrates: 13 g
- Dietary Fiber: 0 g
- Total Sugar: 0 g
- Added Sugar: 0 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Total Fat: 0 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
- Sodium: 14 mg
- Alcohol: 14 g
- Niacin: 2 mg
- Riboflavin:
- Choline: 36 mg
- Folate: 21 mcg
- Magnesium: 21 mg
- Phosphorus: 50 mg
- Selenium: 2 mcg
- Vitamin B12:
Should You Drink Beer for Better Health?
Enjoying a can of beer (aka drinking in moderation) can be a part of a healthy eating pattern, but don’t feel like you need to start drinking beer if you aren’t already doing so to reap these benefits. Sure, drinking beer could provide some health benefits. Still, many other foods provide the same—think fermented foods for digestive health or calcium-rich foods (yogurt, milk, cheese) for bone health—without facing the same health risks.
Our Expert Take
Beer is among the most popular alcoholic drinks in the U.S. and worldwide. Some research has associated its consumption with benefits such as increased bone density, improved gut health and better lipid levels.
However, alcohol consumption, particularly binge and heavy drinking, can negatively impact your health, increasing the risk of certain types of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, liver diseases and early death.
The question is, do the benefits outweigh the risks? Regardless of what the answer might be, it’s important to consume alcohol in moderation and responsibly, following the current guidelines to limit daily intake to two drinks or less for men and one drink or less for women.
Frequently Asked Questions
How unhealthy is beer for you?
Beer is an alcoholic beverage, so drinking it comes with the risks of any type of alcohol consumption. Sticking with the recommendations of no more than one drink per day for women and no more than two drinks per day for men is a good rule of thumb. That being said, there are individuals who may experience digestive issues, sleep disturbances and an increased risk of cancer.
Is it normal to drink beer every night?
It’s not recommended to consume alcoholic beverages every night. Not only does alcohol come with possible side effects, beer is also a source of extra calories and could cause weight gain, or impede weight loss goals.
Is beer better than other alcoholic beverages?
Beer typically has a lower ABV than other alcoholic beverages, like wine or hard liquor. However, there is no “better” alcoholic drink. There is also no advantage to starting to drink beer if you don’t currently drink alcohol.
