Melbourne Cup Day is celebrated all across Australia. It’s a time for dressing up, placing a bet and commonly indulging in food and alcohol. However, it’s important to keep this within moderation. Many people take the alcohol to excess which costs them a lot of money and is harmful to their health and waistline.
Alcohol – how many calories in that drink?
One standard glass of white wine (150ml)
102 calories/ 426 kilojoules
Wine is a popular choice and many individuals can consume up to 10 standard glasses or more. At 102 calories a pop, this very quickly adds up! Five standard glasses means 510 calories, not to mention the nibbles that are being consumed with them.
One standard glass of a sweet wine
150 calories / 627 kilojoules
Your sweet wines are higher again in calories and can be drunk down quite easily, like juice or soft drink.
Corona
149 calories / 628 kilojoules
One schooner of full strength beer (average of brands)
162 calories / 684 kilojoules
Just one beer contains 162 calories and men in particular can drink in excess of 10 in a day out. That’s 1620 calories for 10 beers. That would be equivalent to some people’s total daily energy requirements.
Bottle of Cider
Lime and kiwi fruit 500ml – 325 calories / 1350
Apple 355ml bottle – 167 calories / 696 kilojoules
Cider is another very popular choice these days. It is higher in energy than most standard servings of wine and beer but because some ciders are lower in alcohol content, it means that people often drink more of them or swap to something else along the way. Therefore they get a huge hit of calories from a 500ml cider worth 1.6 standard drinks and will continue on to drink more wine.
Nibbles and meals
Nibbles tend to be small but energy dense which is fine, if you only eat a small number of them. When people drink however, they can go overboard and eat a whole days worth of energy just in horderves. On top of this, those who have been drinking tend to get high energy/ fat/ sodium snacks afterwards like burritos or pizza.
The take home message
Enjoy the day but be mindful of how much you’re drinking – this will also assist in you making wiser food choices. You will be feeling much better for it the next day!
Contact us for results focused nutritional advice
This article was written by our dietitian Belinda Elwin who is a Dietitians Association of Australia member and Accredited Practising Dietitian and Nutritionist. If you have questions about healthy eating, make an appointment. We‘ll provide you with a simple and effective routine targeted to your concerns. Contact us today!
