How Much Sugar is There in Non-Alcoholic Beer?

With the rise of non-alcoholic beer there's been a lot of talk about its health benefits. 

We know that reducing our alcohol intake is likely to help us sleep better, exercise more effectively and alleviate our anxiety. Not to mention avoiding the well-documented risks of long term alcohol use.

Sugar sits alongside alcohol as one of the buzzwords in preventing chronic disease. So how does non-alcoholic beer fare in the sugar stakes?

What’s in a name? Defining non-alcoholic beer.

Let's start off with the basics. 

The excitement around non alcoholic beers, although totally justified, has led to little bit of, shall we say blurry categorization. 

It may surprise you that the idea that there are just two categories, i.e. beers that contain alcohol and those that don't, is a little off the mark.

There's actually a range in between, and non alcoholic and alcohol-free do not mean the same thing. 

Traditional alcoholic beers contain between 1.15 and 15% ABV (alcohol by volume). For example, Budweiser, often known as “the king of beers” and one of the most valued beer brands worldwide contains 5.0% ABV. 

Low-alcohol beers, such as Small Beer Session Pale on the other hand contain up to 2.5% ABV.

Non-alcoholic beers like Erdinger Alkohofrei, on the other hand, can include up to 0.5% ABV. This is obviously unlikely to make you feel woozy, but is an important detail to know depending on why you’re choosing not to drink. 

Interestingly enough, some fruit juices and soft drinks may contain traces of alcohol (less than 0.5 % ABV) due to certain flavorings or as the result of natural fermentation. However regulatory bodies like the FDA do not consider such beverages to be alcoholic.

Finally alcohol-free beers in the UK can contain up to 0.05% ABV, whereas in the USA alcohol-free beers are only labeled as such if they have a 0.0% ABV, i.e. no detectable alcohol. 

Does low and alcohol-free beer have less sugar than normal beer?

The short answer is no. The long answer is a bit more complex.

Alcoholic beer usually doesn't have any sugar in it. Surprised? That's because during the fermentation process, the sugar is converted into alcohol. So technically alcoholic beer may not contain sugar at all. 

But here’s the rub, it does contain carbohydrates. These carbohydrates are later broken down into glucose which is a type of sugar, which can raise your blood glucose levels after moderate drinking.

On average alcoholic beer contains about 42 calories and 3.5g of carbohydrates per 100ml. So in the Budweiser of our previous example, that's around 39 cal and 3g of carbohydrates per 100ml.

When alcohol is removed from non-alcoholic beer, it is often the taste that suffers. To combat this often sugar is added back in. This means that on average non-alcoholic beer can contain  around 37 calories, and up to 8g of carbohydrates and 8g of sugar per that same 100ml.

So while their calorific content is similar, it's clear that on average non-alcoholic beer packs more of a sugary punch, with more than twice the carbs.

Coors Light for example contains 5g of carbs and 1 gram of sugar per 12 ounce or 355ml serving. Coors non-alcoholic on the other hand has 12.2g of carbs and 8 g of sugar for the same serving size.

However, when asking “How much sugar is there in non-alcoholic beer?”, it's important to remember each NA beer is likely to be slightly different. Just as flavor profiles differ, so too will the sugar content.

If you're looking to keep your sugar, carb or calorie count under control, it's a good idea to check out the nutrition information on your favorite non-alcoholic beer. Averages don't always tell the whole story.

Which non-alcoholic beer has the least sugar in it?

Let's take a look at some of the top selling non-alcoholic beer brands and their sugar content.

• Athletic Brewing Company Craft Non-Alcoholic Beer: 19 cal, 4.3g carbs of which 1.2g is sugar per 100 ml

• Heineken, Non-alcoholic 0.0 Lager: 21 cal, 4.5 carbs and 1.3g of sugar per 100ml

• Brooklyn Special Effects Hoppy Non-Alcoholic Brew: 29 cal, 6.3g carbs and 2.9g of sugar per 100ml

• Budwiser Non-alcoholic Lager: 14 cal, 3.3g of carbs and 0.1g of sugar  per 100ml 

• Erdinger Non-alcoholic Weiss: 25 cal, 5.3g of carbohydrates of which sugars 3.6g

• Clausthaler non alcoholic: 26 cal, 5.6g carbs, 2.8g sugar

In terms of which NA beer has the least sugar, Heineken 0.0 and Athletic Brewing Company come out tops. Considering that the average cola drink has around 10.6g of sugar per 100 mls, many NA beers still contain substantially less sugar.

Why does sugar matter?

Sugar (and alcohol) is what is known as an empty calorie. Calories are the unit of measurement used for the amount of energy offered by food or drink.

Empty calories contain little to no nutritional value. There's no denying that it is delicious, but too much sugar leads to weight gain and to an increased risk of health issues such as heart disease, some cancers and type 2 diabetes. And of course for those with type 1 diabetes, excess sugar can be very dangerous.

The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30g of free sugars a day. Free sugars are those added to cereals, flavored yogurts, fizzy drinks, chocolates, etc. as well as those present in sweeteners such as honey and syrups. This is not to say that all sugar is bad for you, but there are more healthful ways to consume it.

For example, the sugar in fruit juice is pretty much an empty calorie, but that same sugar when contained in a piece of whole fruit offers up fiber as well, which is imperative for the proper functioning of the digestive system.

Non alcoholic beer and diabetes.

Considering the havoc alcohol can play on blood glucose levels, non alcoholic beer can seem like a good option to replace regular beer as an after work go to.

A pilot study published in 2019 showed that non alcoholic beer containing modified carbohydrate isomaltulose reduced the body mass index amongst overweight people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes. There was an improvement in both blood glucose and insulin resistance over two ten week trials.

While the lack of alcohol in NA beers may seem like a win for type 1 diabetes sufferers it's important to remember the high carbohydrate content and added sugars. These are not  generally recommended for people with diabetes, according to diabetes.org.uk. 

It's best to chat through your options with your healthcare professional, taking into account a risk benefit analysis that looks at higher alcohol versus carbohydrate and added sugar content.

What does it all mean?

Like with all things moderation is key. And our reasons for drinking non-alcoholic beer are equally important. 

With NA beer, driving under the influence may not be a concern but depending on your own health and your brand of choice, sugar intake could be. 

The great news is that in the UK, non-alcoholic and alcohol free beers are all clearly labeled with their nutritional information. This makes it easy to understand how much of  what you're putting in your body, and make an informed decision.

As long as you are mindful of your sugar consumption over the course of a day, and conscious of how much sugar is in your preferred non-alcoholic beer, there are still many benefits to NA beer for those of us looking to consume less alcohol. 

A healthier weight and  improved mood, memory, sleep and relationships are all worthy goals.

Studies have even shown that the polyphenolic compounds that occur naturally in foods like non-alcoholic beer have strong antioxidant, antipathogenic and anti-inflammatory properties.

The world of non-alcoholic beers is an exciting one, constantly evolving to give us the best beer experience without the hangover and without compromising on taste.  Cheers to that.