by Guinness is Good for You is one of the most famous advertising campaigns in history, but away from the slogans and billboards, it seems that there may be a grain of truth in the proposition that every stout makes everyone better a person something positive for the body.
In recent years, researchers have been collecting evidence to suggest that certain beers may help improve the diversity of species in the gut microbiome, which is usually associated with health benefits. In 2022, a study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry followed 22 men who drank a little more than half a pint of beer every day for four weeks and found that they had better markers of intestinal health afterwards.
Now, a review of experiments published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition concluded that the various ingredients within beer may have a positive effect on the immune system, when they are broken down and fermented within the gut.
According to Megan Rossi, a nutrition researcher at King’s College London and founder of The Gut Health Doctor, this is due to plant chemicals called polyphenols found in some beers, which are known to be useful foods for the bacteria in the gut. “Bacteria have been shown to digest about 90 percent of polyphenols and turn them into chemicals, which can have anti-inflammatory effects,” she says.
However, Belgian Professor Jeroen Raes, who examined the possible effects of beer on the microbiome as part of the Flemish Gut Flora Project, warns that we still do not know much and that the alcohol within beer could cancel out any positive results.
“My feeling is that if beer has an effect on the gut, the magnitude of the effects will be quite limited,” he says. “And I’m not sure it’s beneficial by definition.”
But scientists believe that emerging research shows that some beers may be better for you than others. Here are some suggestions that are good for the gut, and some to perhaps leave behind the bar.
Beer that is not harmful to the gut
1. Guinness
From the 1920s to the 1960s, marketing taglines such as My Goodness, My Guinness and Guinness for Strength firmly established the brand as the world’s most popular brand.
But while there are no suggestions that Guinness increases muscle mass, it is thought to be rich in certain plant chemicals. “Guinness is particularly high in some polyphenols,” says Rossi. “We talk about variety (being good for the gut), and that’s the case with drinks too. So if you drank a small pint of Guinness one night, and then a small red wine another time, while you were within the alcohol limit, you are likely to get a wider range of these polyphenols.”
2. Newcastle Ale
“It’s not a health drink, but some of these ales will have more of these useful chemicals as well as yeast strains left in the beer,” says Federica Amati, a medical scientist at Imperial College London. “They probably won’t live, but they’re thought to still have some kind of beneficial effect on our immune system when they reach the belly.”
3. Hoegaarden
Unlike most beers, Belgian brands such as Hoegaarden, Westmalle Tripel and Echt Kriekenbier are fermented twice, first in the brewery and again in the bottle. This second fermentation uses a different strain from traditional brewer’s yeast, which increases the strength of the beer, but also means there are more microbes that can be useful.
“We know that even dead yeasts can affect the composition of the microbiota, and that it can also affect transit times,” says Raes. “You see if you pour the beer at the end, the final pour is a little more opaque and that’s really your yeast. My grandmother would also say, ‘I’ll drink that because it’s good for my behaviour,’ and there’s probably some effect on mobility, although it’s not very obvious.”
4. London Porter Dark Ale
Belgian beer isn’t the only one with gut-boosting yeast at the bottom. Amati says you can often see this with craft or artisan beers, as well as the darker ales.
“If you look into the bottle itself and there’s a bit of sediment on the bottom, that’s always a good sign,” she says.
5. Unfiltered Stella Artois
If you are going to opt for a lager, the rule is to try to find an unfiltered version. Many drinkers prefer this as it allows for a more complex flavor and aroma, but the lack of processing also means that more potentially useful chemicals are left in the drinks.
“If you drink beer that’s long fermented and traditionally made, so it’s not a super-filtered beer, you’re going to get some of those polyphenols and yeast strains left in the beer,” says Amati.
The vast majority of beers sold in UK supermarkets are heavily filtered, but some brands such as Stella Artois have started to launch unfiltered ranges.
6. Doom Bar Alcohol Free Amber Ale
Drinking alcohol-free beer can have all the benefits for your gut, without the drawbacks of the actual alcohol content. This particular brand is a good example of a darker, non-alcoholic ale that is more likely to contain helpful plant chemicals.
“If anything, the studies suggesting that beer may have benefits for the microbiome could be a good boost for the low-alcohol beer market,” says Amati. “Again, though, you’re looking for that darker, more artisanal ale.”
Avoid beer
1. Heineken
Highly refined and carbonated lagers will have less beneficial nutrients for the gut.
2. Budweiser Lager
Another filtered beer, this will have less polyphenols than ale.
3. San Miguel
This popular lager is likely to contain fewer microbes than a double-fermented Belgian beer.
4. Perio
Like the other filtered lagers this beer is likely to be light on gut-friendly plant chemicals.
5. Stella Artois regular lagers
If you’re looking for a gut-friendly version opt for the unfiltered lager.
6. Heineken Non Alcoholic Lager
Just like the alcoholic versions, alcohol-free lagers are less likely to have any benefits for your gut.
It’s not just beer – cider can be good too
According to Amati, there is some evidence that craft cider brands – such as Old Rosie Scrumpy Cider and Henry Westons Vintage Cider – may have benefits for the gut microbiome.
“Typically some of the actual fruit remains in the drink, which means the fermentation continues longer,” she says. “Cloudier ciders are better because these are sugars called polysaccharides that float in the cider and are good prebiotics to feed the gut bugs.”
Other drinks, which date back to the middle ages, such as weights which have recently emerged in London, are also thought to benefit the port. “All this ancient stuff that’s made back in the day usually uses a lot of the fiber from the fruit to make it, which is why they might have some benefits,” a says Amati.
But, as always, moderation is key
However, all gut experts are keen to point out that alcoholic drinks are not the same as health drinks and in many cases, any benefits to the gut are likely to be canceled out by the effects of alcohol on the body.
“I really want to get the message across that we need to drink in moderation,” says Amati. “Have at least three alcohol-free days in your week, and no more than one drink when you do drink.”
NHS guidelines recommend no more than 14 units of alcohol per week – the equivalent of eight cans of medium-strength beer (four per cent) – warning that alcohol increases the risk of multiple cancers as well as heart and liver disease.
Rossi also recommends not drinking more than one or two alcoholic drinks at a time. “When we’re talking about any anti-inflammatory benefits to the tent from these darker beers, they become pro-inflammatory after about two drinks,” she explains. “That’s because the alcohol starts to leak out of the vagina a little bit, which allows stuff to move from our vagina into the bloodstream where it wouldn’t normally be, resulting in low-grade inflammation .”
