May 29, 2002

Beer's nutritional value is indeed well hidden

The "News from UC" article on beer that was reported in the Los Alamos News Letter Vol.3, No. 9, no doubt attracted interest. Beer drinkers, perhaps wishfully thinking, have long exaggerated the nutritional contribution of beer. In a recent review article (not an original research study), Charles Bamforth of the University of California, Davis summarizes a number of interesting purported health benefits of beer. Mr. Bamforth should stick with the subject he knows best -- brewing.

Several of the nutrient values used in the review article for adult reference intakes do not agree with current U.S. standards. The Dietary Reference Intake for folate, for instance, is 400 mcg/day (not 200 mcg). According to the USDA Nutrient Database, one beer contributes 21 mcg folate, or 5 percent of the recommended intake. Though not insignificant, this hardly compares with a similar quantity of orange juice containing 164 mcg (along with 145 mg vitamin C, 710 mg potassium, etc.). The single study reference for fiber reports 0.4--6.2 g fiber/liter. A 12-ounce beer, then, would contribute 0.14-2.23 g. Considering the daily suggested intake is about 25 g, this is less than a slice of whole wheat bread and hardly the roughage that grandma had in mind when she advised us to eat our apple a day. Handcrafted beer no doubt contributes more nutrients than the refined mass-produced beverage, but it still doesn't make an important contribution assuming that guidelines for moderate alcohol intake are followed.

I'm not bashing (or mashing) beer, but don't elevate the brew to something it's not.

--Marta Gentry Munger