7 Things You Didn't Know About… Booze & The Body

An alcohol habit could be harming your health. Here’s how to cut down

- Ali Horsfall

Recent research* has shown that Brits have upped their booze intake in a bid to ease the worry, boredom and loneliness of the pandemic – but do you know the potential damage of drinking too much?

National statistics on UK drinking show that an estimated 1.2 million hospital admissions are related to alcohol consumption, and booze-specific deaths among 55-59-year-old women are the highest they’ve been for 10 years.

1 Are you drinking too much?

Official guidelines advise drinking fewer than 14 units of alcohol a week, spread over three or more days. Use these NHS measures.

2.1 units = a standard glass (175ml) of wine (12%)

3 units = a large glass (250ml) of wine (12%)

2 units = a pint of low-strength lager, beer or cider (3.6%)

3 units = a pint of higher-strength lager, beer or cider (5.2%)

1 unit = a single measure (25ml) of spirits

‘Most of us love alcohol’s short-term effects – the fun, sociability, the relaxation – and hope the long-term health damage won’t happen tous,’ says professor David Nutt, doctor and author of Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health (£16.99, Yellow Kite). ‘But you need to know the risk to your health.’ Here’s the lowdown.

2 Tolerance factor