The World Health Organization has raised the bar for a safe dose of alcohol.Now, according to WHO recommendations published recently, a healthy man can drink up to 10 liters of pure alcohol per year without harm to his health.Women are allowed a third less.This WHO generosity is equivalent to about one bottle of vodka per week.But our narcologists are more conservative; they still adhere to the usual limits: a maximum of 8 liters of “pure” alcohol per year and 3-4 days of complete sobriety per week.At the same time, more and more doctors are insisting on changing the traditional principles of providing assistance to people with alcohol problems that have been established since Soviet times.
“More than 8 liters of pure alcohol per person per year is the extinction of a nation,” says the head of the psychotherapy department of the National Scientific Center for Narcology, professor. — We currently consume 15.1 liters.We are in the negative top.Increased alcohol consumption does not occur out of nowhere - it is an attempt to relieve stress, to some extent escape reality, and solve some psychological problems.This works partly: after drinking, a withdrawn person becomes liberated, his mood improves, and problems are relegated to the background.But still, this is a psychological trap and a pseudo-solution to problems.Man pays too high a price for this.Pays with pathology of the liver, heart, brain.Moreover, when real symptoms of the disease appear, the person, as a rule, is already deeply dependent on alcohol.”
Expert advice: how much can you drink with minimal risk to health?
A safe amount of alcohol is considered to be 14-28 drinks per week for men, and 7-14 drinks per week for women.Moreover, this norm is conditional: for some people, for example, with unfavorable heredity, the risk of deterioration in health occurs when drinking very small quantities of alcohol.
How to drink correctly?
They often say: abroad they eat with a drink, but here they drink with a snack.The main principle should be - the less, the better.And, of course, the drinks must be of high quality.It is better to give preference to dry – not fortified or dessert – wines.Vodka, cognac, and other strong drinks, if they enter the stomach, can cause a condition close to a burn to the mucous membrane, so it is better to dilute high-proof drinks.If we stretch out a diluted drink (it could be wine) over the whole evening, then the total dose of pure alcohol will be small and the harm to health will be minimized.Since the oxidation of alcohol in the body requires an increased consumption of vitamins, it is advisable to take multivitamins, and the table must include greens, vegetables and fruits.
How healthy is dry red wine?
Truly convincing evidence of the benefits of moderate alcohol consumption, including dry wines, has not yet been obtained.But many experts believe that the dose of pure alcohol, and not the type of drink, is of primary importance in the ability to relieve stress.Therefore, it is better to drink less, but better.
What dose of alcohol is considered safe?
According to the recommendations of the same WHO, men should consume no more than 40 g of pure alcohol per day (about 2 bottles of beer, 100 ml of vodka or 3 glasses of dry wine).And for women - 30 g of pure alcohol (1.5 bottles of beer or 80 g of vodka, 2 glasses of dry wine).And this is provided that the person does not take a drop of alcohol 2 days a week.
When does addiction start?
Few people dare to admit to alcohol addiction.Most people consider themselves light drinkers, but one person can drink a bottle of beer a day, but every day, while another drink rarely, but drink heavily.Which of them has problems with alcohol?WHO experts distinguish four forms of alcohol consumption.
- Safe form.This is when a person drinks no more than 210 ml (for men) or 135 ml (for women) of pure alcohol per week.At the same time, the amount of alcohol per day should not exceed safe doses: 40 ml (for men) and 30 ml of ethyl alcohol (for women).
- Dangerous form.This is when a person exceeds safe doses and does not comply with the sobriety regime.
- Doctors warn that with such an attitude towards alcoholic beverages, a person risks becoming addicted to alcohol in the future and getting one of the diseases associated with excessive consumption of strong drinks (liver cirrhosis, stomach ulcers, anemia, heart failure, etc.) as a “bonus”.
- Consumption with harmful consequences.This is when a person drinks heavily (continuous consumption of alcohol for more than 2 days) and feels an irresistible desire to get hungover.
