Calories, Carbs, & Alcohol Percentage in Your Favorite Beers

I'm pretty sure most people have one "go-to" beer they love, live by, and enjoy whenever it's available. For me it's Guinness....mmmmmm. I love Guinness because it's got a really creamy, rich taste with hints of chocolate and coffee. It's so freaking delicious! To be honest though, I think what I love even more about Guinness is that it has more flavor than any regular beer I've ever tasted, yet it only has a few more calories than most light beers. 125 calories per bottle...that's it. I'm glad to say I've found a healthier-ish beer that I really love. Check out the list below for the calories, carbs, and alcohol percentage in your own personal favorite beer, as well as a few of my recommended "lean" beers. Oh....and remember this, one beer every once in a while can actually help lower your LDL cholesterol (the bad kind) and have a positive impact on your health, so enjoy. Keep it to two or fewer though--drinking three of more beers diminishes the cholesterol lowering effects and promotes obesity, diabetes, cancer, and of course body fat gain.

All nutrition facts are per 12 oz. (standard bottle). Beers with a great combination of taste and low calories/carbs, aka lean beers, are highlighted in yellow.

• Amstel Light: 95 cals, 5g carbs, 3.5% ABV (alcohol by volume)
• Beck's Dark: 142 cals, 10g carbs, 4.8% ABV
• Beck's Oktoberfest: 135 cals, 8g carbs, 5% ABV
• Beck's Pilsner: 138 cals, 9g carbs, 5% ABV
• Beck's Premier Light: 63 cals, 3.8g carbs, 2.3% ABV
• Blue Moon Belgian White: 171 cals, 13g carbs, 5.4% ABV
• Blue Moon Nut Brown Ale: 169 cals, 13.5g carbs, 5.4% ABV
• Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale: 182 cals, 17.7g carbs, 5.8% ABV
• Budweiser: 145 cals, 10.6g carbs, 5% ABV
• Bud Ice: 148 cals, 8.9g carbs, 5.5% ABV
• Bud Ice Light: 110 cals, 6.5g carbs, 4.1% ABV
• Bud Light: 110 cals, 6.6g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Bud Light Lime: 116 cals, 8g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Bud Select: 99 cals, 3.1g carbs, 4.3% ABV
• Bud Select 55: 55 cals, 1.9g carbs, 2.4% ABV
• Busch: 133 cals, 10.2g carbs, 4.6% ABV
• Busch Light: 95 cals, 3.2g carbs, 4.1% ABV
• Colt 45 Canada: 223 cals, 14.5g carbs, 8.1% ABV
• Colt 45 Malt Liquor: 157 cals, 10.8g carbs, 5.6% ABV
• Coors Light: 102 cals, 5g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Coors: 142 cals, 10.6g carbs, 5% ABV
• Corona Extra: 148 cals, 13g carbs, 4.6% ABV
• Corona Light: 106 cals, 5g carbs, 4.5% ABV
• Dos Equis XX Amber: 146 cals, 11.6g carbs, 4.8% ABV
• Dos Equis XX Large: 142 cals, 10.5g carbs, 4.8% ABV
• Foster's: 144 cals, 11.2g carbs, 5% ABV
• Guinness Draught: 126 cals, 10g carbs, 4% ABV
• Guinness Extra Stout: 176 cals, 14g carbs, 6% ABV
• Harp: 151 cals, 12.8g carbs, 5% ABV
• Heineken: 166 cals, 9.8g carbs, 5.4% ABV
• Heineken Light: 99 cals, 6.8g carbs, 3.5% ABV
• Icehouse: 132 cals, 8.7g carbs, 5% ABV
• Icehouse Light: 103 cals, 5.5g carbs, 4.1% ABV
• Killian's Irish Red: 163 cals, 14.4g carbs, 4.9% ABV
• Keystone Ice: 143 cals, 6.6g carbs, 5.9% ABV
• Keystone Light: 104 cals, 5.1g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Magic Hat Beer #9: 153 cals, 14.2g carbs, 4.6% ABV
• Michelob Amber: 114 cals, 3.7g carbs, 5% ABV
• Michel Amber Boch: 166 cals, 15g carbs, 5.2% ABV
