Alcohol is known to be a health risk. Research shows that it’s linked to certain cancers, can damage your liver, is tied to dementia risk and can just make you feel lousy. So, with all of these findings, it’s only natural to think more about your relationship with alcohol.
As the sobriety awareness of Dry January comes to a close, you may feel a pull to go back to your old drinking habits. But it could be worth thinking about your use of alcohol and making a change that lasts beyond January. (And, no, this does not have to mean cutting it out altogether.)
Terms like “mindful drinking” and “sober curious” are showing up in the news and on social media, indicating that folks are taking these research findings seriously. What mindful drinking means for one person might not be the same as for another, but in essence it’s bringing awareness to your alcohol consumption and choosing to drink when you actually want to, not just as a reflex while watching the game or as a crutch to deal with stress. Although some people who follow this lifestyle do still drink, others don’t, making the definition fluid and customizable to what’s right for you.
In the end, your decision to drink or not to drink is up to you. But for those who decide to imbibe, nutritionists say there are some things to keep in mind. Below, they share the alcohol guidelines you should follow if you do choose to drink.
1. The CDC guidelines say women should have no more than one drink per day and men should have no more than two.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines define moderate drinking as no more than one drink for women and two drinks for men each day, said Christine Byrne, a registered dietitian and the owner of Ruby Oak Nutrition in Raleigh, North Carolina.
“I think that is a pretty good guideline,” she added. “Those specific guidelines also point out that it doesn’t mean seven drinks in a week for women, it means one drink a day — so not drinking for five days and then drinking six drinks on the sixth day is not the same thing.”
“Alcohol is a lot for your body to process,” which is why you can’t just bank all of those drinks for day six, Byrne said. “Overloading [your body] with alcohol on one day and not drinking for seven days or more can be more harmful than just drinking one drink for women or two drinks for men on a single day ... our bodies are able to process that amount of alcohol.”
Not be a buzzkill, but one alcoholic drink does not mean a Long Island iced tea (a cocktail that combines gin, vodka, rum, tequila and triple sec). Instead, the CDC says one drink is equivalent to a 12-ounce beer that is 5% alcohol by volume (ABV), 5 ounces of wine that’s 12% ABV, 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor or 8 ounces of malt liquor that is 7% ABV.
But know that alcohol is not beneficial to your health. ″[It’s] really important to know that recently, I think as of last year, the World Health Organization actually came out and said that no amount of alcohol is safe,” said Sumner Brooks, a registered dietitian and author of “