Low-Carb” Beers: Good Beers on the Market in Australia Geelong, VIC
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LETTERS The growing popularity of Evie R Leslie, Associate Professor1 Nutritional information for major 1 School of Psychology, Deakin University, 1-3 “low-carb” beers: good beers on the market in Australia Geelong, VIC. marketing or community 2 Cancer Prevention Centre, Cancer Council health risk? Alcohol by Carb Energy Victoria, Melbourne, VIC. Beer volume (g/100 mL) (kJ/100 mL) [email protected] Peter G Miller, Stephen P McKenzie, Full strength Florentine P de Groot, 1 Lion Nathan. Australian beers. http://www.lionnathan. Redback 4.7% 3.6 172 com/Great-Brands/AUS-Beer.aspx (accessed Dec Sondra L Davoren and Evie R Leslie Hahn Premium 5.0% 3.2 172 2009). 2 Foster’s Group. Beer. http://www.fosters.com.au/ TO THE EDITOR: The recent rapid Cascade Pale Ale 5.0% 3.0 170 enjoy/beer.htm (accessed Dec 2009). increase in popularity of low-carbohydrate 3 Bondi Blonde. Dietary information. http://www. Crown Lager 4.9% 3.1 169 bondiblonde.com/TheBondiBlondeStory/Dietary- (“low-carb”) beers in Australia, such as Fos- Cascade Premium Lager 5.0% 3.0 169 Information/tabid/83/Default.aspx (accessed Dec ter’s Pure Blonde and Lion Nathan’s Hahn 2009). Foster’s Lager 4.9% 3.1 168 Super Dry, may represent an insidious 4 Garrow JS, James WPT, editors. Human nutrition health risk. The perception that low-carb Victoria Bitter 4.6% 3.0 165 and dietetics. 9th ed. Edinburgh: Churchill Living- stone, 1993. beers represent a healthy alternative may Carlton Black 4.4% 3.3 161 5 Schröder H, Morales-Molina JA, Bermejo S, et al. result in some consumers: Tooheys New 4.6% 3.1 161 Relationship of abdominal obesity with alcohol con- • confusingThe Medical low-carb Journal beers ofwith Australia low-alco- sumption at population scale. Eur J Nutr 2007; 46: Tooheys Extra Dry 5.0% 2.5 161 369-376. hol beers;ISSN: 0025-729X 15 February 2010 192 4 235-240 Melbourne Bitter 4.6% 2.9 158 6 Corrigendum to Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 of • believing that there will be a significant the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 ©The Medical Journal of Australia Tooheys Old 4.4% 3.0 156 December 2006 on nutrition and health claims health2010 benefit www.mja.com.au associated with consumption Carlton Draught 4.6% 2.7 155 made on foods. Official Journal of the European of low-carbLetters beers (such as weight loss); Union 2007; 50 (L 12): 3-18. ❏ • drinking more beer in the belief that Swan Draught 4.5% 2.7 153 there are fewer health consequences associ- XXXX Draught 4.5% 2.1 147 ated with low-carb beers; or Mid–low strength • drinking low-carb beer in situations XXXX Gold 3.5% 1.9 121 where the consumption of regular beer may be contraindicated because of health condi- Hahn Premium Light 2.6% 3.1 119 tions such as diabetes or cardiac vulner- Carlton Sterling 2.5% 3.1 114 ability. Cascade Light 2.6% 3.0 114 Particularly vulnerable risk groups Hahn Super Dry 3.5 3.5% < 1.0 104 include younger people and especially Low-carb young women, who are often highly body image-conscious, as well as others with Carlton Dry 4.5% 1.9 139 weight or health problems. Bondi Blonde 4.5% < 2.0 130 Nutritional information for some of the Tooheys Maxim 4.6% 1.6 126 major beers on the market in Australia is Hahn Super Dry 4.6% 0.9 126 1-3 shown in the Box. The new generation of Pure Blonde 4.6% 0.9 125 low-carb beers contain about 0.9 g of carbo- hydrate per 100 mL. However, there is little, Carb = carbohydrate. ◆ if any, difference in either the amount of alcohol or the total energy content of tradi- tional and low-carb beers, suggesting “low- beers in terms of both alcohol content and carb” may not be a nutritionally significant energy intake. Recognising this fact, the improvement. European Parliament adopted the resolution Given that alcohol is a known cause of that “Beverages containing more than 1.2% short- and long-term problems such as can- by volume of alcohol shall not bear health cer, cirrhosis of the liver, strokes and violent claims”.6 We believe that the Australian behaviour, we contend that the alcohol con- Government, particularly through its cur- tent of beer is a far more important health rent Review of Food Labelling Law and issue than its energy content. Additionally, Policy, should move quickly to enact similar the alcohol content itself contributes directly legislation to protect the Australian public to energy intake (1 g of alcohol contributes from the marketing claims of brewing com- 29.8 kJ of energy, compared with sugar’s 4 panies. The message should be made 15.4 kJ). Consuming alcohol may also indi- explicit: low-carb beers are not a “healthy rectly lead to weight gain because of its choice”. association with unhealthy eating behaviour, such as increased snacking, junk food con- Peter G Miller, NHMRC Howard Florey Fellow1 sumption and overeating.5 Stephen P McKenzie, Research Fellow1 The Box clearly demonstrates that drink- Florentine P de Groot, Visiting Academic1 ers are better off consuming low-strength Sondra L Davoren, Legal Policy Advisor2 MJA • Volume 192 Number 4 • 15 February 2010 235.