• Michelob Lager: 155 cals, 13.3g carbs, 5% ABV
• Michelob Light: 123 cals, 8.8g carbs, 4.3% ABV
• Michelob Ultra: 95 cals, 2.6g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• MGD 64: 64 cals, 2.4g carbs, 2.8% ABV
• Miller Chill: 110 cals, 6.5g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Miller Genuine Draft: 143 cals, 13.1g carbs, 4.7% ABV
• Miller Genuine Draft Light: 110 cals, 7g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Miller Lite: 96 cals, 3.2g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Milwaukee's Best: 128 cals, 11.4g carbs, 4.3% ABV
• Milwaukee's Best Ice: 144 cals, 7.3g carbs, 5.9% ABV
• Milwaukee's Best Light: 98 cals, 3.5g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Milwaukee's Best Premium: 128 cals, 11.4g carbs, 4.3% ABV
• Natural Ice: 157 cals, 8.9g carbs, 5.9% ABV
• Natural Light: 95 cals, 3.2g carbs, 4.2% ABV
• Newcastle Brown Ale: 138 cals, 12.8g carbs, 4.5% ABV
• Pabst Blue Ribbon: 153 cals, 12g carbs, 5% ABV
• Peroni: 150 cals, 11.4g carbs, 5% ABV
• Red Stripe: 153 cals, 14g carbs, 5% ABV
• Rolling Rock: 132 cals, 10g carbs, 4.5% ABV
• Sam Adams Boston Lager: 175 cals, 18g carbs, 4.9% ABV
• Sam Adams Cherry Wheat: 176 cals, 16.9g carbs, 5.3% ABV
• Sam Adams Cherry Stout: 195 cals, 24g carbs, 4.7% ABV
• Sam Adams Imperial Stout: 307 cals, 9.2% ABV
• Sam Adams Light: 119 cals, 9.7g carbs, 4.1% ABV
• Sam Adams Octoberfest: 183 cals, 19g carbs, 5.3% ABV
• Sam Adams Old Fezziwig Ale: 213 cals, 5.8% ABV
• Sam Adams Summer Ale: 162 cals, 10g carbs, 5.3% ABV
• Sam Adams White Ale: 166 cals, 17g carbs, 5.3% ABV
• Sam Adams Winter Lager: 200 cals, 20g carbs, 5.6% ABV
• Sapporo Premium: 140 cals, 10.3g carbs, 4.9% ABV
• Sol Cerveza: 143 cals, 11g carbs, 4.8% ABV
• Sierra Nevada Bigfoot: 330 cals, 30.3g carbs, 9.9% ABV
• Stella Artois: 154 cals, 11.6g carbs, 5.2% ABV
• Tecate: 142 cals, 12g carbs, 4.5% ABV
• Yuengling Ale: 145 cals, 10g carbs, 5% ABV
• Yuengling Premium: 135 cals, 12g carbs, 4.4% ABV
• Yuengling Light: 98 cals, 6.6g carbs, 3.8% ABV

If your favorite beer isn't here let me know and I'll get you the facts!

The Complete Guide to Red Bull Ingredients, Monster Ingredients

Surprising Fact of the Day: Last year 3.9 BILLION cans of Red Bull were consumed worldwide. 

That's pretty astonishing. I always knew Red Bull was popular...but that popular? Really? If you look around it's actually pretty interesting just how common it is to see someone drinking a Red Bull, Monster, or whatever other energy drink. If not that then it's one of those doofy looking Red Bull cars.

It's crazy just how frequently people rely on energy drinks to provide an extra boost of energy. What the majority of people don't realize though is that these drinks actually have a ton of other effects on the body other than providing an extra surge of energy. If you've ever taken the time to read the can you'll see ingredients like caffeine, taurine, l-carnitine, guarana, glucuronolactone, and a bunch of other ridiculous names. I'm pretty sure everyone's aware of caffeine's role in increasing alertness, attentiveness, and speeding up the heart and metabolism (click here for a detailed description of what caffeine does and how it works), but I really doubt that the ordinary consumer knows what l-carnitine or any of the other ingredients do. Well, voila...I have the answers! For every ingredient.

