Beer Belly: What Causes It and How to Lose It
A beer belly is a common name for extra fat around the stomach, including internal (visceral) fat stored around the organs. Beer is not the only cause: belly fat builds up when you take in more energy than you use, and alcohol is an easy source of extra kilojoules. Drinking less, eating a healthy diet and moving more can help reduce it, and results vary between individuals.
Everything here is general information, not medical advice. A GP or accredited practising dietitian can tailor a plan to your health.
On this page
- Key Points
- What Is a Beer Belly?
- Does Beer Cause a Beer Belly?
- How Alcohol Can Lead to Weight Gain
- Kilojoules in Beer and Cider
- Is It Fat or Bloating?
- Health Risks and When to See a Doctor
- How to Lose a Beer Belly
- How Long Does It Take to Lose a Beer Belly?
- Medical Weight Loss for Overweight or Obesity
- Frequently Asked Questions
Key Points
"Beer belly" is slang, not a medical term. The fat behind it can include visceral fat, stored around the organs.
The research on beer itself is mixed. Too much energy from any source, alcohol included, can add to belly fat.
Alcohol has almost as much energy per gram as fat, with no nutrients, and it can make you hungrier.
Sit-ups cannot target belly fat. It can reduce with overall weight loss.
Australian guidelines set a limit for healthy adults of 10 standard drinks a week, with no more than 4 on any one day.
What Is a Beer Belly?
"Beer belly" is an everyday name for extra fat around the stomach, often linked with drinking. It can include both kinds of belly fat. Most body fat sits under the skin, where you can see and feel it. Visceral fat sits deeper, as internal body fat stored around organs such as the heart, liver and intestines.
Having too much internal body fat is more common in males than in females (healthdirect). For the full explainer, see what visceral fat is and why it matters.
Does Beer Cause a Beer Belly?
Not on its own. A systematic review by the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education, summarised by the Better Health Channel (Victorian Government), found that:
it is unclear whether drinking alcohol is a risk factor for weight gain, because studies have found positive, negative or no link
where a link with body weight exists, it is more likely to be found in men than in women
there is not enough evidence to say whether beer is linked with general or abdominal obesity
where studies do find a link with beer, it is more likely to be with fat around the stomach than with overall weight
So weight gain from alcohol is possible, but it is not inevitable. Whether it happens is shaped by your drinks (the type, the amount and how often), what you eat while drinking, your overall diet and activity, and your genes, age and sex.
Internal belly fat builds up when you eat more energy than you burn and do not move enough. People who drink too much alcohol are at greater risk of storing that extra energy as internal fat, and so are older males, females after menopause and people with a family tendency to it.
How Alcohol Can Lead to Weight Gain
Alcohol could add to weight gain in four ways. It:
stops your body from burning fat
is high in kilojoules
makes you feel hungrier and less full
can lead to cravings for salty and greasy foods
Alcohol supplies 29 kJ per gram, almost as much energy as fat and almost double carbohydrate or protein. One standard drink holds 10 g of alcohol, or about 290 kJ (about 70 calories), before any mixer such as tonic or lemonade is added. Alcohol has no nutrients, so these are empty kilojoules.
Most of the energy in an alcoholic drink comes from the alcohol itself, not from sugar or other carbohydrates (Cancer Council Victoria). The table below compares beer and cider by serve.
Kilojoules in Beer and Cider
The figures below are worked out for a 375 mL can and a 425 mL schooner.
| Drink and serve | Energy | Standard drinks |
|---|---|---|
| Light beer can | 380 kJ (90 cal) | 0.8 |
| Mid-strength beer can | 480 kJ (110 cal) | 1.1 |
| Full-strength beer can | 570 kJ (140 cal) | 1.4 |
| Full-strength schooner | 650 kJ (150 cal) | 1.6 |
| Apple cider can | 790 kJ (190 cal) | 1.5 |
Energy uses the average kilojoules per 100 mL for each drink type in the Australian Food Composition Database (Food Standards Australia New Zealand), rounded to the nearest 10, and calories are kilojoules divided by 4.2. Standard drinks are worked out from the alcohol in the same database, at 10 g of alcohol per standard drink, so they can differ a little from healthdirect's approximate volumes. Brands differ in alcohol content, so check the label, which must show the number of standard drinks.
Two patterns stand out. A full-strength schooner holds about 270 kJ more than a light beer can, and about twice the alcohol. A can of apple cider holds about 220 kJ more than a can of full-strength beer for about the same alcohol, because cider also has about 21 g of sugars a can, while the database lists none in these beers. These figures are arithmetic only, and outcomes vary between individuals.
Is It Fat or Bloating?
Bloating is a feeling that your tummy is stretched or full, often from gas in the gut. Gas can build up when you eat certain foods, swallow air while eating, or drink a lot of fizzy drinks. Most causes are not too serious, but see your doctor if your bloating does not get better. Fat is checked a different way: a waist measurement is the main check for too much internal fat.
Health Risks and When to See a Doctor
Fat makes chemicals and hormones that can harm the body, and internal fat makes more of these harmful substances than fat under the skin. Too much internal fat can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and some cancers.
Your chance of chronic disease is higher if your waist is greater than 80 cm for females or 94 cm for males (healthdirect). These figures do not apply to children or pregnant people. For how to measure your waist, see our guide on how to lose belly fat.
