A HANGOVER should be the least of men's worries after a night on the booze, according to new research.

Latest findings have revealed that men tend to put on most weight in their 20s: and in many cases the blame rests firmly with beer.

At last week's meeting of the Bury Primary Care Trust's professional executive committee, Dr Paola Dey, a consultant in public health, said that men aged 25 to 34 who were underweight only drank an average of about two pints per week.

This compared to more than five pints per week for overweight men, and an average of six pints per week for obese men.

Normal strength beer contains about 250 calories in a pint. This is about twice as many calories as wine with the same alcohol content.

Dr Dey said: "Men may not be aware how easy it is to put on weight through drinking beer. If they want to drink alcohol, they should think about alternatives with less calories."

Although the doctor admitted that obesity in Bury is clearly linked with deprivation, with almost twice the rate of obesity in East Ward when compared to Tottington, Dr Dey said that the problem of men becoming overweight due to beer drinking is a general problem.

Local GP Dr Qureshi said: "We should be concerned not only about beer drinking but also high calorie fizzy drinks widely drank by children and adults. We need to persuade children to drink alternatives such as water or low calorie drinks."

Dr Peter Elton, Direct of Public Health in Bury, added: "Obesity is a growing problem . We need to tackle it in as many ways as possible. The finding that beer leads to being overweight gives men the chance to take appropriate action."