Beer and Health
Beer and Health Information Centre (Centro de Información Cerveza y Salud -CICS)
Moreover, it is important to remember that, although beer is a fermented beverage with low alcohol by volume, there are situations where a person should not or cannot drink alcohol, as is the case of pregnancy, breastfeeding, if you are taking prescription medicines or if you are going to drive. In those cases, if you wish to drink beer, it is best to opt for a non-alcoholic beer.
In Spain, the leading scientific organisation in the promotion of research on relationship between moderate beer consumption and its effects on our bodies is the Centre for Beer and Health Information (Centro de Información Cerveza y Salud -CICS).
Since its inception, the Centre for Beer and Health Information has focused its efforts on analysing the effects of moderate beer consumption on human health. Its main objective is to promote research and dissemination of studies on beer and health, under the supervision of a Scientific Committee comprising prestigious specialists in medicine and nutrition.
Members of the Technical Advisory Committee of the CICS:
President
Dr. Ramón Estruch
Consultant at the Internal Medicine Service of the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Associate Lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad de Barcelona and member of the Steering Committee of Biomedical Network Research Centre (CIBER) at the Instituto de Salud Carlos III.
Other members of the Scientific Committee:
Dra. Lina Badimon
Directora del Centro de Investigación Cardiovascular (CSIC-ICC), IIB Sant Pau, Hospital Santa Creu i Sant Pau. Directora de la Cátedra de Investigación Cardiovascular, UAB. Vicepresidente de la Sociedad Española de Cardiología. Chair Council Basic Science-European Society of Cardiology.
Dra. Lina Badimon
Directora del Centro de Investigación Cardiovascular (CSIC-ICC), IIB Sant Pau, Hospital Santa Creu i Sant Pau. Directora de la Cátedra de Investigación Cardiovascular, UAB. Vicepresidente de la Sociedad Española de Cardiología. Chair Council Basic Science-European Society of Cardiology.
Professor :
Dr Manuel J. Castillo Garzón
Professor of Medical Physiology at Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad de Granada.
Prof. Dra. :
Ascensión Marcos
Director of the Immuno-nutrition Group of the Department of Metabolism and Nutrition of the Institute o of Science and Food Technology and Nutrition (ICTAN) of Higher Council of Scientific Research (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas -CSIC), member of the Science Committee of the Spanish Agency of Food Safety and Nutrition (Agencia Española de Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición -AESAN), and treasurer of the European Federation of Nutrition Associations (Federación Europea de Sociedades de Nutrición -FENS).
Professor:
Jesús Román Martínez
Professor of the Faculty of Medicine at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and President of the Scientific Committees of the Spanish Society of Dietetics and Food Science (Sociedad Española de Dietética y Ciencias de la Alimentación -SEDCA).
Dr
Merce Vidal
Nutritionist, dietician and anthropologist. Researcher at the Community Nutrition Research Centre (Centro de Investigación de Nutrición Comunitaria -CREN) attached to the Universidad de Barcelona.
Dña. Consuelo López Nomdedeu
Especialista en nutrición de la Escuela Nacional de Sanidad del Instituto de Salud Carlos III de Madrid.
Dña. Consuelo López Nomdedeu
Especialista en nutrición de la Escuela Nacional de Sanidad del Instituto de Salud Carlos III de Madrid.
Dña. Consuelo López Nomdedeu
Especialista en nutrición de la Escuela Nacional de Sanidad del Instituto de Salud Carlos III de Madrid.
What does moderate beer consumption mean?
To find out what moderate beer consumption means consult the Beer and Health Information Centre website.
Does beer make you put on weight?
People often talk about having a beer belly. However, many scientific studies and doctors have shown that this isn’t the case.
A small beer (200 ml.) only has 90 calories. For this reason, moderate beer consumption does not affect the body mass index (BMI) or the weight of the person, providing that it is drunk within the context of a health and balanced diet, like the Mediterranean diet.
In Italy this type of belly is called: "pancetta di vino".
Alcohol-free beer
Alcohol-free beer is a beverage with a very low calorie count (17 Kcal/100 ml.) which conserves the vitamins and minerals that come from the cereals and hops it is made from, as happens with traditional beer.