Stay safe and know your limits
No one can say that drinking alcohol is absolutely safe, but being well informed and following some simple steps, you can keep your drinking under control and reduce the risk of harm.
Know the safer drinking limits
To stay healthy, you should also have at least two days a week alcohol-free. Try to have several drink-free days each week.
Binge drinking can be extremely harmful too. This means drinking more than 6 units for women, or 8 units for men in one day. Drinking a lot of alcohol in a short period puts you at risk of alcohol poisoning, accidents and falls, aggression, anti-social behaviour and can mean taking risks you wouldn’t normally take, like having unprotected sex. So ‘saving’ all your units for the weekend isn’t a great plan either!
If you’re not sure how much you’re drinking, our Drinking Diary is a good place to start to give you a better picture.
Use our top tips to drink more safely…
- Put your drink down between sips – you drink twice as fast if you keep holding it
- Avoid rounds! You’ll end up drinking at the speed of the fastest drinker!
- Alternate your drinks, 1 x alcoholic then 1 x non-alcoholic
- Turn down the volume: changing to a pint of 3.8% ABV lager from a 5.2% ABV pint saves nearly a unit per pint
- Do something when you’re drinking, like having a meal or playing cards/pool etc. to slow you down
- Thirsty? Quench your thirst with soft drinks before starting on the alcohol
- Try other ways to relax (sport, bath, music…)
- ‘I won’t drink before…’ set a time and stick to it!
- When pouring spirits at home use a shot measure (25ml = pub measure = 1 unit)
- Budget for your alcohol when you’re out, and make sure you have enough to get home!
Need help?
Please book an appointment with your GP if you are worried abut your alcohol consumption and would like some support.
Please complete our alcohol consumption questionnaire below
Alcohol Consumption Questionnaire