Many people do not drink alcohol during the work week, but allow themselves to relax on weekends by drinking several bottles of beer or stronger drinks per day. It should be noted that this approach is dangerous and can lead to health problems. This is due to the fact that it is difficult for the body to process a large dose of alcohol received within 2 days.
To avoid serious problems, you need to know what dose of alcohol per day is considered safe.
Is there a safe amount of alcohol?
Doctors have still not reached a consensus on whether there is a dose of alcohol that is harmless to the body. Some believe that 200 ml of wine or 50 ml of vodka (cognac) 2-3 times a week is a completely acceptable amount of alcohol that will not affect your health in any way. Others believe that even such a small amount increases the risk of various health problems and leads to alcoholism.
There are special tables and formulas that can help you approximately calculate how much alcohol you can drink without harming your health. But it should be borne in mind that it is impossible to rely on it 100%, since the values obtained are averaged. For each person, the safe dose of alcohol is individual. The parameter depends on gender, age, weight and the presence of chronic diseases.
Safe amount of alcohol per day
Many studies and experiments have been conducted to determine daily alcohol consumption. Most Westerners and our doctors agreed that without harm to health, a complex middle-aged man can drink the following per day:
- wine – up to 200 ml;
- beer – up to 500 ml;
- vodka (cognac, whiskey) – up to 50 ml.
For the fair sex, the following amount of alcohol is considered safe:
- wine – up to 100 ml;
- beer – up to 330 ml;
- strong drinks – up to 30 ml.
It should be noted that due to their anatomical features, women are drawn into drunkenness much faster, so alcohol dependence can develop in them after 1. 5-2 years of daily consumptionof alcohol.
How much is safe to drink per week?
The WHO (World Health Organization) has calculated the amount of alcohol per week that can be consumed without harming health. The safe dose is indicated in servings, where a standard serving is 10 ml of ethanol or 8 g of alcohol.
For men
For men, it is acceptable to drink 3 units of alcohol per day or 21 units per week, subject to two days of complete sobriety.
For women
It is not recommended that women drink more than 2 servings of alcohol per day or 14 servings per week. To avoid health problems, women should also drink at intervals of at least two days.
Is there a safety standard for a driver?
Many drivers are concerned about how much alcohol they can drink and how much before getting behind the wheel. According to established standards, the concentration of pure alcohol in blood serum should not exceed 0. 35 ppm. This standard was introduced due to the fact that alcohol is always present in a person's blood, even if no alcoholic beverages have been consumed before.
Alcohol enters the body because it is found in many foods, including kefir, some fruits, and baked goods. Each country has its own permitted levels of alcohol in a driver's blood.
Moderate alcohol consumption
To avoid health problems and minimize the risk of developing alcohol dependence, you should drink in moderation. It is especially important to know your norm for people who have alcohol problems, for example, those who, after a few glasses of vodka, lose control of their behavior or become too aggressive.
Even with moderate alcohol consumption, it is recommended to adhere to the following rules:
- You should absolutely not mix different types of alcohol together;
- after intense stress, it is not recommended to drink more than 70 ml of strong drinks;
- when drinking alcohol, you should refrain from smoking, as nicotine increases intoxication;
- It is better to snack on citrus drinks, since the substances present in their composition accelerate the process of alcohol breakdown.
As for restrictions, even with moderate alcohol consumption, it is recommended to refrain from taking medications, since alcohol can neutralize or, on the contrary, enhance their effect.
How to calculate your alcohol limit without a hangover?
To avoid a hangover the day after a feast, alcohol consumption should be moderate. If we talk about specific types of alcoholic beverages, then on average per 1 kg of body weight there should be no more than:
- vodka – 4 ml;
- beer – 30 ml;
- wine – 12 ml;
- tequila – 3 ml;
- absinthe – 2 ml.
It should be noted that over the years, the dose of alcohol should be gradually reduced, because in adulthood the body no longer handles ethanol as effectively and the elimination process slows down. The more components a drink contains, the more difficult it is for the body to cope with it. After drinking cognac, whiskey or absinthe, the hangover will be worse than with the same amount of vodka.
On a note! Drinks and snacks consumed with alcohol have little effect on the severity of a hangover. How you feel the next morning depends solely on the quantity and quality of what you drink.
How much to drink without risking getting drunk?
Even with moderate alcohol consumption, it cannot be guaranteed that a person will not become intoxicated. Narcologists claim that the risk of developing alcoholism largely depends on genetic predisposition. The psycho-emotional state also plays an important role.
In any case, it must be remembered that regular consumption of alcoholic beverages (even in moderate quantities) is addictive and can lead to alcohol dependence.
In international medicine, there is such a term as "critical dose" - this is the maximum amount of alcohol that a person can drink without the risk of moving to stage 2 or 3 of alcoholism. Anyone who suspects they are becoming addicted to alcohol should know approximately what stage they are at. This is very important to prevent progression of the disease and maintain a stable level.
People who drink alcohol moderately and are between stages 1 and 2 of alcoholism cannot drink more than 100-300 ml of vodka once a week. This amount of alcohol will not seriously harm health and will prevent the situation from getting worse.
On a note! In case of alcohol abuse, the risk of becoming alcoholic is particularly high in people under 20 years old.
Formula for determining individual alcohol norms
Health experts have developed a formula that can be used to calculate an individual's alcohol consumption. Using this method, you can independently determine how much alcohol you can drink per day without harming your health.
The basis is 1. 5 g of ethyl alcohol per 1 kg of human weight. If a person weighs 70 kg, the individual dose of ethanol is 105 ml. In any case, it should be understood that these values are an average, since much depends on age, gender and physiological characteristics of the body.
Conclusion
Consumed in moderation, alcohol does not harm your health. This is especially true in cases where high-quality drinks based on natural ingredients are consumed.
To minimize the risk of unwanted complications, it is recommended to calculate your individual alcohol consumption and not exceed it. And of course, we must not forget that even in minimal quantities it is not recommended to consume alcohol more than 2-3 times a week, as this can provoke the development of alcohol dependence.