Researchers found that regular moderate female drinkers were less likely to become obese after a 13 year study of more than 19,000 women. The finding seems to contradict received dietary wisdom which has it that alcohol consumption leads to weight gain. The body may use calories from alcohol in a different way from other foods which affects weight gain, doctors said. It is thought that alcohol is broken down by the liver using a different metabolic pathway to create heat, rather than fat.