Who’s counting?
Alcoholic drinks are a mixture of pure alcohol and other things that give them their flavour. Drinks have different strengths depending on the amount of alcohol (ethanol) they contain. The strength of alcoholic drinks is shown on cans or bottles by a number followed by “% ABV” or “% vol”. The higher the number, the more alcohol is in the drink, for example a bottle of beer (around 5%) will have a lower % ABV than a bottle of vodka (about 40%).
The amount of alcohol in a drink can also be measured in ‘units’. One unit contains 10 ml (by volume) of alcohol. The number of units contained in a bottle, can or glass of alcohol depends upon how much it contains (volume) and the strength % ABV. For example, a ‘shot’ of spirits could contain 1.4 units whereas a bottle of alcopop is bigger but could have the same number of units.
Men over 18 are advised not to drink more than 3-4 units a day and women over 18 no more than 2-3 units a day. People shouldn’t save up all their drinks for a night out! This is sometimes called binge drinking. See below for more about binge drinking.
Remember these levels have been developed for people over 18 only. There are no “safe” guidelines for young people under the age of 18. If you’re younger than this, your body is still developing. Alcohol will affect you quicker and do more damage than it would to an adult (eg your brain goes through dramatic changes when you’re a teenager and alcohol can damage parts of your brain responsible for learning and memory).
Women are advised to drink less than men and, however sexist this might sound, it’s a scientific fact that alcohol affects women more quickly than men! One reason for this is that women have more body fat and less water in their bodies than men. This means that, even if they are the same size and drink the same amount, the alcohol is stronger in their blood than in men’s and they get drunk more quickly and feel the effects for longer. Women also have a smaller liver, which means that it takes longer to break down alcohol.
Alcohol can affect different people in different ways depending on their age, weight, mood, the amount they drink and if they have eaten.
Binge drinking
You may have heard a lot about “binge drinking” in the news. Some people think that a binge is drinking for a couple of days or until they fall over drunk and would never consider themselves as binge drinkers.
Actually, binge drinking is when a man drinks 10 or more units or a woman drinks 7 or more units on one occasion eg on a night out. (Remember, depending on the type of drink, one drink can contain several units.) Binge drinking can lead to serious problems, not only with your health but also with how you behave, which can also affect other people around you!
There are some situations when it makes sense not to drink at all:
- when pregnant;
- driving – people should never, ever drink before or while driving. Remember, you should never get into a car with someone who has been drinking alcohol;
- while taking some medicines or other drugs;
- before or while doing sports.
>>Click here to see how many units there are in different types of alcoholic drinks