When trying to lose weight, many focus on the foods they are putting in the body.

While this can be a good place to start, you could be throwing all your hard work away if you don’t consider liquid calories.

Previously, we revealed how binging on sugary pop or energy drinks is bad for your health.

And now, a medical expert has identified another fluid that could lead to you piling on the pounds.

Dr Sam Hay believes you can cut your calorie intake by thousands if you cut back on your booze intake.

The medical professional urges Brits to see what happens if they ditch alcohol.

Many choose to partake in Ocsober, which involves banishing their favourite tipples for 31 days.

While this is only a temporary measure, it can have huge impacts on your waistline.

Dr Hay told Body + Soul that he cut seven days worth of calories out by swerving alcohol for a month.

Speaking to the podcast, he said: “I’m scared to say, ’70,000 calories’.

“I’ve worked out that that’s effectively a week’s worth of food.”

If you find it too tricky to stop drinking for long periods of time, it’s still possible to lose weight.

Be mindful about which drinks you are putting in your body, as some are more calorific than others.

Try making these four swaps next time you’re out:

1. Swap alcopops for spirits with diet mixers

Alcopops often contain heaps of added sugars, and an average bottle can have up to 253 calories.

For an equally sweet but lower calorie drink, a diet coke and rum can contain as little as 115 calories per 280ml serving, making this an ideal sweet alcoholic swap.

2. Go for a gin and slim line tonic

A gin & tonic is one of the nations favourite drinks, but due to the added sugars of tonic water a typical 210ml serving can contain about 170 calories.

A similar 210ml serving of gin & slim line tonic contains just 115 calories saving you an average of 55 calories per glass.

3. Ditch sweet white wine in favour of Champagne

The additional sugar in a sweet white wine means that a 175ml medium glass can average about 160 calories.

Champagne has one of the lowest calorie counts for a carbonated drink, with one serving only containing 89 calories.

4. Swap beer for Skinny Lager

Each pint of beer contains around 210 liquid calories.

If you find it difficult to live without the tipple, swap it for Skinny Brands' bottles.

The lager contains just 89 calories a bottle and is also gluten free, vegan friendly and low in sugar.