I only need to pick up my bottles of Seedlip, CleanCo and Pentire to see that they’re sugar-free, the latter boasting that its “distilled coastal botanicals” are free from artificial colourings and flavourings. Botivo’s sugar content, the label tells me, comes from its use of unpasteurised British honey. Again, it’s those nolo spirits containing fruit flavourings, and therefore their sugars, that you want to keep an eye on. Ditto non-alcoholic fizz and wines – one of the most conscientious is Thomson and Scott’s “Noughty” sparkling Chardonnay. The brand began life creating low-sugar “skinny” Prosecco and has carried that ethos into its nolo offering.
Also important, is to think about how you’re drinking – not just what. If you’re having a low sugar nolo beer instead of a cola, it’s likely a better option as fizzy drinks can be high in sugar and caffeine. But if you’re reaching for a nolo beverage instead of water? ”It doesn’t compare,” says Hallett. “Water is always going to be the healthier option. But who wants to drink water at the end of the day?”
The key is to switch. “If you replace what you normally drink with a low or no alcohol option, without a doubt that reduces the risk of ill health that alcohol would otherwise cause,” says Peter Anderson, professor of substance use, policy and practice at Newcastle University. “But it needs to be a replacement. If you’re just adding in a no alcohol product to existing drinks, that doesn’t do anything.”
A study by the Social Market Foundation think tank in September 2020 found that 40 per cent of Brits were having nolo drinks on top of their existing alcohol consumption.
Why turn the tap on to quench your thirst, when there’s a chilled, fizzy beverage waiting in the fridge?
Hallett is equally adamant about the need to switch, having cut down from several beers a week, and “a lot more” at weekends, to 2-3 a month. “It’s about replacing those times when I would normally have drunk,” he says. “Part of it for me was that ritual at the end of the day… alcohol has a relaxing effect. But there are studies that show non-alcoholic drinks can give you the same feeling. Your brain is expecting the kind of reward that alcohol gives you and then, because the taste is the same, you get the same effect.”
One benefit of the slightly higher sugar and carb content, he adds, is that they can give you energy, which might be good if you’re doing exercise. Indeed, a study published in the Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise journal in 2012 suggested that non-alcoholic beer could help our immune systems, as the polyphenol compounds found in hops and grains have “strong antioxidant, antipathogenic, and anti-inflammatory properties”. German alcohol-free beer Erdinger is even marketed as “isotonic” – containing electrolytes that can help the body rehydrate and are absorbed faster than water.
In social situations, Hallett advises alternating alcoholic drinks with nolo ones. “Maybe every second or third drink is non-alcoholic; you’re being sociable, but it’s not a case of getting drunk. When I’m not drinking, I still feel that people ask questions, but if you’ve got a nolo drink in your hand it doesn’t provoke them.”
Not to mention the benefits the morning after – and that’s aside from the lack of a hangover. “Drinking heavily has a huge association with mood changes, depression, anxiety, sleep changes and the way you relate to your family and friends – people get drunk and you end up arguing,” says Prof Anderson. “If you drink less, all of those things will improve.”
Yet there are challenges. Prof Anderson cites price (almost on a par with their alcoholic equivalents) and lack of accessibility as barriers. In this, the UK lags behind European countries such as Spain, where nolo drinks occupy prominent positions in supermarkets and 14 per cent of all beers consumed in the country are now alcohol-free.
“The basic message is that all of us who drink would benefit from drinking less,” he adds. “In England, the group that really needs to get involved are the older middle-aged. They are causing most of the problems and they’re the ones that could really benefit from the switch.
“The savings on alcohol far outweigh any other potential consequences from calories, sugar or anything else.”
