The Health Effects Of Two Beers Per Day

A two-beers-a-day habit probably won't cause any long-term health problems -- if you're a guy. For women, two drinks a day, every day, can cause liver damage -- even if you just drink beer. Beer contains calories you need to consider in your daily diet. A "beer belly" can increase your risk of heart problems or diabetes whether you are male or female.

Differences Between Men and Women

Women absorb up to 30 percent more alcohol from each drink than men do, because their bodies have a higher fat content and body fat doesn't absorb alcohol, professor David Hanson, Ph.D., of the State University of New York explains. Women also produce less of a stomach enzyme that breaks down alcohol. That means that even between men and women of the same size and weight, women will absorb more alcohol from a drink into their bloodstream.

Limits

For men, the safe drinking limit is defined as no more than two alcoholic beverages per day. For women, no more than one drink per day is considered a safe limit. One 12-oz. bottle of beer counts as one drink, equal in alcoholic content to one 5-oz. glass of wine or a 1.5-oz. shot of 80-proof alcohol. Drinking more than that could damage your liver.

Beer and Weight Gain

Beers vary, but most 12-oz. bottles of beer with 5 percent alcohol contain around 148 calories. Two beers a day adds about 300 calories to your daily intake, which could equal around 14 percent of your daily allowance if you normally consume 2,100 calories per day. For a small woman who consumes only 1,800 calories per day, two beers equals nearly 17 percent of her daily allowance. Adding 300 calories on top of your normal food intake would add 1 lb. approximately every 2 weeks, or around 25 lbs. in a single year. Consuming 3,500 calories equals 1 lb. of additional weight. Weight gain contributes to higher cholesterol, an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease.

Liver Damage

For men, the amount of beer necessary to cause cirrhosis of the liver equals 72 oz., or six bottles daily, for 20 years. Women, however, can develop cirrhosis with an intake of just 25 to 50 percent of that level, according to a 1997 article in "Alcohol Health and Research World" by Jacquelyn Maher, M.D., of the University of California. That means that liver damage can occur with long-term consumption of just 18 oz. of beer per day. While no more than 50 percent of heavy drinkers develop cirrhosis, you can't tell if you're going to be one of the unlucky ones without liver biopsies to regularly assess the state of your liver. Alcohol use is the most prevalent cause of death from liver disease, according to Dr. Maher.