Mull over calories before toasting.

• Position: New Year's Celebrations - Brief article

While some people are conscious of the calories from snacking on holiday cookies and hors d'oeuvres, many partygoers may not be counting the calories in their alcoholic beverages. "The over consumption syndrome in this country is not only about food, but alcohol's portion sizes as well," points out Julia Chester, an assistant professor of psychological sciences at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.

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"There is a lack of knowledge about standard drink sizes, and that leads to consuming too many calories. People do not know how to assess how much they are drinking, and when they have two drinks on a Friday night, it may actually be four or five because there are multiple doses in one giant cup. Two 44-ounce servings are very different from two 12-ounce servings."

The standard drink size is 12 ounces for beer, five ounces for wine, and 1.5 ounces for 80-proof alcohol, indicates Chester, who studies the role of genetics in alcohol consumption.

Consuming alcoholic beverages from the start of the evening until the New Year is toasted can be the...