Alcoholism

There is no standard global guideline for alcohol consumption, however most countries set specific safe drinking guidelines for their citizens by defining what constitutes as a standard drink and a recommended limit. For example, in the United States, the Department of Health and Human Services define moderate alcohol consumption as drinking up to 1 standard drink per day for women and up to 2 standard drinks per day for men. In the US, a standard drink is one that contains 14 grams of pure alcohol, which is what is found in a 12-ounce (roughly 354ml) 5% alcohol beer or a 5-ounce (148ml) 12% alcohol glass of wine or a 1.5-ounce (roughly 44ml) 40% alcohol shot of distilled spirit.

In Australia, on the other hand, the National Health and Medical Research Council defines a standard drink as one that contains 10 grams of pure alcohol and states that in order to reduce the lifetime risk of alcohol, consumption should be limited to no more than 2 standard drinks on any day and no more than 4 standard drinks on a single occasion to reduce the risk of alcohol-related injury arising from that occasion.

Signs of Problem Drinking

If you find yourself asking whether you or a loved one is drinking too much, then there is a good chance that alcohol consumption is more than the general recommended amount which can lead to problem drinking.

Refer to the infographic below for some signs to look out for that may indicate problem drinking: