How can I avoid health problems?
Drinking above the low risk guidelines or binge drinking puts you at high risk for health-related problems.
It’s always best to get advice from a doctor sooner rather than later if you’re worried that drinking may be affecting your health.
How much alcohol puts me at risk?
Risk varies from person to person and depends on the particular health problem – breast cancer risk is increased from only one drink a day, whereas liver cirrhosis affects mainly people who drink heavily over a long period of time. In most cases, though, the more you drink, the more your risk of harming your health increases.
Regularly drinking more than 17 standard drinks (men) and 11 standard drinks (women) in a week risks damaging your health.
No amount of alcohol is completely safe but, the less you drink, the better it is for your health
Spotting the signs of alcohol-related health problems
With most health problems, the sooner you get them checked out and treated the better. This is true for alcohol-related problems too. If you are worried that alcohol may be affecting your physical or mental health, visit your GP.
Read more:
Are you worried that alcohol is affecting your health?
Symptoms that alcohol may be affecting your health
Be sure how much you’re drinking
Irish people tend to underestimate how much they are drinking. It’s common for heavy drinkers to describe themselves as moderate and moderate drinkers to describe themselves as light drinkers.
The good news about alcohol and your health
The good news is that you can protect your health by drinking within the low-risk limits and avoiding binge drinking:
- You can cut your risk of alcohol related health problems
- You may prevent problems happening and reverse damage that has already happened
If you find it hard to stop drinking and need support, see our section Where to get help