If you're on a diet, you might want to think twice about putting that six-pack down. Yes, really.
As it turns out, dreams do come true. A new Oregon State University study found that beer contains a compound that can actually help with weight loss, according to Delish. Researchers looked at the effects of xanthohumol, a natural flavonoid found in hops.
After doing some lab tests on mice, they came to the conclusion that xanthohumol "significantly improved some of the underlying markers of metabolic syndrome in laboratory animals and also reduced weight gain," wrote lead author Cristobal Miranda, reports the Telegraph.
Metabolic syndrome is the fancy name for having risk factors increasing your risk of heart disease and other health problems, and xanthohumol appeared to significantly reduce that in the test results.
"This is the first time we've seen one compound with the potential to address so many health problems," Miranda said. "These were very dramatic improvements."
But before you go to town guzzling those bombers, keep in mind that not only can we not reliably assume that humans will reap the same benefits as mice, but the critters were also taking the equivalent amount of xanthohumol as drinking 3,500 pints of beer per day – so it might be too good to be true. Even a triple IPA doesn't have anything close to that much hops, sadly.
Calorically, beers range from about 100-300 calories per 12-ounce bottle, so make sure you are factoring that into your daily calorie count. A general rule of thumb to keep in mind: the darker and heavier the beer, the more calories it is likely to have. In other words, just like all other consumables, the better it tastes, the worse it generally is for you. Sigh.
In case you are wondering, this is how many calories are in 12 ounces (an average bottle) of your favorite beer:
Budweiser: 145 calories, 5 percent alcohol
Bud Light: 110 calories, 4.2 percent
Corona Extra: 148 calories, 4.6 percent
Corona Light: 99 calories, 3.2 percent
Guinness Extra Stout: 176 calories, 6 percent
Guinness Draught: 126 calories, 4 percent
Heineken: 148 calories, 5 percent
Killian's Irish Red: 162 calories, 5 percent
Newcastle Brown Ale: 138 calories, 4.7 percent
Sam Adams Boston Lager: 180 calories, 4.9 percent
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot: 330 calories, 9.6 percent
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 176 calories, 5.6 percent