The World Health Organization has raised the bar for a safe dose of alcohol.According to recently published WHO recommendations, a healthy man can now drink up to 10 liters of pure alcohol per year without harming his health.Women are allowed a third less.This generosity from the WHO is equivalent to approximately one bottle of vodka per week.But our narcologists are more conservative;They continue to 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 insist 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 means the downfall of a nation,” says the head of the psychotherapy department of the National Scientific Center for Narcology, professor. — We currently use 15.1 liters.We are in the negative peak.Increased alcohol consumption is not accidental - it is an attempt to relieve stress, escape from reality and solve some psychological problems.This works to some extent: after drinking, a withdrawn person becomes freed, his mood improves, and problems fade into the background.Nevertheless, this is a psychological trap and a pseudo-solution to problems.People pay too high a price for this.Pays with pathology of the liver, heart and brain.In addition, when real symptoms of the disease appear, the person is usually already heavily dependent on alcohol.”
Expert advice: How much can you drink with minimal health risk?
The safe amount of alcohol is 14-28 drinks per week for men and 7-14 drinks per week for women.In addition, this norm is conditional: some people, for example, with unfavorable heredity, are at risk of deteriorating health if they drink very small amounts of alcohol.
How do you drink correctly?
It is often said: abroad you eat with a drink, but here you drink with a snack.The 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 - unfortified - or dessert wines.Vodka, cognac and other strong drinks, if they get into the stomach, can provoke a condition similar to a burn of the mucous membrane, so it is better to dilute hard drinks.If we distribute a diluted drink (it could be wine) throughout the evening, 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 recommended to take multivitamins, and the table must necessarily include vegetables, greens and fruits.
How healthy is dry red wine?
There is currently no truly convincing evidence of the benefits of moderate alcohol consumption, including dry wines.However, many experts believe that the dose of pure alcohol, not the type of drink, is crucial for stress relief.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 consume a drop of alcohol on 2 days a week.
When does addiction start?
Few people dare to admit that they are addicted to alcohol.Most people consider themselves light drinkers, but one may drink a bottle of beer every day, but every day, while another drinks rarely but a lot.Which of them has problems with alcohol?WHO experts differentiate between four forms of alcohol consumption.
- Safe form.This occurs 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 occurs when a person exceeds the safe dose and does not adhere to the fasting regime.
- Doctors warn that with such an attitude towards alcoholic beverages, a person runs the risk of becoming addicted to alcohol in the future and, as a "bonus", acquiring one of the diseases associated with excessive consumption of strong drinks (cirrhosis of the liver, stomach ulcers, anemia, heart failure, etc.).
- Consumption with harmful consequences.This is when a person drinks a lot (continuous consumption of alcohol for more than 2 days) and feels an irresistible desire to get a hangover.
- However, the most characteristic symptom of this form is loss of control over the amount of water consumed.That is, a person loses his sense of proportion and therefore gets drunk more and more often.
- The third form of consumption of alcoholic beverages is not yet considered an addiction, but it causes considerable wear and tear on the drinker's brain and internal organs.
- Alcoholism.Characteristic of this form of alcohol consumption is a person's persistent reluctance to abstain from alcohol, even under the pretext of poor health.
At this stage, the form of intoxication also changes, for example, before a person got drunk, became happy and fell asleep, but now shows aggressive behavior.At the same time, the dose of alcohol drunk in a day increases several times.
How much alcohol can a person drink per day?
People have different onesAttitudes towards alcohol.Some people can't 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 people who react completely indifferently to alcoholic drinks.Is there a safe dose of alcohol?Some doctors assure their patients that they cannot drink more than one dose of alcohol a week, while others are convinced that drinking more than 60 ml of vodka and 150 ml of wine per month already indicates drunkenness.Scientists have even developed many different formulas to determine a safe dose of alcohol for the human body.However, most narcologists agree that each person has his own, purely personal drinking norm, which directly depends on his individual characteristics.The last assumption can be called the most plausible, since some people can get drunk from a glass of wine, while others are not affected by a bottle of vodka.The most dangerous thing for the weaker sex is to drink alcohol.A woman very quickly falls prey to alcohol consumption and even small amounts of alcoholic drinks become addictive for her.Regular alcohol consumption puts a woman at risk of becoming an alcoholic within two years.Men are more tolerant of alcoholic beverages and no longer get drunk as quickly - after 10 years.
