Do restrained eaters restrict their caloric intake prior to drinking alcohol?

• We compared alcohol use between unrestrained and restrained eaters.
• Restrained eaters had fewer eating episodes when they planned to drink alcohol.
• Restrained eaters consumed fewer calories than unrestrained eaters.
• Dietary restraint may exacerbate negative alcohol-related consequences.

This research used multilevel modeling to investigate the hypothesis that restrained eaters increase dietary restriction when they expect to drink alcohol. Undergraduate women (39 restrained eaters; 40 unrestrained eaters) monitored their food and alcohol intake for ten days. Restrained eaters, on average, consumed fewer calories per day than unrestrained eaters. Although the intent to drink alcohol did not impact the overall caloric intake of restrained eaters prior to drinking, restrained eaters reported significantly fewer eating episodes than unrestrained eaters on days the participants intended to drink. Given that restrained eaters generally consumed fewer calories per day and had fewer eating episodes prior to drinking, one major implication of higher levels of intoxication would be increased risk of negative alcohol-related consequences. Future research should extend this study and evaluate negative alcohol-related consequences that occur with higher levels of intoxication.