Way, way back in 2003, researchers surveyed a couple thousand Czechs about their drinking habits and had each undergo a medical evaluation.

The Czech Republic regularly comes out on top in the measure of per capita beer consumption.

The researchers found no correlation between regular beer drinking and obesity, specifically the “beer belly”.

BBC News: Why the beer belly may be a myth

Doctors measured their weight and their waist to hip ratio and body mass index, both used to measure obesity.

The scientists found no link between beer consumption and obesity.

They said the findings suggested there is no truth in the claim that drinking too much beer makes people obese.

“There is a common notion that beer drinkers are, on average, more ‘obese’ than either non-drinkers or drinkers of wine or spirits,” the researchers said.

“This is reflected, for example, by the expression ‘beer belly’.

“If this is so, then beer intake should be associated with some general measure of obesity, such as body mass index or with indices of fat distribution such as waist to hip ratio or with both.”

(via Brew Dad)