# How alcoholic is non-alcoholic beer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 1, 2004, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-alcoholic-is-non-alcoholic-beer/227017 "2004-02-01T07:16:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-alcoholic-is-non-alcoholic-beer/227017/1 "2004-02-01T07:16:03Z")
I have to avoid alcohol for medical reasons. I never drank much to begin with so it’s not something that I miss all that much. On the rare occasions that I find myself in a bar I’ll order an O’Douls. The label states that it contains less than 0.5% alcohol by volume. Searching the web, I’ve found several claims that this is no more than what naturally occurs in things like orange juice or bread. I haven’t been told to avoid either fruit juices or bread so if these claims are true than it would follow that non-alcoholic beer should be just as safe for me. But I haven’t found what I would consider to be authoritative cites to back up the claims. Are these claims correct? Is 0.5% a biologically meaningful amount of alcohol? ---
**Author:** ![Number](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/number/32/242_2.png) [@Number](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Number)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-alcoholic-is-non-alcoholic-beer/227017/2 "2004-02-01T07:45:13Z")
If I’ve done my math right then a 12 oz. O’Doul’s has about a third of a teaspoon of alcohol in it. You should ask a doctor what amount is safe to ingest with your condition. You’ll never get drunk from the stuff though. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-alcoholic-is-non-alcoholic-beer/227017/3 "2004-02-01T08:09:39Z")
> [@Number](#): > > If I’ve done my math right then a 12 oz. O’Doul’s has about a third of a teaspoon of alcohol in it. You should ask a doctor what amount is safe to ingest with your condition. You’ll never get drunk from the stuff though. Hmm… When I read your post I thought “that can’t be right, it’s only one half of one percent” but I did the math myself and, unless we both made the same mistakes, it’s 0.36 of a teaspoon so you’re correct. But the question then is, does 12 ounces of orange juice really contain as much as 1/3 of a teaspoon of alcohol? I’ve never heard of anyone being told to avoid OJ due to its alcohol content. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-alcoholic-is-non-alcoholic-beer/227017/4 "2004-02-01T17:54:39Z")
If you are truly concerned about the alcohol content in the 0.5s like O’Douls, consider drinking one of the true non-alcoholic beers, like the 0.0% Beck’s beer. I was at a party for New Year’s, and several people were seved the non-alcoholic version by accident (both types were in the fridge) and no one noticed a taste difference, not even those people who regularly drank regular Beck’s. There are a few other 0.0% beers, in which no fermentation was ever allowed to happen. Visit your local friendly Beer-selling person and ask them about it. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2004, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-alcoholic-is-non-alcoholic-beer/227017/5 "2004-02-01T19:31:52Z")
> [@mnemosyne](#): > > If you are truly concerned about the alcohol content in the 0.5s like O’Douls, consider drinking one of the true non-alcoholic beers, like the 0.0% Beck’s beer. I was at a party for New Year’s, and several people were seved the non-alcoholic version by accident (both types were in the fridge) and no one noticed a taste difference, not even those people who regularly drank regular Beck’s. > > There are a few other 0.0% beers, in which no fermentation was ever allowed to happen. Visit your local friendly Beer-selling person and ask them about it. Are you certain about the Beck’s? From [Beck’s website](http://www.becksbeer.com/highres/index_products.html): (Click on “non-alcoholic” to the upper right of the picture.) > [@](#): > > What this brew lacks in alcohol it certainly makes up for in flavor. This malt beverage (less than 0.5% alcohol by volume) boasts a full, rich, thick head, light amber color and balanced bitterness. So unless they have another non-alcoholic that they’re not mentioning, it’s the same as O’Douls, less than 0.5% by volume. I’m skeptical that any of them are 100% alcohol free. And I’m still looking for a cited answer to my original question. Is it true that the same volume of orange juice can contain as much alcohol?