Alcohol consumption, particularly in heavy drinkers, can affect what you eat and affect the way your body uses whatever nutrients you consume, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, or NIAAA. Alcoholics are often deficient in protein and vitamins. Alcoholic beverages consist mostly of water and sugar. Because they don't contribute much nutrition other than calories, alcoholic beverages are considered empty calories.
Interferes With Protein Metabolism
If you're a heavy drinker, undernutrition from lack of protein can increase your susceptibility to liver disease, the NIAAA says. Alcohol can interfere with your body's ability to properly use protein, even if you consume adequate protein in your diet. Alcohol's interference with your body's ability to absorb protein can affect your blood's ability to clot properly. It can also cause you to have a low blood albumin level. Albumin is a protein in your blood that may be tested to determine your nutritional status.
Can Reduce Folate Levels
Alcohol abuse can cause you to become deficient in folate, says the Office of Dietary Supplements, National Institutes of Health. Folate is a B vitamin found naturally in foods such as dark green leafy vegetables, citrus fruits and juices, dried beans and peas and fortified breakfast cereals. Folate helps prevent changes in your body's DNA that may lead to cancer. Alcohol interferes with your absorption of folate and causes your kidneys to excrete more folate. If you're a heavy drinker, by taking a folic acid supplement or increasing folate in your diet, you can help prevent a type of anemia caused by folic acid deficiency.
Can Lead to Vitamin A Deficiency
If you drink a lot, you may be deficient in vitamin A. Heavy alcohol consumption causes your liver to increase its breakdown of vitamin A, the NIAAA says. You need adequate vitamin A for bone growth and normal eye function. Too much vitamin A is toxic. Alcohol increases the vitamin A content of some tissues in your body while decreasing the vitamin A in other tissues. Consult your doctor before taking a vitamin A supplement.
Risk of Deficiencies in Vitamin C, Calcium, Thiamin
If you drink a lot, you may also be at risk for deficiencies in vitamin C, calcium and thiamin or vitamin B1, the NIAAA says. Thiamin deficiency can result from inadequate nutritional thiamine intake, decreased absorption of thiamine from the gastrointestinal tract, or impaired thiamine utilization in the cells. Thiamin is an essential nutrient required by all tissues, including the brain. Your body cannot produce thiamin. You must consume thiamin in your diet. Thiamin-rich foods include pork, poultry, whole-grain cereals, brown rice, bran, nuts, dried beans, peas and soybeans. In addition, many foods in the United States are commonly are fortified with thiamin. Thiamin deficiency as a result of alcohol abuse is associated with a common brain disease known as alcoholic dementia.
References
- NIAAA: National Institute On Alcohol Abuse And Alcoholism:Relationships Between Nutrition, Alcohol Use, and Liver Disease
- Office of Dietary Supplements National Institiutes of Health: Folate
- NIAAA: National Institute On Alcohol Abuse And Alcoholism: The Role of Thiamine Deficiency in Alcoholic Brain Disease
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