- But the most characteristic symptom of this form is loss of control over the amount of drinking.That is, a person loses his sense of proportion, and therefore more and more often he gets drunk.
- The third form of drinking alcoholic beverages is not yet considered an addiction, but with it the brain and internal organs of the drinker wear out considerably.
- Alcoholism.This form of alcohol consumption is characterized by a person’s persistent reluctance to give up alcohol, even in the name of poor health.
At this stage, the form of intoxication also changes, for example, before a person got drunk, became cheerful and fell asleep, but now he has an aggressive form of behavior.At the same time, the dose of alcohol drunk in one day increases several times.
How much alcohol can a person drink per day?
Peoplehave different attitudes towards alcohol.Some people cannot live a day without drinking at least one glass of vodka.Some people drink several times a month and only on special occasions.There are also individuals who react completely indifferently to alcoholic drinks.Is there a safe dose of alcohol?Some doctors assure their patients that they can drink no more than one dose of alcohol during the week, while others are confident that the amount of alcohol exceeding 60 ml of vodka and 150 ml of wine per month already indicates drunkenness.Scientists have even come up with a lot of different formulas to determine a safe dose of alcohol for the human body.But most narcologists agree that each person has his own purely personal norm for drinking, which directly depends on his individual characteristics.The last assumption can be called the most plausible, because some people are able to get drunk from a glass of wine, while others are not affected by a bottle of vodka.It is most dangerous for the weaker sex to drink alcohol.A woman very quickly becomes involved in drinking, and even small doses of alcoholic beverages become addictive to her.Drinking regularly, a woman runs the risk of becoming an alcoholic within 2 years.Men are more tolerant of alcoholic beverages and do not become drunk so quickly - after 10 years.
Doctors have conducted numerous studies, as a result of which they came to the conclusion: in order to avoid falling asleep, men of average build can drink up to 250 ml of wine, 500 ml of beer and no more than 50 ml of vodka (or another drink with a strength of up to 40 degrees) per day.For women, the permissible portion of alcohol per day is smaller: wine - no more than 150 ml, beer - up to 330 ml and vodka - 30 ml.It should be understood that we are talking only about any one of the listed alcoholic beverages, and not about all of them at once.Scientists believe that these portions are not capable of having a negative impact on human health.If you drink alcohol above the safe limit, then strong drinks will gradually and steadily turn you into a real alcoholic.Not only gender is taken into account when calculating the safe level of alcohol for a person.Climatic conditions also play an important role in the process of becoming involved in alcoholism.It has been noticed that in cold regions people become drunkards much faster than in areas with a comfortable temperature regime.Another factor that must be taken into account when determining the permissible dose of alcohol is the age of the drinker.The younger the body, the faster it gets drunk, which means it is more sensitive to the negative effects of ethyl alcohol.A young man who drinks low-alcohol beer will get drunk faster than a middle-aged man who drinks strong drinks.
It should be understood that alcohol, even in the smallest quantities, is contraindicated for pregnant and breastfeeding women, children, teenagers, drivers and people taking any medications.According to WHO, drinking about 8 liters of alcoholic beverages over the course of a year causes irreparable damage to one’s health.At the same time, domestic narcologists note that the average citizen can drink from 15 to 18 liters of alcohol per year, and this is already a threatening sign of drunkenness.Why do people in some countries drink more than the legal limit?For most of our compatriots, the concepts of “drinking” and “holiday” are synonymous.Not a single celebration takes place without tables sagging from the weight of bottles of vodka, cognac, and wine.Inviting guests to your home and not placing a bottle of alcohol in front of them is considered a sign of indecency.If in normal circumstances a person is able to control the amount he drinks, then during a feast he consciously allows himself more to relax and have fun.
