When it comes to finding alternatives to alcohol, one of the simplest options available is to switch to the non-alcoholic option. There are a number of non-alcoholic drinks available, from mocktails to non-alcoholic beer.
Non-alcoholic beer tastes the same as typical alcoholic beer, and if poured out or viewed from a distance, it is very difficult to tell the difference. This can be very helpful if you feel pressured to drink while at a bar or party, and no one but you needs to know that you’re drinking non-alcoholic beer if you don’t want to.
The effects of drinking too much non-alcoholic beer won’t be the same as if you drink normal alcoholic beer, but it still runs the risk of health issues, as they tend to be high in sugar. Just like if you drink too many sugary drinks, you may end up with issues with your teeth or with your weight. Frequently overdoing sugary non-alcoholic beers can also raise your risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which is a buildup of fat in the liver that isn’t caused by alcohol but can still lead to serious problems with your liver over time.
Can Non-alcoholic Beer Cause Liver Damage?
One of the biggest dangers that comes from drinking normal alcoholic beer is the long-term effects it can have on your body. Especially as beer is bad for your liver after long term use. As your liver helps your body filter out toxins, constantly bombarding it with alcohol can cause serious liver damage and even lead to liver failure.
Now the important question – is non-alcoholic beer bad for your liver?
Again, the simple answer is no, non-alcoholic beer is not bad for your liver. In fact, a study conducted by the Journal of Alcohol and Alcoholism found that there is no correlation between non-alcoholic beer and liver damage in healthy adults. However, this is for people who are healthy and didn’t drink healthily in the past. It’s also worth noting that there is no safe level of alcohol, and it’s never entirely risk-free. So although non-alcoholic beer is generally seen as the better option.
In some non-alcoholic beers, there may be small amounts of alcohol. Because of this, if you already have liver damage, it is recommended that you avoid any form of beer as it could still prove harmful.
This can also cause people issues if they just happen to already have liver conditions such as cirrhosis of the liver, as their body can’t filter the small amounts of alcohol out.
Impacts of Non-Alcoholic Beer on Liver Health
When it comes to a healthy liver, the best thing you can drink is lots of water, as water doesn’t contain toxins that your liver needs to filter out.
Non-alcoholic beer contains small amounts of alcohol, so it still has something that needs to be filtered out. While this amount is normally too small to do any harm to anyone who doesn’t already have serious liver problems, that doesn’t change the fact that it shouldn’t be drunk regularly.
Non-alcoholic beer is not damaging your liver so long as you don’t go overboard. You need to be sensible with how much you drink and continue to drink enough water to counteract its effects, as well as watch your sugar intake.
How Many Non-Alcoholic Beers Are Equal to One Beer?
There’s a rough rule of thumb that people use which says it takes around 10 non-alcoholic beers to have about the same amount of alcohol as a standard alcoholic one, which usually has 5% alcohol. Non-alcoholic beers are legally capped at 0.5% ABV.
Most non-alcoholic beers are below the 0.5% limit and more around the 0.05% mark, which makes the real ratio more likely to be around 100 to 1. Some are even brewed to be genuinely 0.0%, such as Guinness Zero.
Is Non-Alcoholic Beer Better For Your Health?
The short and simple answer about whether non-alcoholic beer is better for your health than alcoholic beer is yes.
Long-term alcohol abuse, which is often defined as regularly having more than 14 units of alcohol a week, can cause serious long-term health problems.
These health problems include:
- Vulnerable to types of cancer
- Liver damage
- Heart damage
- Kidney damage
- Unable to receive organs
- Infertility
- Impotence
- Brain damage
- Higher risk of dementia
- Higher risk of depression
- Higher risk of anxiety
- Alcohol poisoning/Alcohol overdosing
It is very easy for alcohol to lead to early death or health problems. While non-alcoholic beer massively reduces these risks, beer can still be enjoyed without this danger.
Next, there are actually some beer benefits that you can get from the non-alcoholic version. Non-alcoholic beer contains antioxidants, minerals and a lot of vitamin B, which can be beneficial for your mental and physical health. It also tends to be lower in calories than alcoholic beer and even offers some help with reducing abdominal bloating and fat to aid in weight loss.
Can I Drink Non-Alcoholic Beer When I Have a Fatty Liver?
If you’ve had a diagnosis of a fatty liver, non-alcoholic beer is likely to be a safer choice for you.
A lot of the studies that have looked at whether non-alcoholic beer is okay for people with liver disease have been looking at people with cirrhosis rather than the specific case of fatty liver, so we shouldn’t be taking that as a blanket ‘go for it’. The safest thing to do if you’ve got a fatty liver is to go and speak to your GP or a specialist before making non-alcoholic beer a regular part of your diet. They can give you advice that’s tailored to your specific situation based on how bad your condition is, what’s causing it and how that fits in with the rest of what your diet.
And if you’re drinking non-alcoholic beer because you’re worried about your drinking in general, then that’s something it’s definitely worth talking over with a professional. Our team is here, and we can be contacted on 0800 001 4070.
Reach Out for Support
It is just important that you remember that, just like everything, it must be had in moderation. Exchanging alcohol abuse for non-alcoholic beer abuse may sound better, but in the long run, it is still feeding an alcohol addiction. If you feel as though you are trying to use non-alcoholic beer as a crutch for an addiction or just a bad drinking habit, then there are people you can talk to.
There are always healthier options available for you. All you need to do is know where to look. Non-alcoholic beer, for a healthy person who drinks it in moderation, is not bad for your liver. But if you are dependent on it, then it just may be bad for your mental health. Get in touch with us today or call 0800 001 4070 if you are struggling with addiction.