Monster

• Glucose and Sucrose - Quite simply...sugar. 
• Sodium Citrate - Used as a preservative and adds a sour/acidic taste. Responsible for the 200mg of sodium. Nothing too important.
• Taurine - Nonessential amino acid that plays a major role in brain tissue and nervous system function. Taurine is an incredibly strong antioxidant, acts as a blood thinner (reduces blood clots), and has been shown to decrease numerous risk factors for heart disease, such as LDL cholesterol (the bad kind), triglycerides, and blood pressure. It also acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, which may help reduce the jitters associated with the high caffeine content. Taurine is NOT a stimulant. It's interesting, but taurine is most likely included to offset the rise in blood pressure and the jitters caused by the caffeine content. Thumbs up.
• Glucuronolactone - a metabolite produced by the body that boosts energy, increases the feeling of well-being, reduces drowsiness, and increases attentiveness/reaction time. Glucuronolactone also has a detoxifying effect on the liver and can help spare glycogen stores--stored carbohydrates that supply muscles with energy during intense workouts. Glucuronolactone = muscular endurance.
• Caffeine - Increases alertness, attentiveness, reaction time, heart rate, and metabolism, as well as the % of body fat burned (compared to carbs). It can also cause jitters and raise blood pressure. Monster contains 10mg caffeine/oz, so about 160mg per can. Red Bull contains 9.5mg caffeine/oz, so about 80mg per 8.4oz can (small).
• Inositol - Although it's not officially a part of the B-vitamin group, it's recognized as Vitamin B8. Inositol plays a major role in the formation of cell membranes, regulates proper fat and carb metabolism, and also helps prevent excess fat buildup in the liver. Inositol combines with choline to form a compound called lecithin, which helps reduce cholesterol levels. Interestingly, inositol is vital for proper hair growth and can help prevent constipation. Inositol has also been shown to improve mood and has been used in the treatment of depression and bi-polar disorder. Powerful stuff.
• Niacinamide (aka niacin/B3) - Niacin is an essential vitamin that's used for the metabolism of fats and carbohydrates, as well as fatty acid synthesis. It's also used to treat high cholesterol and certain skin conditions. 
• Calcium Pantothenate (aka Pantothenic Acid/B5) - Helps release energy from carbs and fat. Yay for energy production.
• Pyridoxine HCL (aka B6) - Important for amino acid/protein metabolism. B6 is especially important for people that eat high amounts of protein. Interestingly, B6 has been shown to increase the amount of growth hormone released as a result of exercise...phenomenal for anyone trying to put on muscle mass. 
• Vitamin B12 - Major source of energy for the body, supports new cell growth, and helps with the production of red blood cells. B12 is commonly used by athletes to boost energy production and increase power. 
• Guarana - Guarana is basically herbal caffeine. This stuff is potent. Guarana seeds contain 3x the amount of caffeine as coffee. Needless to say, guarana is a major stimulant and produces the same effects as caffeine. One important thing to note about guarana is that its caffeine content doesn't have to be included on the label, which results in higher than labeled amounts of caffeine. Drinks that combine guarana and caffeine, like Monster, are basically powerful "mega-stimulants."
• L-carnitine - I LOVE carnitine. Carnitine is a naturally occurring substance that helps release stored body fat (triglycerides) into the bloodstream to be used as energy. Physiologically, carnitine helps transfer long-chain fatty acids into the mitochondria for energy production. What does all that mean? FAT BURNING!! Not only does carnitine help increase the rate of fat loss, but it has also been shown to increase muscular strength and endurance, increase energy levels, reduce muscular soreness, decrease appetite, and reduce the amount of amino acids used for energy, thus preserving muscle mass. Carnitine has also been proven to benefit cardiovascular health by improving blood flow. Carnitine is a phenomenal ingredient with a ton of beneficial effects...Monster did well with this one.
• Maltodextrin - Food additive that digests really quickly. Maltodextrin is an unhealthy additive because of its ability to quickly spike blood sugar levels, increase insulin levels, and increase the storage of body fat. Yuck...

