Everybody knows that you shouldn’t drink on an empty stomach — that a lack of food magnifies the effects of alcohol. Even nibbling something like a snack mix can help, reducing your peak blood alcohol concentration by as much as 25%. But now, makers of a new snack bar claim that it can effect a 50% reduction.
The snack bar, called Sobar (get it?) was developed by a doctor, Joseph Fisher, who was inspired to experiment with various recipes after having had too much to drink on an empty stomach at a wedding. He wanted to find something that would lower blood alcohol substantially without a large calorie load. The Sobar weighs in at 210 calories.
Fisher test 21 healthy adults, with some consuming a Sobar, some eating a conventional snack mix, and some having a full 635-calorie meal. While the greatest reduction — 67% — was provided by the full meal, Sobar performed best on a per-calorie basis. It obviously won’t turn out to be one of those “healthy” foods that are actually ruining your diet.
The bar works, says Fisher, by decreasing the stomach’s emptying rate, since alcohol is broken down by enzymes in the stomach lining. With ingredients including milk protein and insoluble oat fibre, alcohol stays in the stomach longer, allowing it to be broken down more completely.
Sobar is available in white chocolate almond, honey peanut, and caramel macchiato flavors. Whether it becomes the next big thing in drunk-snacking remains to be seen. After all, fads come and go. Some evolve into full-scale trends, and are now virtually part of the mainstream — these are the biggest fads and trends in food and drink since 2010.)