If drinking it with a meal, blood sugars will tend to rise. If drinking alcohol when blood sugar is already low, a severe episode of low blood sugar may occur. Those taking insulin should not omit any food from their meal plan to make up for the alcohol they plan on drinking. And to avoid a very low blood sugar, the best time to drink an alcoholic beverage is when eating, or shortly before or after a meal. Small amounts of alcohol with a meal will cause very little change in blood-sugar levels and should not harm an individual whose diabetes is in good control.
Alcoholic drinks are a source for added calories with little nutritional value.
As such, they should not replace nutritious foods and should be counted in your meal plan if you are overweight and are controlling your diabetes through your diet. The calories in alcohol are counted in the diet as fat servings, because alcohol is metabolized in the body like a fat. Because it is best to drink alcoholic beverages that have the least fat and sugar intake, drinking light beer or dry wine is recommended instead of regular beer or sweet wines. You should talk to your doctor about your specific medication that you take and whether it is okay to drink small amounts of alcohol while taking the medication. Cooking with alcohol is allowed.