Bill McBain is on a 17-week quest to get down to 170 pounds from a high of 206. He is currently at 192, and you can follow his progress on 170in17.com.
Many Fairfield students hit the gym religiously a few times a week in order to lose weight and feel better. They might get better results if they decided not to hit the bottle.
After talking to several students, it seems that few consider the health and weight implications before heading out to drink.
“I never take the nutritional information of what I am drinking into account. It is the furthest thing from my mind when I am out with friends,” said Steve Nolan ’07.
Director of Wellness and Prevention, Jeanne DiMuzio, said that there is little nutritional value in alcohol.
“There are trace amounts of vitamin B in some ales, but it isn’t even close to Wonder Bread, for example,” said DiMuzio.
In addition to weight gain there are many side effects of drinking that few students take into account.
“Drinking can cause gynecomastia (man boobs), dehydration, vitamin deficiencies and even heart and liver disease. If the abdomen gets too large it can raise the temperature of the genital areas to the point where it effects sperm production,” said DiMuzio.
Nicole Krupa ’07 said her friends are watchful of the calories they are consuming when drinking. They are not, however, always well-informed of what does and does not have high amounts of calories.
Generally one 12 oz. light beer, one shot of 80-proof alcohol, and one 4 oz. glass of wine all have around 100 calories.
More than half of Fairfield students drink at least once per week according to data given by DiMuzio. The data also shows that more than a third of Fairfield students drink more than 5 drinks in a night when they drink.
If you were to drink three cans of Pabst Blue Ribbons (the cheapest keg available in Fairfield) three times a week ,you would gain an extra pound every two weeks or so. The same would be true if you had just one kahlua mudslide per week. Over the course of a year you could gain more than 25 pounds.
“Responsible drinking can absolutely be incorporated into college lifestyles,” said DiMuzio. “A standard of one drink every other day for women and two for men is considered the standard for maintaining health. Anything in moderation is good: food, alcohol and exercise make for a balanced life.”
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