Red, Red Wine

The Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA) UK examined the labelling on 30 wine bottles. They found it 'woefully inadequate' (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/feb/16/two-glasses-of-wine-can-exceed-daily-sugar-limit-warn-uk-experts). In the UK, adults are strongly advised to limit their daily alcohol intake to a number of units. This on the labels. They are also instructed by government, however, to consume no more than 30g of free sugars per day and to watch their calorie intake. Diabetes and obesity are burgeoning health problems in the UK. The AHA found that sugar content was listed on none of their examined wine bottle labels. This is, in spite of this information being mandatory on the labels of non-alcoholic drinks. Calorie content was recorded on only 20% of the examined wine bottle labels. The AHA point out that the daily 30g of free sugars limit, can be reached by drinking 2 medium glasses of some wines. They also suggest that some drinkers may opt for lower alcohol wines, believing them to be a healthier option. Low alcohol wines actually have high sugar content. Sticking with higher strength wines, however, results in drinkers increasing their calorie intake. Fairly obviously, the current labelling on wines does not enable drinkers to make informed decisions about their diets.