Doctors have conducted numerous studies and have come to the conclusion: in order not to fall asleep, men of average stature can drink up to 250 ml of wine, 500 ml of beer and no more than 50 ml of vodka (or other drink with a strength of up to 40 degrees) per day.For women, the permissible amount of alcohol per day is less: wine – no more than 150 ml, beer – up to 330 ml and vodka – 30 ml. It should be understood that we are talking about only one of the listed alcoholic drinks, and not about all of them at once.Scientists believe that these proportions cannot have any negative effects on human health.If you drink alcohol above the permissible limit, strong drinks will gradually and steadily turn you into a real alcoholic.When calculating the safe alcohol level for a person, not only gender is taken into account.Climatic conditions also play an important role in the development of alcoholism.It has been found that people in cold regions become drunkards much faster than in areas with comfortable temperature conditions.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 and therefore is more sensitive to the negative effects of ethyl alcohol.A young man who drinks low-alcohol beer gets drunk faster than a middle-aged man who drinks strong drinks.
It is understood that alcohol, even in small quantities, is contraindicated for pregnant and breastfeeding women, children, adolescents, drivers and people taking medications.According to the WHO, consuming around 8 liters of alcoholic beverages over the course of a year causes irreparable damage to health.At the same time, domestic narcologists note that the average citizen can drink 15-18 liters of alcohol per year, which 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 “vacation” are synonymous.Not a single celebration takes place without the tables sagging under the weight of bottles of vodka, cognac and wine.Inviting guests to your home and not giving them a bottle of alcohol is considered a sign of indecency.If a person is able to control the amount of water they drink under normal circumstances, they consciously allow themselves more relaxation and fun at a feast.
It's not for nothing that people suffer from all sorts of chronic ailments after the holidays.To comply with the norm, a person must clearly determine for himself how much he can drink and not exceed his daily limit.This is the only way a drinking culture can emerge.But it's not just holidays that contribute to the development of alcoholism.Some people prefer to be treated with strong drinks instead of medication after a viral infection.Alcohol really helps to destroy pathogenic microbes, but along with them it slowly and surely destroys the entire body.And anyone who combines strong drinks with medication during treatment is doing themselves a disservice: even the smallest portions of vodka, cognac or other drinks taken with tablets or mixtures deliver a severe blow to the liver, pancreas and cardiovascular system.In addition, excessive amounts of alcohol contribute to the development of alcohol addiction.In severe illnesses, alcohol poisoning occurs much more quickly.A dangerous condition is indicated by a very low body temperature (3-4 degrees below normal) and heavy breathing.Typically, cardiac arrest and death occur within 12 to 36 hours after a large amount of alcohol enters the body.
How much can you drink in other countries?Abroad, the 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 lower than for representatives of the stronger sex.Doctors are sure that alcoholic drinks in the specified doses help prevent diseases of the cardiovascular system.In Foggy Albus, the permitted alcohol dose is 32 ml of pure ethanol for men and 24 ml for women.In another country, an adult man with a clear conscience can afford to drink alcoholic beverages containing no more than 20 ml of alcohol without fear of harming his health and drinking himself to death.For women, this norm is reduced to 10 ml per day.In countries with a dark-skinned population, the permissible amount of alcohol for the male population is 24 ml of pure ethanol per day.
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.However, supporters of the hypothesis warn that only dry red wine can bring benefits;Stronger drinks do not bring any benefit to the body.By allowing themselves to drink, they always know their limits 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 addiction to alcoholic beverages is not to listen to stories about safe doses of alcohol and not 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 that can be used when labeling these products.The Health Ministry's State Research Center for Preventive Medicine has calculated safe standards for alcohol consumption, the newspaper article said.The standards define the amount of drinking that corresponds to low, medium and high harm to health.According to calculations by 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, the risk is low.The same dosage for five days increases the risk to medium, and consuming this amount of foamy drink every day corresponds to high risk.Men can drink a 50 ml glass of vodka twice a day with little health risk;While maintaining safety standards, it is better for women to drink one.If this norm is exceeded, the risk becomes medium.According to the recommendations of the State Scientific Research Center for Pregnancy and Pregnancy, a woman can drink two glasses (100 ml each) of dry wine with a strength of 13 degrees every day.Or a 150 ml glass of champagne.These doses pose a low risk even if taken throughout the week.
It is impossible to distinguish between 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's systems and the enzyme 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 alcohol consumption to a certain level and to stop at the right time based on recommendations.They are not deterred by consequences."If a person feels good, why should he suddenly stop? So it is worth noting that starting to drink alcohol already poses a risk," the expert said.