It’s not for nothing that after the holidays, people experience all sorts of chronic ailments.In order to comply with the norm, a person needs to clearly determine for himself how much he can drink and not exceed his limit for the day.This is the only way to develop a drinking culture.But not only holidays contribute to the development of alcoholism.Having fallen ill with a viral infection, some people prefer to be treated not with medications, but with strong drinks.Alcohol really helps destroy pathogenic microbes, but along with them it slowly and surely destroys the entire body.And those people who, during treatment, combine drinking strong drinks with medications do themselves a disservice: even the smallest portions of vodka, cognac or other drinks taken with tablets or mixtures deal a crushing blow to the liver, pancreas and cardiovascular system.In addition, excess portions of alcohol contribute to the development of alcohol addiction.In the presence of serious illnesses, alcohol poisoning occurs much faster.A dangerous condition is indicated by very low body temperature (3-4 degrees below normal) and heavy breathing.Usually, within 12-36 hours after a huge amount of alcohol enters the body, a person’s heart stops and death occurs.
How much can you drink in other countries?In foreign countries, a safe dose of alcohol for men is considered to be 30 ml of pure ethyl alcohol per day (this amount is contained in approximately 300 ml of wine, 600 ml of beer or 40 ml of vodka).For foreign women, the permissible alcohol limit is exactly 2 times less than for representatives of the stronger sex.Doctors are confident that if you drink alcoholic beverages in the indicated doses, then they will help prevent diseases of the cardiovascular system.In foggy albus, the permitted dose of alcohol is 32 ml of pure ethanol for men and 24 ml for women.In another country, an adult man, without fear of harming his health and drinking himself to death, with a clear conscience can afford to drink alcoholic beverages containing no more than 20 ml of alcohol.For women, this norm is reduced to 10 ml per day.In countries with dark-skinned populations, the permissible portion of alcohol is 24 ml of pure ethanol per day for the male population.
There is an opinion that the dose of alcohol per day recommended by doctors is not only safe, but also very useful, and moderate drinkers live longer than abstainers.But adherents of the hypothesis warn that only dry red wine can bring benefits; stronger drinks will not provide any benefit to the body.Allowing themselves to drink, they always know their limit and know how to stop in time.These happy people are not afraid of alcoholism.Well, for those who do not know how to control themselves, the only way to avoid dependence on alcoholic beverages is not to listen to stories about safe doses of alcohol and not to drink at all.
The Ministry of Health warns: how much alcohol can you drink?
Specialists from the Ministry of Health have calculated alcohol consumption standards for men and women, which can be used in the labeling of these products.The State Research Center for Preventive Medicine of the Ministry of Health has calculated safe standards for alcohol consumption, the newspaper article says.The standards define the amount of drinking that corresponds to low, medium and high harm to health.According to the calculations of the State Scientific Research Center for Medical Prevention, if a man drinks 1.5 liters of beer with a strength of 4.5 degrees three days a week, then the risk will be low.The same dosage for five days will increase the risk to medium, and daily consumption of this amount of foamy drink corresponds to a high risk.Men can drink a 50 ml glass of vodka with low health risks twice a day; while maintaining safety standards, it is better for women to drink one.If this norm is exceeded, the risk will become medium.According to the recommendations of the State Scientific Research Center for Pregnancy and Pregnancy, a woman can drink two glasses (each 100 ml) of dry wine with a strength of 13 degrees per day.Or a 150 ml glass of champagne.These doses mean low risk, even if consumed throughout the week.
It is impossible to identify acceptable and unacceptable levels of alcohol consumption, the newspaper quotes the director of the Institute of Narcological Health of the Nation as saying.“Such recommendations or calculations of health risks can be made for each individual person, taking into account his body weight, the state of the body systems, the enzymatic apparatus that breaks down alcohol; these points are discussed in WHO documents,” the expert notes.The head of the Center for National Alcohol Policy Development said it is quite difficult for people to control their drinking at certain levels and stop at the right time based on recommendations.They are not deterred by consequences.“If a person feels good, then why would he suddenly stop, so it’s worth saying that starting to drink alcohol is already a risk,” the expert said.