Drinking too much alcohol carries its own risks too, beyond any weight gain, including high blood pressure, high triglycerides, insulin resistance, heart disease, stroke, liver disease and some cancers.
If you are concerned that you may have an unhealthy amount of internal body fat, talk to your doctor. If cutting down is hard, your GP can help, and the National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline (1800 250 015) gives free and confidential advice.
How to Lose a Beer Belly
You cannot choose where your body loses fat, so sit-ups alone will not shift a beer belly. Belly fat can reduce as part of overall weight loss, through these three steps together.
1. Drink Less Alcohol
To lower the risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury, Australian guidelines set a limit for healthy adults of 10 standard drinks a week, with no more than 4 on any one day. If you are pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding, the advice is not to drink at all, because alcohol can cross into a baby's bloodstream and into breastmilk.
Ways to cut back:
count your standard drinks, and check the label for the number in each can, bottle or cask
swap some beers for a low-alcohol or alcohol-free beer
allow for pub and restaurant serves, which are likely to contain more than one standard drink each
choose water as your main drink, since it has no kilojoules
The table above shows how a lighter choice can lower the kilojoules in each drink.
2. Create an Energy Gap With a Healthy Diet
If you use more kilojoules than you take in, the body draws on stored energy, including fat. A healthy diet is built on the five food groups: vegetables and legumes, fruit, wholegrains, lean protein such as fish, eggs and tofu, and reduced-fat dairy. The Australian Dietary Guidelines advise limiting foods high in saturated fat, added salt and added sugar, and limiting alcohol if you choose to drink.
To set your own energy target, read what a calorie deficit is and how to work out yours and how many calories a day you need to lose weight.
3. Move More Every Day
Australia's physical activity guidelines for adults recommend moderate to vigorous activity for 30 minutes or more on most days, plus muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week. Combined with a healthy diet, strength training can help with weight loss and with avoiding weight gain. Regular exercise also helps reduce internal body fat and stop it coming back.
For a weekly plan, see the best exercises for belly fat, and to set a walking goal, see how many steps a day can support weight loss.
How Long Does It Take to Lose a Beer Belly?
No timeline fits everyone, because rates of weight loss vary between individuals. For realistic monthly figures, see how much weight you can realistically lose in a month, and if progress stalls, see why you may not be losing weight.
Health benefits can start well before any goal weight: a loss as small as 5% of body weight can bring a lower risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. To work out your own figure, see how to calculate your weight loss percentage.
Medical Weight Loss for Overweight or Obesity
Some people living with overweight or obesity may need a more intensive approach, such as a very low energy diet or weight loss medication, and some people living with obesity may need bariatric surgery.
Weight loss medication is used together with a healthy diet and physical activity, not instead of them. It has side effects, any medical treatment is a decision for a doctor or nurse practitioner after an individual assessment, and outcomes vary between individuals. To learn more, read how medical weight loss programs work.
When drinking less, eating better and moving more have not shifted a beer belly, Burst Health provides medical weight loss plans online, each one reviewed by an Australian-registered doctor or nurse practitioner: check whether you are eligible.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I lose my belly if I stop drinking beer?
It can help, although results vary between individuals. Cutting back on or stopping alcohol may lead to weight loss, but many factors play a part, including what you eat, how active you are, your genes and your age. Belly fat can reduce as part of overall weight loss, so pair drinking less with a healthy diet and regular physical activity.
Can you get a beer belly without drinking?
Yes. "Beer belly" is just a name. Extra energy from any food or drink can be stored as internal belly fat, especially when you do not move enough. Older males, females after menopause and people with a family tendency to it are also at greater risk of storing internal fat, whether or not they drink.
Can women get a beer belly?
Yes. The name points to men and beer, but anyone can carry extra fat around the waist, whatever they drink, and the same drinking guideline applies to women and men. In midlife, lower oestrogen can move fat from the hips and thighs towards the waist, although midlife weight gain is linked more to ageing and lifestyle than to menopause (Better Health Channel).
Are 2 beers a day too much?
Yes, for full-strength beer. Two full-strength 375 mL cans every day go over the guidelines. The two cans hold about 2.8 standard drinks, or about 19 a week, against a guideline of no more than 10 a week. They also add about 1,150 kJ a day. These figures are arithmetic only, and effects on weight vary between individuals.
What alcohol is worst for belly fat?
No single drink has been shown to be worst for belly fat. The amount of alcohol counts, since most of a drink's kilojoules come from the alcohol itself. Larger and stronger serves, such as a full-strength schooner, carry more kilojoules. Cider adds sugars on top of its alcohol, and sugary mixers such as lemonade add more again.
Medical weight loss plans, online
In three steps.
- 1Answer a quick questionnaireOnline, no appointment, no in-person visit.
- 2A practitioner reviews itAn Australian-registered doctor or nurse practitioner decides whether treatment is suitable for you.
- 3Start your planIf treatment is suitable, you start your plan with the practitioner supporting you throughout.
References
healthdirect. How to reduce excess internal body fat (visceral fat).
healthdirect. Body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference.
Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). Alcohol and weight gain.
Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). Weight loss: common myths.
Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). Water: a vital nutrient.
Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). Menopause and weight.
Food Standards Australia New Zealand. Australian Food Composition Database, Release 3.
Eat for Health (NHMRC). Australian dietary guidelines 1 - 5.
This article is general information only and does not replace individual medical advice. Please speak with a registered Australian healthcare practitioner about your own circumstances.