‘Low carb’, ‘gluten-free’, with collagen or electrolytes: is it really possible for alcohol to be healthy?

Premixed alcoholic drinks are not known for their health benefits. But that hasn’t stopped a boom in products being marketed with “better for you” claims designed to appeal to younger, more health-conscious drinkers.

Labels such as “low sugar”, “gluten-free” and “low carb” are being used in advertising to promote the products, and social media influencers spruik the products under the hashtag #healthydrinking.

But what do these labels actually mean, and is it really possible for alcohol to be healthy?

What is ‘low sugar’ or ‘low calorie’ alcohol?

Food policy expert Prof Simone Pettigrew at the George Institute for Global Health recently ran a research focus group asking participants for their thoughts on a premixed alcoholic drink labelled as “low sugar” and “low carb”.

She said that “as soon as you put low sugar, low carb, gluten free, any of these on a product, people assume it’s a relatively healthy product overall”.

A recent paper led by Pettigrew saw researchers audit 534 ready-to-drink alcoholic products and found one in five did not display a mandatory ingredients list.

On top of this, of the 424 products that did list ingredients, almost half contained industrial additives associated with ultra-processing, such as synthetic colours, sweeteners and flavour enhancers, placing them in the same category as chips and soft drinks.

Despite being ultra-processed, nearly half of those products carried what the researchers described as a “better for you” labels such as low/no sugar, low calorie, gluten free, low/no carbs and other claims.

Deputy chair of the Cancer Council’s nutrition, alcohol and physical activity committee, Julia Stafford, said marketing claims should not guide consumer behaviour, and that people should always read the full nutrition label, including ingredients.

“The ingredient of most concern in an alcohol product is the alcohol,” she said. “It has nothing to do with the carb or sugar content.”

Pettigrew agrees: “People just focus on that tiny little nutrient or ingredient,” she said.

“But it’s not just the claim on the label that makes people assume that the whole product is healthy. We now see the sides of trams and massive billboards in train stations screaming low sugar, low calorie claims on alcohol ads. These ads are absolutely enormous. It’s not subtle messaging.”

No ‘healthy’ level of alcohol consumption

Stafford said alcohol is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen – the highest risk category alongside tobacco and asbestos. It means there is actually no “healthy” level of alcohol consumption when it comes to cancer risk.

Labels such as “low carb”, “natural” and “gluten-free” create a “health halo” around the product and remove the focus away from harmful ingredients, she said.

Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (Fare) policy and research director, Dr Aimee Brownbill, said alcohol brands know that people are increasingly health conscious and interested in wellness. A Fare survey published in 2025 found 44% of Australians want to stop or reduce drinking, with most citing health-related reasons.

It means brands need to find ways to counteract alcohol being viewed as an unhealthy, harmful ingredient, she said, by using terms like “clean”, “natural” and “low sugar” to shift the focus.

And it works, Brownbill said, citing research from more than 2,000 Australian adults which found almost half of the participants indicated they were more likely to buy products that were marketed with such health claims.

Younger people and those identifying as female had particularly positive attitudes towards the claims, especially around lower sugar and calories, the study found.

Natural terminology ‘creeping in’ to advertising

Pettigrew said alcohol brands are also promoting their products as containing collagen and electrolytes. “This natural kind of terminology and these healthy-sounding ingredients are creeping in to [alcohol] labels,” she said.

“Consumers are very clear in saying they don’t want ultra-processed food … They probably don’t realise that ultra-processing is part of producing the alcohol they drink as well, particularly in this really youth-focused product category of premixed drinks.”

She said people need to read the entire nutritional label to make decisions about food and beverage consumption, and to be aware healthy-sounding ingredients can’t counteract the impact of alcohol.

“We do know that consumers are interested in the amount of sugar in products, but there are other ways of delivering that information without huge claims splattered across the front of the can that makes them assume that the whole product is healthy.”

• Melissa Davey is Guardian Australia’s medical editor

• Antiviral is a fortnightly column that interrogates the evidence behind the health headlines and factchecks popular wellness claims