Alcohol and Diabetes
Alcohol reduces blood sugar
Alcohol can make certain diabetes complications worse. It is important to note that consuming alcohol on an empty stomach may lead to low blood glucose levels or hypoglycemia, especially posing a risk for individuals on oral medications or insulin. Drinking reduces the liver's ability to regulate blood sugar and may interfere with certain diabetes medications. Women metabolize alcohol slower than men do.
Never drink on an empty stomach
Always eat prior to drinking an alcoholic beverage. If you rely on carbohydrate counting for meal planning, understand and consider how the type and amount of drinks you select will impact your blood glucose levels. Adjusting your insulin dosage may be necessary if you plan to have multiple beverages.
One drink =
- 12 oz. of beer
- 5 oz. of wine
- 5 oz. of hard liquor
Carbohydrates per serving
- Craft beer sometimes contains twice the alcohol content and calorie count compared to light beer.
- Choose diet soda, seltzer or sparkling water rather than high-calorie mixers to reduce calorie consumption.
Alcohol and Diabetes
Guidelines & Tips
Popular Alcoholic Beverages
including carbs per serving
Beer (12 oz.)
|
Lite Beer |
5 grams of carbohydrates |
|
Regular Beer |
12 g |
|
Dark Beer |
up to 25 g |
|
16 oz. Guinness Draft |
17 g |
|
Green Beer |
12 g |
|
Guinness Draught |
9 g |
|
Guinness Extra Stout |
14 g |
|
Guinness Black Lager |
11 g |
|
Killian's Irish Red Amber Lager |
14 g |
|
Smithwick's Irish Ale |
15 g |
|
Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale |
17 g |
|
Murphy's Irish Stout |
13 g |
|
Irish Coffee (standard serving) |
8 g |
|
Irish Cream and Coffee (standard serving) |
8 g |
Wines and Spirits (5 oz.)
|
12 oz. Wine Cooler |
up to 30 grams of carbohydrates |
|
White Wine |
4 g |
|
Chardonnay & Pinot Grigio |
3 g |
|
White Zinfandel Wine |
4 g |
|
Chenin Blanc, Riesling, Semillon |
5 g |
|
Dry Red Wine |
3-4 g |
|
Sweet/Dessert Wine |
12-20 g |
|
Liqueurs i.e. Amaretto and Kahlua |
17 grams per oz. |
|
Sambuca, Cointreau, Bailey's Irish Cream |
5-7 grams per oz. |
|
Vodka, Rum, Gin, Tequila, Scotch, |
0 carb |
|
Southern Comfort |
3 grams per oz. |
Mixed Drinks (per serving)
Unsweetened vodka, rum, gin, tequila, whiskey, scotch, brandy & cognac contain zero carbohydrates. When added to a zero-carb mixer, such as diet cola, it is a zero-carb beverage.
|
Gin & Tonic |
15 grams of carbohydrates |
|
Rum & Regular Cola |
15 g |
|
Rum & Diet Cola |
0 carbs |
|
Black Russian |
16 g |
|
Bloody Mary |
5 g |
|
Fuzzy Navel |
38 g |
|
Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri |
44 g |
|
Kamikaze |
15 g |
|
Long Island Iced Tea |
10 g |
|
Manhattan |
2 g |
|
Margarita (Classic) |
11-25 g |
|
Margarita (Frozen) |
12-96 g |
|
Mint Julep |
8 g |
|
Old Fashioned |
5 g |
|
Martini |
0-1 g |
|
Mojito |
25 g |
|
Pina Colada |
30-50 g |
|
Seabreeze |
20 g |
|
Screwdriver (vodka & OJ) |
19 g |
|
Sloe Gin Fizz |
3 g |
|
Tequila Sunrise |
15 g |
|
Tom Collins |
3 g |
|
White Russian |
16 g |
Shots or Shooters (per serving)
Usually served about 1½ ounces per serving. The following are the carbohydrate counts for commonly served shooters.
|
Alabama Slammer |
8 grams of carbohydrates |
|
Amaretto Sour |
19 g |
|
Fuzzy Navel |
19 g |
|
Jager Bomb |
14 g |
|
Jello Shots |
3-4 g |
|
Kamikaze |
19 g |
|
Mud Slide |
19 g |
|
Gin, Rum, Tequila, Whiskey, Vodka |
0 carbs |
|
Snake Bite |
1-2 g |
|
Southern Comfort |
3 g |
|
Irish Coffee (standard serving) |
8 g |
|
Irish Cream & Coffee (standard serving) |
8 g |