Go ahead, enjoy an occasional Red Bull or Monster if you need that extra boost of energy, but don't overdo it. I also only support the low carb/low sugar varieties...the regular versions have absurdly high levels of sugar and are pretty high in calories...not good for staying lean and mean. 

Secret Superfood: Cinnamon

For some weird reason cinnamon has turned into the sidekick of about every baked dessert on earth. When you think about cinnamon what pops into your head? Cinnamon buns, cinnamon raisin bagels, apple-cinnamon pie, egg nog with cinnamon, yada yada yada...what the hell is going on!! No doubt cinnamon tastes absolutely phenomenal when paired with sweet, fatty, sugary deliciousness, but did you know that cinnamon is in fact one of the healthiest foods on earth? It's pretty incredible that a little sprinkle of brown, sweet-smelling, flavor-packed ground cinnamon can have so many potential health benefits. Here's to cinnamon and recreating its image as a health food. 

The Many Health Benefits of Cinnamon:

• Extremely high antioxidant content: Statistically, on a gram by gram basis, cinnamon has the third highest antioxidant content of any food or spice on earth. That's some powerful stuff. The high antioxidant content helps protect against early aging, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, inflammation, and a boatload of other health conditions (click here if you want the full story on antioxidants).
• Prevents excess blood clotting: The cinnamaldehyde in cinnamon prevents platelets from clumping up excessively, which can cause blockages and restrict blood flow. 
• Prevents inflammation and reduces arthritis pain: Cinnamon inhibits the body's release of arachidonic acid, a fatty acid that causes excessive inflammation in the body. Inflammation is most notably known for causing the pain that goes along with arthritis, but it also causes heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other health conditions.
• Kills bacteria and serves as a natural preservative: The oil in cinnamon can help kill many species of harmful bacteria, as well as prevent the growth of fungi. Not only does this kill nasty foodborne pathogens that often make people sick, but it also prevents foods from spoiling.
• Controls blood sugar, prevents type-2 diabetes, and reduces the storage of body fat: Cinnamon slows the rate at which carbs leave the stomach and reduces how fast blood sugar levels rise after you eat a meal. This is extremely beneficial because it helps minimize spikes in insulin levels, which reduces the potential for your body to store carbs as body fat. Keeping blood sugar levels under control also helps prevent the development of type-2 diabetes and decreases appetite. It's interesting to think about, but this is probably one of the reasons why sugary baked goods are so often made with cinnamon.
• Helps with weight management: Via controlled blood sugar levels, which reduces the storage of body fat and helps regulate hunger levels.
• Increases insulin sensitivity: Cinnamon helps improve the body's ability to respond to insulin. When the body begins to lose its ability to react to insulin, the product of repeatedly spiking blood sugar levels and releasing excess insulin, it embarks on the path towards type-2 diabetes. Cinnamon can help reduce this insulin resistance (aka increases the body's sensitivity to insulin). Considering just how fast the prevalence of diabetes is rising in the US, I think cinnamon should officially be added to all processed carbohydrates, sugary foods, cereals, and baked goods. Just saying.
• In people with type-2 diabetes, cinnamon has been shown to reduce levels of triglycerides, LDL cholesterol (bad) and total cholesterol, all of which are major risk factors for coronary heart disease: In 2003, the medical journal Diabetes Care conducted a study to test the effects of cinnamon supplementation on 60 type-2 diabetes patients. After 40 days the cinnamon group showed a 23-30% decrease in triglycerides, 12-26% decrease in total cholesterol, 7-27% decrease in LDL cholesterol, and a 18-29% reduction in blood sugar, while the control group showed no noticeable health improvements. That's a pretty incredible reduction for a short two month period.
• Lowers LDL cholesterol (bad) in all people
• Effective remedy for migraines and headaches
• Alleviates toothache pain
• No calories
• Adds a lot of flavor without any extra fat, sugar, or calories
• Great source of manganese (enzyme) and dietary fiber