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Alcohol
The Good, the Bad, the Calories
By Felicia Hodges
Alcohol is metabolized or "burned up" only by the liver. The organ takes its time about it, too, which is why you may feel the maximum effects of what you drink within an hour, but feel the physical after effects – the hangover – for long after.
For the record, a 12-ounce can of beer, a 5-ounce glass of wine and a jigger (1 1/2-ounce shot) of whiskey have the same amount of alcohol in them. They may, however, be absorbed at different rates because of other ingredients (i.e. the hops and cereals in beer may cause it to be absorbed slower than a shot of gin). This does not mean it takes more beer to get you drunk. It means that it will take longer to reach the maximum effect. But when absorption is peaked, two beers will have the same effect on a person as two shots will.
And, in case you are counting your calories, an ounce of 90-proof liquor (which is 45 percent alcohol) has about 110 calories while an 8-ounce glass of beer has about 100. But, unlike most of the foods we consume, neither has vitamins, minerals or other nutritional elements – real "empty" calories if ever there were any.
